Homemade Race Track Cake Recipe: Best Birthday Cake for Kids

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Race Track Cake is a perfect theme cake for your kid’s birthday party. Make this cake easily at home and surprise your little one. The base is a chocolate cake, filled and frosted with ganache. The sides are finished with sticking chocolate waffy cigars.

A beautifully decorated race track cake with vibrant toy cars, perfect for a kids' birthday party

This year it was to be strictly no party but he implored with tears in his eyes and the innocence of a child (read: manipulator) how he wants to invite 2 of his school friends. And from no party, we ended up doing a party for 2 school kids. The number of guests may have been lesser but the work involved was equal to a full-fledged party for 20-25 kids, from balloons to homemade cake to burger and then Indian meal of Chole-Poori.

Detailed view of the intricate designs and decorations on the race track birthday cake

I wanted to make a number ‘9’ cake but the size needed for cutting out a perfect number was too big for a party of 3 kids and one mini-kid. So ended up requesting Vedanta to choose a simple race track cake which seemed easier to create.

Homemade race track cake, ready to celebrate a birthday
Race track cake placed on a table, ready to be served at a birthday celebration

The Race Track cake called for racing cars but we searched for the smallest dinky cars in Vedanta’s stash, washed and used them. So a transformer robot, a truck, and a hatchback are what you see on the track. :D

Top view of a homemade race track cake, showcasing the entire layout and decorations

After soaking, filling, and crumb-coating the cake, I poured ganache over the cake and tried to create grass, track lines, etc. The skill is abysmal at best but my son was the happiest and told his friends how the cake looks bakery made but my mother has made it. This was the full payment and satisfaction of the cake and the process.

A close-view of race track cake made at home

The sonny boy doesn’t like too bitter or strong chocolate flavor, so made a white cake base with ganache on top. Moist and just enough chocolate-y.

Quick and Easy Recipe to Make Race Track Cake at Home

Race Track Cake

Race Track Cake is a perfect theme cake for your kid’s birthday party. Make this cake easily at home and surprise your little one. The base is a chocolate cake, filled and frosted with ganache. Sides are finished with sticking chocolate waffy cigars.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Assembling Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 5 minutes
Course: Baking, Filling & Frosting
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Keyword: Bakery, cupcake, eggless
Servings: 8 inch layered cake

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • ½ cup sugar granulated
  • ¾ tsp baking powder
  • ¼ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ cup apple sauce unsweetened
  • ½ cup yogurt homemade curd or buttermilk
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • ½ tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • a pinch salt

Instructions

  • Pre-heat oven to 170 °C. Grease and line an 8 inch round pan.
  • In a large bowl, combine together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. In a separate small bowl, mix curd or buttermilk, oil, vinegar, vanilla extract and apple sauce.
  • Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl until just mixed. I added another teaspoon of curd to adjust the consistency. Pour the batter into prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes or till the tooth pick inserted near the centre comes out clean. Cool the cake completely in the pan before de-moulding. Freeze the layer till further use. Bake 2 more layers.
  • Assemble and decorate as per your choice.

Notes

  1. This recipe makes 1 layer. Repeat this process to get 3 layers.
  2. After soaking, filling and crumb coating the cake, I poured ganache over the cake and tried to create grass, track lines etc. The skill is abysmal at best but my son was the happiest and told all his friends how the cake looks bakery made but my mother has made it. This was the full payment and satisfaction to the cake and the process.

Sugar Syrup

Easy Sugar Syrup recipe to soak cakes & bakes
Prep Time1 minute
Cook Time3 minutes
Total Time4 minutes
Course: Baking, DIY, Filling & Frosting
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Keyword: Bakery, Quick & Easy
Servings: 1 cup syrup

Ingredients

  • cup sugar granulated
  • 1 cup water

Instructions

  • Boil water & sugar together. Once it boils, lower the flame & allow it to heat for another 1 minute. Remove from heat & cool completely. It can be made in advance & stored in refrigerator.
  • Use ⅓ cup of syrup to soak one layer of cake. If you are soaking White Cake then reduce the syrup per layer i.e. ¼ cup sugar in ¾ cup water. And soak each layer in ¼ cup syrup. With ⅓ cup syrup, I have found the cake to get over soaked.

for infusing flavor

  • If you are infusing flavor like rose petals, then boil petals once sugar is dissolved for 5-10 minutes. Cool & strain. Continue to use for soaking and assembling.

Notes

  1. The more you soak the layers before filling, the more moist your cake will be.
  2. You can infuse this syrup with flavors of your choice. I have used it with dried rose cake by infusing it with 1 cup dried rose petals. 

How to Assemble a Cake

Easy steps on How to Assemble a Cake. Follow them to create a layered cake in a jiffy.
Prep Time5 minutes
Active Time30 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Baking, Dessert, Filling & Frosting
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Keyword: Bakery, chocolate, Coffee, cupcake, eggless, Quick & Easy
Yield: 6 inch layered cake

Equipment

  • piping bag, nozzles & levelling knife for decorating and finishing
  • parchment paper or strips

Materials

  • sugar syrup or chocolate syrup for soaking
  • whipped cream or chocolate ganache or buttercream to fill & frost
  • fruits, sprinkles, chocolate chips, etc for topping or filling

Instructions

  • Move the frozen layers to refrigerator few hours before assembling. Place the first layer on a platter or cake stand.
  • Make some holes into the bottom layer using a form. Soak the bottom layer in sugar syrup. Then lightly spread the filling of your choice like whipped cream or butter cream or chocolate ganache over it. Place the second layer on top of the bottom layer & repeat the process of soaking & spreading filling. Finally place the top layer & again soak it. Lightly spread the filling on top & sides of the cake making a crumb coat. Refrigerate the cake for 1 hour.
  • Top it generously with chocolate ganache or any glaze or whipped cream or butter cream. Pipe design as you would like. Refrigerate the cake for at least 2 hours or overnight for flavors to set in. Serve chilled.

Notes

  1. You can whip the ganache before spreading as filling.
  2. The consistency of ganache for topping and filling is different. For filling, you need thick consistency (which you get by leaving the ganache at room temperature for few hours) and for pouring as topping, you need the ganache to be pouring consistency. You can re-heat/ warm up the ganache to adjust the consistency.
  3. I use soy-based ready-to-whip cream which is available in market. Transfer a small portion of cream in a large bowl or your stand mixer and beat till stiff peaks are achieved. Fill and frost as per your choice.
A fabulous race track cake with two toy car at the top

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