Would this birthday cake idea be OK?

[missyB1]

So after a few years of paying people to make novelty birthday cakes for ds which always look great but taste very average, I've decided to bake a cake myself this year. Trouble is I'm no baker! I've decided to ditch the whole novelty cake thing anyway as I actually think he prefers good old fashioned cakes like my mum used to make for me.

So I'm thinking Victoria sponge sandwiched with jam, and top covered in homemade icing (from icing sugar) and lots of sprinkles and smarties. Is that too plain / boring? I could put chocolate buttercream in the middle and chocolate icing on top? It has to be idiot proof!

Our cakes for home are always chocolate cakes, with chocolate spread for icing covered with sweets. The non birthday child helps decorate it for the birthday child. The DC love it.

Go for it! Everyone likes a proper cake.
You could always do fairy cakes to go with it, you can be a bit more adventurous with them.

It sounds perfect to me-and delicious too

Sounds delicious, if you want to make it look a bit more pro, put roll out fondant on it and order a cake topper of some kind to stick on - heaps on line, you can get photos put on icing too, but your plan of home made icing will taste better

Sounds delicious! You could always use the smarties to spell out name / age - really fancy!

Kit kats or chocolate fingers around bad the side of s chocolate cake look cool www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/538582/chocolate-fingers-cake

Phew! I'm glad it's OK to get away from the novelty cakes thing! I think I will do a trial run to make sure my sponge skills are up to it!
Thanks peeps I was worried it wouldn't be sophisticated enough.

Sounds fine! I'd top it with butter cream though.

Does he like jam?

I definitely think "novelty" cakes are overrated, good-old-fashioned all the way for me!

I make novelty cakes, though I make flavour a priority as it has to be eaten & to me that is the most important thing in a cake, but it never fails to amaze me how few novelty cakes I have eaten at parties are disgusting, plastic tasting & dry.

Personally I would go for a homemade cake over one of those every time!

If he likes Victoria sponge, then your idea sounds lovely, if he doesn't (my DD hates it) then as above, go chocolate & use chocolate spread to fill it.

If you want to add a bit of a novelty theme, then you can buy lots of different styles of novelty cake toppers & printed rice paper toppers on Amazon & most are not expensive

How many not few

My autocorrect has gone nuts since the last upgrade

I love a homemade cake, prefer it to a novelty cake any day. I do either a choc or Victoria standard 20cm cake then ask birthday child if they would prefer sweeties (haribos, smarties, choc sweeties etc) or a themed cake topper. It's probably fifty fifty which I make. Go to eBay for themed cake topper for 5-10 quid. I plonk these in Victoria sponge with glacé icing - so easy!!!
I have friends who make novelty cakes each year but personally I don't understand the faff- my children have always been over the moon with their cakes. Oh and I never use buttercream on a Victoria sponge, only glacé. Happy baking! (Mary Berrys sponges are best, by the way!)