Watermelon Cake DIY

When I think of watermelons, I think of hot, summer days spent belly flopping into the pool, floating alongside the bobbing green spheres. We would try to balance on top of them. We’d throw them into the chlorine and squeal at the enormous splash. We’d compete to see who could get to the rind the fastest and we’d spit the seeds as far as we could. Every now and again we’d see vines sprout up from the dirt and we’d religiously check as the tiny melon started to grow. Water balloons. Noodle fights. Bubbles, sunscreen and ice cream sundaes. Shaving cream parties on the trampoline and finger (or toe) painting in the garage. These are the flashes that come to me with the scent of that first slice of a watermelon. So this cake, baked with love for my watermelon-obsessed roommate, is dedicated to summer and all the warm memories it evokes for you.

Here’s what you need:

Boxed white cake (cheater, cheater)

Vanilla icing

Red and green gel food coloring

Chocolate chips (I used the fat ones)

Brown sprinkles (hindsight 20/20)

Rolling pin

Knife

Ziplock bag

Round cake pan

A package of fondant

Aluminum foil

I wanted this cake to be an immersive experience. I wanted everyone to convince themselves that it tasted like watermelon because it looked so much like one. I don’t think it worked, but this is why I dyed the cake batter pink and dropped chocolate chips into it before baking. The chocolate chips backfired, however, so I recommend using brown sprinkles inside the batter so it’ll be more like funfetti and less like the bottom of your cake fell off (read: there’s no bottom to this cake). 

While the cake baked according to the fancy box’s instructions, I kneaded the fondant and dyed it green. This was a messy process, but I just went with it. Next, I sprinkled aluminum foil with powdered sugar and rolled the fondant out with a rolling pin. When it was about 1/4″ thick, I sliced it with a sharp knife to resemble a rind and estimated the perimeter of the cake, shortening afterward as necessary. From there I poured about 1/2 cup white icing into a Ziplock bag and dyed the rest of it pink.

Once the cake finished baking and cooled completely, I covered it in pink icing, wrapped it with the green fondant, filled the gap with white icing along the perimeter and strategically placed fat chocolate chips on top.