What to Do With Leftover Cake: 12 Delicious Ideas
Save a broken cake, or just use up cake scraps, using these delicious recipes!
Some of you might be thinking, "There's no such thing as leftover cake!"
And while we agree that finishing off a whole dessert is always tempting, sometimes there really is too much cake to eat at once. If you've recently hosted a party or the holidays, or you've just been on a baking spree, you might find yourself with more cake than you can eat before it goes bad.
The good news it that we have solutions! There are lots of things you can do with cake to transform it into something new. You can blend it into ice cream concoctions, make cake balls, and even throw it on the grill! These ideas for using up cake will appeal to a variety of tastes, and one is sure to be the perfect fit for you.
These recipes are also perfect if you don't have a whole cake to use up. Give leftover cake scraps a second chance, or save a broken cake using these recipes.
Plus, if you're just looking for a way to preseve your cake before it goes bad, we found some of the best tips on the internet for freezing your leftover cake. Sometimes you know you'll want the cake in a few weeks, but you just don't have time to eat it right now. Freezing leftover cake for later is the perfect solution. And it's easier than you might think!
1. Make Cake Shakes
We're pretty sure that the world is a better place because of cake shakes. Who can resist this magical combination of desserts? Chocolate lovers especially will rejoice with this recipe, as we're sharing this Portillo's Chocolate Cake Shake recipe from our friends at AllFreeCopyCatRecipes.com. This cake shake is a delicious solution for leftover chocolate cake. You will love ultra chocolatey flavor and the creamy texture of this dessert.
Cake shakes are a great idea for what to do with dry chocolate cake. No one will notice that the cake got a little stale in the refrigerator once it's blended into a delicious ice cream treat.
Click Here for the Recipe!
2. Make Leftover Cake Balls
What better way to use up leftover cake than to mix it with frosting and cover it in chocolate? You can use any recipe for cake balls (or cake truffles) that you like, but we particularly like this one from our test kitchen. Instead of baking a fresh cake, as the recipe suggests, simply use the leftover cake that you have on hand. If you only have a few slices of cake left, rather than an entire cake, be sure to adjust the amount of frosting down. Also adjust it down a bit if your cake already has some frosting on it!
We also love to make cake balls from broken cake. This delicious dessert will hide the most epic cake fail (and we won't tell).
Click Here for the Recipe!
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3. Make Leftover Cake Bread Pudding
Bread pudding is a great way to use up leftover bread. Why not use up cake scraps using this method too? Leftover cake bread pudding works best with less delicate cakes. Think pound cake, fruit cake, or richer carrot cakes. You don't want your cake to disintegrate completely when you add the milk, sugar, and eggs.
Get started by giving this delicious Fruit Cake Bread Pudding a try!
4. Garnish Drinks with Leftover Cake
Rich, chocolaty dessert drinks are popular for a reason. They're basically like a slice of cake in a glass! So, it only makes sense to garnish drinks like this with a little bit of cake. Try crumbling up your leftover cake, spreading a thin layer of frosting around the rim of your glass, and then dipping the glass in the cake crumbs. You'll get a little "bite" of cake in every sip of your drink! This works great for recipes like this chocolate martini, but it's also a fun way to serve hot chocolate.
Click Here for the Recipe!
5. Make "Dirt" Pie
This is one of our favorite ways to use up leftover chocolate cake! Dirt pie will take you on a trip back in time, but we're here to tell you that it does taste as good as you remember it. Crumbled chocolate cake can easily take the place of Oreo cookie crumbles in this recipe, leading to a pillow-soft chocolate dessert that everyone will swoon over.
Click Here for the Recipe!
6. Make Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes
This idea is almost too cute to eat (but not quite)! Ice cream cone cupcakes are a bit of an optical illusion. They are usually made by placing cupcakes in ice cream cones. A dollop of frosting on top acts as the "ice cream!" However, this dessert can easily be made with leftover cake. Simply cut a circular slice of cake and pop it into the ice cream cone. Top with your favorite frosting, and you've got a super fun snack that everyone will admire.
Get the Recipe Here!
7. Make Leftover Cake Brownies
You've heard of twice baked potatoes, right? Well, these are bit like twice baked brownies. You can actually mix up leftover cake crumbs with brownie batter ingredients, bake until gooey, and enjoy your leftover cake as brownies!
See How It's Done Here!
8. Make Ice Cream Cake
Ice cream cake isn't just ice cream, after all. You need some delicious cake in order to make it! Use some of your leftovers to create perfect layers in your favorite ice cream cake recipe. This version uses vanilla cake in order to make the inside look like a pint of Neapolitan ice cream. It's the perfect solution when you're wondering what to do with leftover cake.
Get the Recipe Here!
9. Make a Trifle
This is another recipe that's great for cake that's a day or two old. Dry chocolate cake will be easily disguised by the layers of velvety pudding and decadent whipped topping. The half cup of Bailey's Irish Cream in this recipe certainly doesn't hurt, either!
We love this chocolate trifle, but you could easily make other versions with other flavor combinations. Consider vanilla sponge cake with whipped cream and cherry topping or strawberry cake with banana pudding and chocolate sauce. The possibilities are endless!
Click Here for the Recipe!
10. Make Ice Cream Topping
Get ready for your most gourmet ice cream sundae ever! It's a piece of cake (sorry) to turn leftover cake into a sweet, crunchy topping that is perfect for ice cream. Add it to your favorite ice cream concotion. You'll be very glad you did. This idea works well with leftover cake, and it's also a great broken cake recipe.
Learn how to make cake ice cream topping here!
11. Grill the Leftover Cake
Grilling probably isn't the first thing you think of when it comes to cake, but we give it two thumbs up! This is a great way to use up leftover pound cake because pound cake will stand up well to grilling (i.e. it won't crumble when you put it on the grill). A dollop of whipped topping will turn your leftovers into dessert heaven!
Get the Recipe Here!
12. Bonus Tip! Freeze the Cake for Later
If you have more cake than you know what to do with, freezing it can be a great option. You can freeze whole cake, and you can also just freeze a slice or two. Slicing a cake before you freeze it can be especially convenient. That way, you can defrost the cake one slice at a time. Talk about a delicious mid-week treat!
Here are a couple of great resources for freezing cake --
How do you use up leftover cake? Tell us about your brilliant ideas in the comments!
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