I really like the look of Wilton’s 3D Bunny Cake Pan, so I was excited to try out my first bunny-shaped cake when I discovered one small problem with the pan: it doesn’t come with a recipe. Instead, it comes with decorating suggestions and simply states that you’ll need 4 1/2 cups of pound cake batter to make the cake. This was a bit of a problem for me because, let’s face it, it is much easier to bake a cake that is the right size for a given pan. I didn’t want to take the risk of starting off with a too-small recipe that couldn’t be sure would rise up enough to fill up the pan. So, I picked a high-rising variation on a pound cake recipe I like and scaled it down to fit the pan.
This pan is very easy to use. You simply grease and flour it, then fill it with batter (once you’ve got the amount nailed down) and you’re ready to go. I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to check the cake for doneness, since you can’t see the cake as it bakes, but fortunately there is a small hole in the top of the pan to fit a toothpick or cake tester into and it works well. The cake bakes on its side, and it is easiest to handle if you set it on a baking sheet.
This cake recipe is tender, with a good vanilla flavor to it. It is a bit lighter than some pound cakes, more like a cross between a yellow cake and a pound cake. It’s still easy to handle as you’re decorating and quite sturdy. Use a wooden skewer or an extra long toothpick to test this cake for doneness, since a short toothpick will not get all the way to the center of the pan to see if it is cooked through.
Now, you can try other recipes in this pan, too. If you use a recipe that makes a big batch (say, a recipe that would ordinarily bake 2 dozen cupcakes), you can measure out the appropriate amount of batter for the bunny and bake the rest off as cupcakes. Choose a high-rising cake if at all possible to ensure that it will fill up the bunny. If you’re not sure, you’ll know you have enough batter when the bottom part of the bunny is almost completely filled up; this amount of batter will give you the best chance of having a complete bunny. And if you’re missing a tiny bit after baking – well, that is what frosting is for!