Karen’s fabulous Pirate Ship Cake is another cake made by a parent in our series Kids Cake Ideas. The idea was adapted by Karen from Birthday Cakes for Kids by Annie Rigg. Perfect for your little pirate’s birthday cake.
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Serves 16
Ingredients
- 350g butter
- 350g caster sugar
- 6 large eggs lightly beaten
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 300g plain flour
- 50g cocoa
- 5 teaspoons baking powder
- 5 tablespoons milk
Method
- Preheat oven 180C/Gas 4
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Gradually add beaten eggs. Add vanilla extract.
- Sift together plain flour and baking powder and add to cake mixture in 2 batches. Add milk and mix until smooth.
- Bake in 33x23x6cm Rectangular Cake Tin.
- Bake on the middle shelf for 30 – 35 mins. (You will know your own oven so check near end of cooking time). Leave to cool for 10 minutes in tin before turning out onto a wire cooling rack.
For the Chocolate Butter Icing:
- 350g butter (softened)
- 600g icing sugar
- 100g cocoa powder
Mix all of the ingredients until nice and smooth. You will need icing for the cake and decorating..

How to Decorate
- Red writing icing
- Yellow writing icing
- Red and yellow smarties
- Curly Wurly
- Small thin kids dairy milk bar for gang plank
- Jolly roger photos from the internet, stick these onto wooden skewers.
- Cut cake as per photo using a little icing to stick pieces together.
- Cover the cake in icing using a palette knife. Use Curly wurly for the sides of the ship. Decorate with writing icing and Smarties.
- Use half dairy milk for gang plank and add jolly rogers and mini figures.
Ahoy there mateys you are done!
Related : Lots more Birthday Cake ideas here.
Have you made a similar cake before? Let us know in the comments below