Sand Castle Cake

This crumb-covered cake is "shore" to make a splash at any beach- or sea-themed birthday bash. Scatter some candy seashells and rocks around the base and prepare for a wave of compliments.

What you'll need

• 8-inch round yellow cake
• 9-inch square yellow cake
• 2 (12-ounce) cans whipped vanilla frosting
• Vanilla wafers, 12-ounce box
• 4 jumbo ice-cream cups
• 2 small ice-cream cups
• 6 sugar cones
• Graham cracker sticks (we used Nabisco Honey Maid Grahams Honey Sticks)
• Candy seashells and rocks

How to make it

1. 
   Use a long serrated knife to trim the top of the round cake flat, if needed. Cut a 5 1/2-inch and a 3 1/2-inch circle from the square cake, then stack all three pieces, spreading vanilla frosting between the layers. Frost the stack.
2. Use a rolling pin or food processor to crumble the wafers. With your hands, press the crumbs into the frosting, completely coating the cake. Spread frosting on the bottom of each ice-cream cup, then set them around the cake. With a serrated knife, carefully trim 1 1/2 inches from the top of 2 of the sugar cones. Set all 6 cones into the cups to complete the turrets, spreading a bit of frosting around the rims to hold them if needed.
3. Press 2 graham cracker-stick doors into the middle cake layer and rim the rest of the cake with graham cracker-stick halves. Sprinkle the remaining crumbs around the base and add a scattering of candy seashells and rocks. Serves 12.