It looks like the new Alice in Wonderland film by Tim Burton has sparked a re-interest in Lewis Carroll’s book, judging by this new cake on that very theme.
I’ve always been quite partial to Alice in Wonderland, and I’m sure you can imagine that it has something to do with being named after the titular heroine. However, I didn’t think the new film really did the tale justice, so I’m happy to see that this designer cake, made by Elizabeth Marek of the Artisan Cake Company, follows the theme of the older Disney film instead.
There’s an awful lot going on in this cake, so let’s start with the simplest part: the cupcakes. Half of them have tiny cake toppers with a sign that says “Eat Me”, while the rest are bottles that say “Drink Me”. While they probably won’t make you grow or shrink, they look delicious. I like how the paper cups are red, but the frosting is a delicate Alice blue; this combination of colors has a fantastic contrast.
On the bottom chessboard platform, there are a few figures on display – they look like sugarpaste, although they might also be resin. There are two Mad Hatters, the White Rabbit, Humpty Dumpty, the Red Queen, and a few of the Queen’s playing-card guards. Most of these characters look like their Disney counterparts, except for one of the Mad Hatters who seems to have been created from the original drawings in the book.
The first layer of cake looks like a round table set for tea, judging by the wide assortment of teacups and saucers scattered about. Alice stands on this layer, with the Cheshire Cat watching her from a distance.
After another layer of red stripes and hearts, there is a tier of cake that looks just like the Mad Hatter’s hat. On its brim rests the White Rabbit’s kid gloves and pocket watch; I like how the kid gloves were included even though they don’t play a huge role in the story.
On top of the hat, there are a few red roses, which as we know, were painted red by the Queen’s unlucky guards. I would’ve liked to see a bit of white peeking out under the red “paint”, so that you could never mistake them for generic flower decorations on a cake – but they still look fine the way they are. Finally, we reach the top layer – an enormous teapot with a smaller teacup perched on its lid at a jaunty angle. This final piece brings everything together; after all, you’re eating cake at a mad tea party.
While we’ve seen a number of crazy dessert designs, this one really takes the cake; it’s hectic, but not so cluttered that you can’t figure out what’s going on. If you’re a fan of Alice in Wonderland, you might be interested in another Alice Cake design – or if you’re an even bigger fan, you might consider this large-scale Alice Tattoo.
