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a school bus cake on a white cake plate with a dark wood background
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School Bus Cake

A School Bus Cake is a great way to celebrate the start of a new school year! This is the perfect after school snack on the first day of school!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 30 minutes
Assembly Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings 12
Author Meghan

Equipment

  • Ruler
  • Long serrated knife
  • Large offset icing spatula
  • disposable piping bags
  • Small round piping tip, such as #5
  • Small star tip

Ingredients

  • 1 boxed cake mix prepared according to package directions for a 9x13-inch cake
  • 4-5 batches Easy Vanilla Buttercream
  • Yellow food coloring gel
  • Store bought black frosting
  • M&M's
  • Chocolate covered mini donuts
  • Nilla Wafers
  • Mini Nilla Wafers
  • Edible food coloring pens

Instructions

Assemble the Cake

  • To assemble the cake, start by cutting the cake into 3 equal pieces using a long serrated knife. Each piece should measure approximately 4x9-inches.
    a funfetti cake cut into two equal pieces
  • Take the center 4x9-inch rectangle and slice it into two pieces that are about ⅓ and ⅔ the length. This will give you a pieces that roughly measure 4 inches by 5.5 inches and 4 inches by 2.5 inches.
    a strip of funfetti cake cut into ⅓ and ⅔ portions
  • Hold the smaller piece upright and use the knife to split the piece in half so you have two thinner pieces that still measure about 4 inches by 2.5 inches.
    a piece of funfetti cake standing up with a serrated knife cutting it down the middle
  • Spread some buttercream on a cake platter and place one of the 4x9-inch rectangles on top and cover the top in a layer of buttercream.
    a rectangular piece of cake with vanilla buttercream spread on the top
  • Place the second 4x9-inch layer on top and cover the top in buttercream.
    two layers of funfetti cake rectangles with vanilla buttercream in between and on top
  • Place the 4x5.5-inch piece on top, flush on one side of the cake. Spread an even layer of buttercream on top. The add the two split 4x2.5-inch pieces to form a single thin layer. There may be a slight overhang of cake.
    stacks of funfetti cake that are two layers at the front and 4 layers at the back
  • Add a layer of buttercream on top.
    buttercream between each layer of a bus cake and on top
  • Shape the cake with the knife if needed to form the shape of a bus. This may require cutting off an overhanging pieces of edges that do not line up.
  • Add a thick crumb coat over the entire surface of the cake with an offset icing spatula. This helps seal in the moisture.
    a completely covered bus cake with vanilla buttercream as a crumb coat
  • At this point you can pop in the cake in the refrigerator if you have room while you tint your buttercream and prepare the other materials for decorating.

Decorate the Cake

  • Tint the remaining vanilla buttercream with golden yellow food coloring gel to achieve a deep color like a school bus.
  • Fill a disposable piping bag fitted with a small round tip, such as Wilton #5, with black frosting. Use the black frosting to draw the windows and door on the bus. This includes the long double door near the front, a large rectangle on each side of the bus, and a large front window. Add a back window, if desired.
    a piping tip held up to show a small round tip with black frosting in the piping bag and black lines piped on a bus cake in the background
  • Use food coloring pens to draw children's faces on the Mini Nilla Wafers and an adult face on a regular Nilla Wafer for the bus driver. Place those Nilla Wafers in the windows.
    vanilla wafer faces placed in the window of a bus cake
  • Place the yellow buttercream in a disposable piping bag fitted with a small star tip. Pipe stars all over the rest of the cake except for the windows.
    one side of a bus cake before placing on the M&M lights
  • Place red and orange M&M's on the front and back of the bus to represent the lights. Pipe black frosting around the M&M's to enhance the "lights."
    the back side of a bus cake to show the M&M brake lights
  • Add two chocolate donuts on each side of the bus to represent the wheels.
    the side of bus cake with the donut wheels and black lines on top of the golden yellow buttercream
  • Lastly, pipe on some black details on the sides and front of the bus, like lines underneath and above the side windows. Add some extra lines on the front of the bus to represent the grill. For a personal touch, you can add your child's bus number to the cake below the side window by the bus door.
    a finished school bus cake on a white cake platter

Notes

Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. If you refrigerate the leftovers, bring them up to room temperature before serving.
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