How to Make a Big Beach Ball Cake with m&ms®

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - tutorial- Press Print Party!

When planning our pool party, I created all the printables with a beach ball theme. So it seemed like the perfect time to learn how to make a beach ball cake. In my search, I came across a beach ball cake decorated with m&ms® HERE. It looked like so much fun! And with my passionate dislike of fondant, I was sold! But, the cake in the linked post was so small. The Wilton ball cake pan is only 6 inches in diameter. That’s fine if you want a small ball on top of a cake but not if you want the whole cake to be a ball.

Pool Party Beach Ball Birthday Bash - Ideas and decorations by Press Print Party! Beach ball cake and table

Fortunately, I found this hemisphere pan on Amazon. I opted for the 9-inch pan and it was the perfect size for my project.

Because I’m using a bigger pan I didn’t think that making the whole ball out of cake batter would work. I was afraid the bottom layer would crumble while trying to hold the weight of the top. Mostly, I was doubtful in my ability to pull it off.

The solution was to make the bottom half out of Rice Krispies® treats. They’re stronger and created a solid foundation for your cake on the top half.

You will need:

  • 9-inch sphere pan
  • 1 9″ cardboard cake round
  • 3 nails
  • 2 boxes of cake mix (or your own cake batter)
  • 1 box of Rice Krispies® + ingredients for 2 recipes of Rice Krispies® treats.
  • 1 large party size m&m® bag
  • White m&ms® (found some at a candy shop). You could use white mints. I also bought some light blue m&ms® for contrast on the bottom.
  • Vanilla Buttercream frosting

Make the ball cake:

Butter your half sphere pan and mix 2 cake mix boxes into it. I used the Trader Joe’s Vanilla because it’s always a hit.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

I secured the pan in the oven by propping it on a circle egg shaper. A cookie cutter would work great too.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

Bake per the box instructions. Because of the size, ours took a bit longer than usual. Use a cake tester to make sure your cake is baked all the way through before you take it out.

After the cake has cooled, level your cake and invert it. We had some trouble here as you can tell. Probably didn’t butter the pan enough. Nothing frosting can’t hide.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!


Make the Rice Krispies® treats:

Use 2 or 3 recipes of the Rice Krispies® treats to fill the buttered half sphere pan. Make sure you pack it in good. We really needed a bit more here. Wait until it cools to invert it.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!


Make the base:

Pierce the cardboard cake round with the 3 nails as shown.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!


Put it all together:

Secure the Rice Krispies® treats bottom to the nails.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

Frost the middle and invert the top cake layer on it.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

A little trimming and a crumb coat later:

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

Add more frosting and start placing the m&ms. I scored the frosting with a toothpick first to make guidelines. I really wanted the traditional beach ball look so I had to buy the white m&m® separately at the candy store in the mall. You could use more of the colors in the m&ms® party pack bag and make stripes of different colors.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party!

Pool Party Beach Ball Birthday Bash - Ideas and decorations by Press Print Party! Beach Ball Cake

A great addition to the beach ball printables in my shop.

Pool Party Beach Ball Birthday Bash - Ideas and decorations by Press Print Party! Beach ball cake.

How to make a beach ball cake with m&msHow to make a beach ball cake with m&ms - Press Print Party! - Press Print Party!

Beach ball was the theme for this party but learning how to make a big ball cake could be useful to make a soccer ball cake, a basketball cake or even a Star Wars® Death Star cake!

Please let me know if you’ve made one. I’d love to see your creations. Especially a Death Star!!!!

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2 thoughts on “How to Make a Big Beach Ball Cake with m&ms®

  1. celebspanda says:

    these cake balls look so delicious and yummy. I just love this. thanks for sharing this wonderful article with us.

  2. Pingback: Beach Ball Pool Party Birthday Bash! - Press Print Party

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