3D Thomas Train Cake Recipe
Would your Thomas obsessed pre-schooler love a themed birthday party with an amazing cake in the shape of the famous little blue train? Well, you’re not alone. Thomas the Tank Engine toys are amongst the best-selling preschool items in the US, UK and Australia. Kids everywhere love a Thomas party and thankfully, plenty of other brave parents have paved the way (check out their party ideas here). And read on for step by step instructions to make the 3D Thomas train cake.
To make this Thomas Cake you will need:
The Cake & Fondant Template
This Thomas cake will serve 40 people, you can scale it down if you have less guests.
Cake: two and a half times the rich chocolate cake recipe baked into five trays 25cm (9.84 inches) x 38cm (14.96 inches) baked at 356F (180 degrees Celsius) for 20 minutes.
Fondant for thomas train cake
400g (14.11 ounces) black fondant
650g (22.93 ounces) blue fondant
450g (15.87 ounces) red fondant
30g (1.06 ounces) yellow fondant
160g (5.64 ounces) grey fondant
Note: Fondant quantities are actual amounts used on the cake, so allow extra for rolling out.
Frosting for train cake:
Two quantities of buttercream recipe in flavour of your choice
Two quantities of ganache recipe, allow to cool completely at room temp overnight. Whip together with the buttercream, use to cover the outside of the train before adding fondant.
Equipment needed for train cake:
Fondant extruder (makes it quicker and easier but optional you can roll long skinny snakes instead).
Circle cutters
Ruler
Pizza cutter (optional)
drinking straw to cut small circles
rolling pin
non-stick baking paper
spray oil
metal piping tip or something with 1.7cm (0.67 inches) diameter to cut circle
To make the thomas train face see this previous post:
Instructions
1: Make the fondant details ahead of time so they can dry out (see video)
2: Bake the cakes, prepare the frosting and make the simple syrup. This can be done 2 days before the party. See above for quantities.
3: Construct and decorate the cake the day before the party. See the video for demonstration. You will need a very strong cake board that is at least 35cm (13.78 inches) long and 20cm (7.87 inches) wide.
4. If it is very hot where you live, store in the fridge otherwise room temperature is fine.
5. Enjoy the birthday boy or girl’s face when they see their Thomas cake. Don’t forget to take photos!
by Ann Reardon
2013
My Cookbook
Stores that sell my book listed by country:
http://bit.ly/ARcookbook
All recipe quantities in the book are in grams, ounces and cups.
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Hi could you pls let me know how many servings would be this 3D Thomas engine cake?
Thank You ?
Hi, Can you advise if I need to print the template on A4 or A3 paper please?.
Many thanks
you can print on A4 … It will print over several pages that you can then just tape together in the correct size for the cake.
ANN, how deep are your pans? Mine are wilton cake pans and two inches deep. Can the train be made with my pans. Thanks
Ann my template, which I ran off computer, has hugh print on each one and I can’t read the instructions. On one I can’t see the pattern. Can this be fixed? I need it this week. Love the train. Thank You Pat
Hi Jules,
sorry about that. The watermark is meant to be very light, however we have found over the years that some printers still print it too dark. Unfortunately it cannot be removed. If it is un-usable then we can offer you a refund.
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Dear Ann, I like your ideas, thank you very much for nice and interesting inspiration 🙂
Amazing Janka, you’re Thomas looks great ?
Made this for my sons 4th birthday and it was absolutely gorgeous
Well done Josie, looks fantastic ?
Here’s my effort! I made it with a madeira sponge as my little boy doesn’t like chocolate cake. It’s been really warm here in the UK and I found that even leaving the fondant pieces out for 4-5 days they didn’t firm up, but it didn’t matter too much. I left the cake in the fridge over night with the buttercream crumb coat and should have let it come to room temp before applying the fondant, as I ad condensation, but I was pushed for time. Everyone was super impressed! (Tasted lush too – if anyone wants the madeira recipe, let me know!).
Looks fantastic Dawn, well done, happy birthday to your son.?
Hi! I wanted to use store bought funfetti frosting instead of buttercream- do you think this would work? Also how long do the pieces need to dry for? And do I leave them uncovered? I live in Ny and it’s quite warm this time of year!
Hi Becky, Yes, leave the pieces uncovered to dry out (if you put them in an airtight container they will not dry). They usually take a few days to harden but you can make them up to a month ahead.
I’ve not tried the funfetti frosting – you’ll need to do a small test. Get a small plastic container, flip it upside down on a plate and cover with the frosting. 1. Is it firm enough to hold its shape or does it drip down off the container. 2. If it passed test one then cover with some fondant and leave for several hours. Does it make the fondant ‘weep’ ie is there a small pool of clear liquid sitting on the plate? If so the frosting has too much water in it to work under fondant.
Hi Ann,
I am making this cake for my boyfriend (he’s going to be 28 but he’s called Thomas and he loves trains!). I’m just getting a bit anxious that I will not have enough time to decorate the cake. The party is on Friday but I need all the decoration to be done by Wednesday evening, when his stepdad is coming over to pick up the cake. If I defrost the cake on Tuesday and decorate it that evening, will it be too stale by Friday? Not sure I will have time on Wednesday!
Thanks,
Ellie
Hi Ellie, obviously the fresher the cake is the better. But if that is not possible you can add some simple syrup to the cake and it helps it to stay moist. Mix 1/2 cup sugar with 1/2 cup of water and microwave until the sugar is dissolved. Allow to cool and drizzle some on each layer of cake before adding frosting.
Hi Ann, If I want to make this cake for 20 people, can I just halve your chocolate cake recipe and print the templates at 50%? This cake is amazing, going to attempt for my sons 3rd Birthday 🙂
I made this cake. It was absolutely wonderful. I do have a suggestion. With the template, it would be great if you could add numbers other than one. That way if it’s a cake for a 2,3,4, etc we could use those numbers instead. Thanks for an amazing website!
Great job Michael, Your cake looks great well done! I hadn’t thought about using different numbers for the childs age, not a bad idea. 1 is the train number. ?
Hi,
I’m going to attempt this, but my almost 3 yr old doesn’t like chocolate cake (I KNOW), do you have another basic sponge recipe that would work?
Hi Dawn, my sponge cake would be too fluffy and light for a carved cake like Thomas, but you could use my almond vanilla / lemon cake recipe instead… https://www.howtocookthat.net/public_html/pink-barbie-car-cake/
Hi, I’ve been trying to buy the templates but when I click “buy” it downloads the same page again and again and again… is it a technical issue or is not available for purchase anymore?
Hi Barbara, yes the template is still available. I’m really not sure why you are having issues. Is it possible to try from another computer & let’s see if that works for you?
Hi Ann, thank you for your reply. I tried it again and could get it. Thanks! Your recipes are like dreams coming true especially for the children. I can’t wait to see my boys face whe he sees Thomas, the cake 🙂
Awesome good to hear Barbara ?
Two and a half times the cake recipe seems an awful big amount of eggs and sugar. Is 20 eggs and 1.2kg of sugar correct?
Hi Sarah, Yes it is a big cake ? Most pastry chef cake recipes have more eggs in them per serve than normal cake recipes because it makes a moister yummier cake.
What dose the two and the half times the cake mixture mean
I’m a complete novice at making cakes this is the 2nd time I’ve made a cake with fondant. You’re template was brilliant, as well as your YouTube video. It has taken me 3 days in total, 1 day for templates, 1day for cake and 1 day for decorating. The only thing I found was both bumpers had broken when trying to put it on the cake. Thank you so much for your video so easy to follow. Can’t wait to see my boy’s reaction tomorrow.
Click on the ‘buy’ button on this page and you’ll be sent a link to download the template at home 🙂
Hi Ann
I made this for a friends sin’s 30th birthday!
Got so many great comments and posted it on a cakers forum (Uk) and loads are asking where I git the template from, so expect a rush of requests for them!
It was so much bigger that I thought it would be and my first 3D cake. I am new to the business and your tutorial was great. Thank you
Awesome cake, well done Barbara ?
Made this for our 3-year old. You are so talented, grateful for your detailed directions. This was a hit!