Vegan Halloween Spider Cake Recipe

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This Vegan Halloween Spider Cake Recipe is a spooky showstopping cake that’s perfect for Halloween parties, trick-or-treat celebrations or any creepy themed gathering. This impressive three layer vegan vanilla sponge is covered in smooth buttercream before being decorated with a striking black spider’s web and piped spiders. Although it looks spectacular, it’s much easier to decorate than you might think, making it the perfect Halloween centrepiece.

TL;DR

• A fun and spooky three-layer Halloween celebration cake.

• 100% vegan and dairy-free.

• Soft vanilla sponge with smooth vegan buttercream.

• Decorated with an eye-catching spider’s web design.

• Serves 16 people.

• Perfect for Halloween parties and spooky celebrations.

Vegan Halloween Spider Cake Recipe

Ingredients

For the Sponge

• 600g self-raising flour
• 375g caster sugar
• 2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
• 112g golden syrup
• 173ml vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 600ml soya milk

For the Buttercream

• 500g vegan butter block, softened
• 1kg icing sugar, sifted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Black gel food colouring

For the Decoration

• Halloween sprinkles

How to Make Vegan Halloween Spider Cake Recipe

Step 1: Bake the Sponge

Preheat your oven to 160°C (320°F) and grease and line three 8-inch round cake tins.

In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine the self-raising flour, caster sugar and bicarbonate of soda.

In a separate jug, whisk together the golden syrup, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and soya milk until smooth.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until you have a smooth, lump-free batter.

Divide the mixture evenly between the three prepared cake tins and bake for around 30 minutes, or until the cakes are golden and spring back when lightly pressed in the centre.

Leave the cakes to cool in their tins for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Step 2: Make the Buttercream

Beat the softened vegan butter block with the vanilla extract until pale and creamy.

Gradually add the sifted icing sugar, mixing until the buttercream is smooth and fluffy.

Step 3: Assemble the Cake

Trim the tops of each sponge layer so they are level.

Place a small spoonful of buttercream onto your cake board or serving plate to hold the cake in place.

Position the first sponge layer on top and spread over an even layer of buttercream. Repeat with the second layer before placing the final sponge on top.

Apply a thin crumb coat of buttercream over the entire cake using a palette knife. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes until firm.

Step 4: Decorate the Cake

Cover the chilled cake with a smooth layer of buttercream using a palette knife and cake scraper, remembering to reserve some buttercream for the spider’s web decoration.

While the buttercream is still soft, gently press the Halloween sprinkles around the bottom edge of the cake to create a colourful border.

Colour the remaining buttercream with black gel food colouring, adding a little at a time until you reach your desired shade. If you’d like to add a message to the cake, reserve a small amount of uncoloured buttercream first.

Transfer the black buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle.

Pipe one straight line across the top of the cake, continuing down both sides to about halfway. Pipe another line at a right angle to create quarters, then repeat until the cake is divided into eight equal sections.

Pipe a small spider at the end of each section by creating a round body with eight thin legs.

Starting around the outside edge of the cake, pipe gently curved lines between each section to form the spider’s web. Continue working towards the centre until the web is complete.

If you’re adding a message, colour the reserved buttercream with your chosen gel food colouring, transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle and pipe your message onto the cake.

Top Tips

• Chill the crumb-coated cake before decorating for a smoother finish.
• Use a cake scraper to achieve straight, professional-looking sides.
• Add the black food colouring gradually, as a little goes a long way.
• Practise piping a spider or two on baking paper before decorating the cake if you’re new to piping.

Variations

• Add chocolate sprinkles to the sponge for a cookies and cream style cake.
• Colour the sponge orange or purple for an extra spooky surprise when sliced.
• Decorate with edible sugar eyes or fondant spiders.
• Use orange or purple buttercream instead of white for a different Halloween look.

Serving Suggestions

Serve this Halloween Spider Cake as the centrepiece for a Halloween party alongside spooky cupcakes, biscuits and hot chocolate. It’s also perfect for children’s parties and Halloween birthdays.

Storage

Store the cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Allow it to come back to room temperature before serving for the best texture. The undecorated sponge layers can also be frozen for up to 3 months.

FAQs

• Which Food Colourings Are Vegan?

Recipes Similar to Vegan Halloween Spider Cake Recipe

• Halloween Pumpkin Cupcakes
• Halloween Gummy Worm Brownies

Comments

Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment below and let me know how it turned out. 

Halloween Spider Cake

Difficulty: Medium

Servings

16

servings

Prep time

1

hour 

50

minutes

Cooking time

30

minutes

Total time

2

hours 

20

minutes

Ingredients

• For the Sponge

• 600g Self Rising Flour

• 375g Caster Sugar

• 2 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda

• 112g Golden Syrup

• 173g Vegetable Oil

• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

• 600ml S0ya Milk

• For the Icing

• 500g Vegan Butter Block at room temp

• 1kg Icing Sugar

• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract

• Black Gel Food Colouring

• For the Decoration

• Halloween Sprinkles

Directions

• For the Sponge
• Preheat the oven to 160ºc/320ºf and grease and line 3 8 inch round cake tins.
• Mix the self raising flour, caster sugar and bicarbonate of soda in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer.
• In a large jug mix the golden syrup, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and soya milk.
• Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and mix until a smooth batter forms.
• Divide evenly between the baking tins and bake for 30 minutes or until golden. The sponge should spring back when lightly pressed. Allow to cool completely.
• For the Icing
• Beat the vegan butter block and vanilla extract with a stand or hand mixer until pale and smooth.
• Sieve in the icing sugar and mix until well combined.
• To assemble the cake trim off the tops of the cakes so that they are level. Put a small blob of icing onto a cake board and put one layer of sponge on top.
• Spread icing over the sponge layer and place the next layer on top. Repeat for the final layer.
• Cover the cake in a very thin layer of icing using a palette knife and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
• To Decorate
• Coat the cake with a smooth layer o the icing using a palette knife and cake scraper, making sure to leave some icing for the spider web.
• While the icing is still wet, use your hand to brush the halloween sprinkles up the side of the cake to create a ring of sprinkles around the bottom of the cake.
• Colour the remaining icing black with eh black gel food colouring (if you want to write on the cake save a small amount). Add a little at a time to get the desired colour.
• Put the black icing into a piping bag with a small round piping tip.
• Use the piping bag to pipe a line across the cake, diving it into two halves. Continue the line down either side of the cake to about halfway down the cake.
• Make another line at a right angle to split the cake into quarters and continue half way down the sides of the cake. Repeat twice more to divide the cake into even eighths.
• Make spiders at the ends of each piece of web but piping a circle and adding eight legs each.
• Working from the outside in, join the web together by piping a slightly curved line between each point (as pictured below). Repeat until you reach close to the centre.
• If you want to add writing now is the time to do that by adding gel food colouring in a colour of your choice to the small amount of icing that is left and using a small piping tip again.