How to Make a Showstopping Shark Cake

We're gonna need a bigger cake stand.

By: Heather Baird

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Photo By: Heather Baird SprinkleBakes.com

This Cake's Got Some Bite!

When you slice open this toothy cake to reveal the school of fishies in his belly, your party guests will grin. Sorry, fish — in this case, you're food not friends. 🤷

Follow along with this step-by-step tutorial to recreate this impressive dessert, and find the full recipe here.

Get the Recipe: Red Velvet Shark Cake

Make Holes in the Layers

This cake starts with three 8-inch round cakes and two 6-inch round cakes — get the full recipe for the delicious red velvet layers here. To start building the shark, use a 3 1/2-inch round cookie cutter to remove the centers from two of the 8-inch cakes. You can also remove the center with a serrated knife.

Stack and Fill

Frost the top of one layer, and top it with the second. (Find instructions for making the buttercream in the full recipe.) Fill the hole with assorted blue sprinkles and hard candy fish — it helps to mix them up in a bowl or jar before you pour them into the cake.

Top With More Frosting

Frost the top of the second layer, taking care to avoid the candies in the center.

Close 'Er Up

Place the third (uncut) 8-inch cake layer on top, and chill in the refrigerator until firm.

Slice Some Shapes

Trim the edges from the two 6-inch cake layers so that the center piece is a large triangle shape. Cut the triangle into two pieces down the center, and don't toss the rounded edge pieces — you need those too!

Trim a Just Bit

Carefully trim two edges from the chilled cake, so the cake becomes more oval-shaped. Don’t trim too much or you’ll expose the candy-filled center!

Add the Triangles

Pipe a line of frosting on one long side of top of the cake. Place the triangle pieces cut from the 6-inch cakes upright into the frosting, pointed ends to the sky.

Frost Away

Cover the cake with buttercream, rounding the very top of the cake to a point that resembles a shark's snout.

Add Some Color

Frost the back half of the cake with blue-grey buttercream. Can you see our shark taking shape?

Make the Mouth

Pipe red buttercream into the front cavity and smooth it to cover. This creates the shark’s mouth.

Add Flippers

Two of the rounded edge pieces from the 6-inch cakes become the shark’s flippers. Pipe a line of buttercream on both sides of the base of the cake. Place the rounded cake pieces on the frosting so they stick and cover with the blue-grey buttercream.

And, of Course, He Needs a Dorsal Fin!

Attach two more of the rounded cake scraps to the back of the cake with frosting, trimming as needed to create a shark fin shape. Cover with the blue-grey buttercream.

Make the Eyes

Make a small divot on each side of the shark head with the back of a spoon, and pipe black frosting to fill each divot. While the frosting is still wet, add a single white confetti sprinkle to each eye.

Think Pointy

Trim white candy melting wafers with a knife or kitchen-dedicated scissors to create pointed teeth.

Give the Cake Some Bite

Press the teeth into the buttercream around the mouth, creating a double row of shark teeth. Chomp!

Add Water

Spread blue buttercream frosting around the base of the cake to make water around the shark.

Make Waves

Add a little white frosting to the blue frosting, and use an offset spatula to make wave patterns.

Mold Life Preservers

Fill two sections of a non-stick donut pan with melted white candy wafers. Chill until set, about 20 minutes.

Finish the Look

Place the rings on either side of the shark, and turn them into life preservers by piping lines of leftover red frosting.

Cut a Big Slice

Open up the shark’s belly using a serrated knife to reveal the fish candies inside!

On Tonight

Shark Week