How to Make a Cauldron Cake

To create the edible pot, Food Network Magazine trimmed a four-layer cake, leaving a wide lip around the edge. The whole cake is frosted black with doughnut handles and gummy-candy flames. That bubbling green stuff on top is just lime gelatin. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat four 9-inch cake pans with cooking spray. Prepare the cake mixes; divide the batter among the pans and bake and cool as directed. Meanwhile, prepare the gelatin as directed.

Level the domed tops of the cakes with a long serrated knife. Stack 3 of the cakes on a small cardboard circle with a thin layer of chocolate frosting between each cake. Freeze at least 30 minutes.

Put the 3-layer cake on an upside-down cake pan (so trimming will be easier). Using a small serrated knife, trim the bottom edge of the cake to round it out, then round out the top edge. Frost the top.