Baking a spherical cake

[PeteXXX]

As per title..
Grandson's birthday coming up in a couple of weeks. Theme appears to be Basketball.

I think the easiest way for a fully spherical cake would be two hemispheres stuck together.
Questions are:
1} Will a chocolate fudge cake support its own weight in this shape?

2} Will it be possible to bake it all the way through without the edges & 'thinner' parts burning/over cooking?

3} Am I being a tad optimistic 😂

 

[Pblakeney]

Whenever I have such doubts I defer to someone who knows what they are doing.

 

[Oldhippy]

Two stainless steel bowls and bake and putting them together when baked i reckon.

 

[PeteXXX]

Whenever I have such doubts I defer to someone who knows what they are doing.

I can bake cakes, it's just the spherical aspect of the task..

Two stainless steel bowls and bake and putting them together when baked i reckon.

Yep. That's the basic plan 👍

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Two stainless steel bowls and bake and putting them together when baked i reckon.

Indeed that is what I would do too.
You will need to cut a bit of one bottom off, so the ball can sit on the cake board or buy a bespoke tin like this - cheaper are available.
I would make a chocolate sponge, layer the halves together with chocolate ganashe.
To make it look like a real ball you'll have to cover it with jam first, then marzipan, then with the appropriate colour of icing.
Google a few ideas, no doubt it will look lovely and taste delicious.

 

[Reynard]

I would bake several 2-egg sponge cakes, stick them together with icing, then carve a sphere.

Offcuts turned to trifle.

 

[figbat]

I would bake several 2-egg sponge cakes, stick them together with icing, then carve a sphere.

Offcuts turned to trifle.

You beat me to it.

I would bake a robust sponge otherwise it’ll collapse or squash. For this sort of thing the look is generally more important than the eating, although it’ll still be edible and if covered in icing no doubt appealing to the recipient. Covering a sphere in icing will be quite the task though - good luck!

 

[PeteXXX]

I'll think about my plan for a few days... 👍

 

[Reynard]

You beat me to it.

I would bake a robust sponge otherwise it’ll collapse or squash. For this sort of thing the look is generally more important than the eating, although it’ll still be edible and if covered in icing no doubt appealing to the recipient. Covering a sphere in icing will be quite the task though - good luck!

That's what the blocks of rollable fondant are for!

Also, chocolate truffles with the cake bits.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

I would bake several 2-egg sponge cakes, stick them together with icing, then carve a sphere.

Offcuts turned to trifle.

I don't trust my carving skills, I would use the two semi spheres to bake the cake for sure

Covering a sphere in icing will be quite the task though - good luck!

I guess one could use a buttercream icing, like for cupcakes, then smooth it out.
There are many soft icing recipes, some taste better than others.

 

[PeteXXX]

The cake is pretty certainly needing to be a chocolate fudge cake, therefore slightly gooey 🤷‍♂️

 

[Reynard]

I don't trust my carving skills, I would use the two semi spheres to bake the cake for sure

I guess one could use a buttercream icing, like for cupcakes, then smooth it out.
There are many soft icing recipes, some taste better than others.

You use a cardboard template as a guide

 

[colly]

Does it need to be basket ball size? That would be a real problem I reckon.

 

[classic33]

Howabout
https://wilton.com/3d-basketball-cake/wlproj-3014/