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    Home » Recipes » Cakes

    Easy Dinosaur Cake {Dino Cake}

    Published: Mar 21, 2022 · Modified: Dec 11, 2023 by Abeer Rizvi · This post may contain affiliate links · 3 Comments

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    Easy dinosaur cake (dino cake), homemade with simple ingredients. This DIY birthday cake is composed of two tiers of chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, candies, crushed Oreos and toy dinosaurs to create a faux Jurassic Park world.

    This is a great and easy option for a themed party. Plus, you will definitely earn brownie points with your child if you make this fun cake for his or her birthday. If you have a little dino fan at your house, you should also check out these Dinosaur Cupcakes and Dinosaur Cookies. Want something a bit different? Check out all these great Birthday Cake Ideas!

    Easy Dinosaur Cake With Two Tiers on Rustic Background

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    How to make easy dinosaur cake (dinosaur birthday cake) from scratch?

    1. Bake cakes- Allow them to cool completely.
    2. Fill and frost cakes- In chocolate icing.
    3. Stack cakes- And use dowels or bubble tea straws for support.
    4. Arrange dino toys- On the cake to look like the prehistoric era.
    5. Sprinkle- Chopped up candy bars, chocolate stones and Oreo crumbs for dirt.
    6. Puddle ganache- Around some of the dinos.
    Easy Homemade Birthday Dino Cake- Closeup Shot of Top Tier

    Variations for Jurassic world cake/ Jurassic park cake

    Use different cake toppers- Such as those made with fondant, paper, or plastic that you can purchase online.

    Use different candy dirt- You can use various cookies and candy substitutes to make up the "dirt," such as Sugar Babies, chopped up Crunch Bar, Nerds, M&Ms, or Milk Duds.

    Try other frostings- Such as Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting, Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, or Coconut Cream Chocolate Frosting.

    Use dino pans- And bake the batter in that. Then, just use frosting to add final details.

    Try other cake flavors- Such as vanilla, Funfetti, Red Velvet, or another one of your favorites.

    Add a Filling- Such as Nutella, peanut butter, Homemade Vanilla Custard, Raspberry Pie Filling, or this Chocolate Whipped Cream.

    Add more tiers- And make a taller cake.

    Make a single cake- It can be square or round shaped. This would be great for a smaller party.

    Tips and techniques for Dino cake/ T-Rex cake

    Wait for cake to cool before frosting- So that the frosting doesn't melt on the cake and you get a cleaner look.

    Wash toys before applying- Because you don't want germs or particles on your cake.

    Only use cookie part of Oreo- You don't want the cream part, because it will make them gooey and look less "dirt-like."

    Use dowels or straws- Don't skip this part, because it helps support the cake and prevents the two tiers from falling over or digging into each other.

    Use large cake boards- This allows you to create story and a scene.

    Don't smooth out the icing- Because you want to give an overall rough and rustic appearance,

    Dinosaur Toy in A Puddle of Chocolate Ganache

    Dinosaur cake toppers

    There are many different options, but I really enjoy using toys. However, you can also use fondant shapes, paper goods, or purchase options online to complete the overall look.

    • Make 3D dinosaurs out of Marshmallow Fondant or Modeling Chocolate (Candy Clay).
    • Use cookie cutters to cut out dino shaped fondant or make decorated cookies and stick them on the final dessert. This way, you get to enjoy 2 treats- cake and cookies.
    • Make cardboard dinosaur cutouts decorated with food safe materials.
    • Purchase pre-made cake toppers online or through a cake decorator.
    • Purchase edible dinosaur images to place on top.

    Simple dinosaur cupcake cake

    Cupcakes are arranged in a dino shape, then decorated with buttercream icing using various decorating tips. Sometimes even fondant accents are used to make things pop, especially the eyes and mouth. These are easy to pull apart and eat at parties- similar to my pull apart Football Cupcakes Cake or pull apart Watermelon Cupcakes or Flower Cupcake Bouquet.

    Closeup Shot of Edible Faux Chocolate Stone Stone and Dirt on Birthday Cake

    Storage of decorated cakes 

    Make ahead instructions- You can decorate and store this cake at room temperature for 8-10 hours, as long as there are no perishable fillings.

    Fridge- Place in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

    Freezer- Place unfrosted cake and frostings in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Thaw and then decorate, as per instructions below.

    Collage Image With Step By Step Pictures on How to Make Dinosaur Cake

    More easy birthday cake ideas and designs

    • Best Birthday Cake (Easy and Fun)
    • Easy Pokemon Cake (Pokeball Cake)
    • Easy Construction Cake (Excavator Cake)
    • Easy Emoji Cake (Poop Cake)
    • Erupting Volcano Cake (With Dry Ice Smoke)

    Recipe

    Easy Dinosaur Cake (Homemade Birthday Dino Cake) With Two Tiers on Rustic Background

    Easy Dinosaur Cake (Birthday Dino Cake)

    Abeer Rizvi
    Easy dinosaur cake (dino cake), homemade with simple ingredients. This DIY birthday cake is composed of two tiers of chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, candies, crushed Oreos and toy dinosaurs to create a faux Jurassic Park world.
    5 from 2 ratings
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 20 minutes mins
    Cook Time 40 minutes mins
    Decorating time 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 20 People
    Calories 621 kcal

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    Ingredients
      

    • 2 Chocolate cakes Dimensions: 8×3 and 4×3
    • 6-7 cups Chocolate ganache frosting
    • 2-3 cups Chocolate candies Such as chocolate stones/rocks, mini Reese's, Whoppers, Lindt truffles, mini chocolate chips
    • 1 cup Oreo crumbs
    • ¼ cup Chocolate ganache

    Instructions
     

    • Bake cakes and allow them to cool completely.
    • While the cakes are cooling, prepare the frosting and chop up some of the candies in half.
    • Place each cake on a round cardboard cake board that's the same size as the cake.
    • Cut each cake in half horizontally and spread icing on top.
    • Place the other half of each cake on top and press gently to secure together.
    • Ice both cakes fully in icing and use the back of a spoon to create a rustic pattern.
    • Place the 8 inch cake on a large rustic serving board.
    • Stick 4 dowels or bubble tea straws in the center of the cake and cut straws to the correct height.
    • Place the other 4 inch cake on top of the dowels and press gently to stick the 2 tiers together.
    • Arrange the washed dinosaur toys on the cake and on the large rustic board.
    • Create an illusion of a Jurassic Park world or a prehistoric era site by sticking chopped up candy bars, chocolate stones and sprinkle Oreo crumbs for dirt.
    • Create a puddle of ganache around some of the dinosaurs to represent wet mud.
    • Stick some dinosaurs along the side of the cake to show they are climbing the tiers.
    • Be sure to decorate the tiered cake as well as the large board to create a bigger story. Enjoy!

    Notes

    • Read all my tips above.
    • Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

    Nutrition

    Calories: 621kcalCarbohydrates: 109gProtein: 5gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 3mgSodium: 561mgPotassium: 237mgFiber: 2gSugar: 81gVitamin A: 29IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 155mgIron: 3mg

    An automated tool is used to calculate the nutritional information. As such, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information provided for any recipe on this site.

    Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below or rate and tag @cakewhiz on social
    Jurassic World Cake or Jurassic Park Cake- Closeup Shot of Green Dinosaur Toy Climbing on Side of Birthday Cake
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kara

      February 06, 2023 at 2:47 pm

      Such a fun cake, and I love that you don't have to be a cake decorating expert to pull it off!

      Reply
    2. Allyson Zea

      February 06, 2023 at 4:13 pm

      Wow this looks so good! My kids would love it!5 stars

      Reply
    3. jess

      February 06, 2023 at 4:56 pm

      how fun and creative is this cake! and it doesnt take a cake master to make it either! (which I am not haha) thank you so much for sharing this fun cake idea! 5 stars

      Reply
    5 from 2 votes

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