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Back in February, I introduced you to possibly the best R2-D2 cake ever, created by my friend and professional baker, Mark Randazzo, who just started up a new bakery, Mark Joseph Cakes. Turns out I wasn’t the only one amazed by this creation. The post drew the attention of BoingBoing, Gizmodo, Elite Choice, and many others. While I loved the traffic, I was even happier that Mark and his wife Leslie, who both run the bakery, got so much exposure. I told them that the next time they make an R2-D2 cake, they have to take more pictures for me to post about.
Well, thanks to the Internet buzz, it wasn’t long before someone came calling. Mark once again whipped up an extraordinary R2-D2 cake, which had to have blown away the four year old birthday boy who received it. Even better, judging by the photos, it appears as though R2 is really one giant red velvet cake with RICE KRISPY TREAT LEGS. I want one. Now.
Whether you’re a Star Wars enthusiast or simply a lover of cake, you have to see this.

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Auspicious beginnings: Mark bakes several rounds of cake. I have to assume it’s red velvet cake based on the color.

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The stacking begins. The bowl of frosting is both a) making me salivate, and b) confirming my red velvet cake suspicions.

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Could you even imagine a red velvet cake so tall? This alone would be worth price of admission.

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It gets taller! Actually, there’s a method to this madness. Notice the separator after the top four slices? Everything above it will be the rounded head.

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Voila!

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Now the head is removed. You can see poles used to keep the stack upright.

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More frosting…

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I think this is fondant that’s now been wrapped around the cake. Don’t hold me to it though.

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Top and bottom reunited. Looks like a little trash pail.

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Time for the legs. Mark cuts them out of Rice Krispy Treat blocks.

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Before.

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After.

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Voila part II.

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Deconstructed again.

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With the sizes and proportions up to par, it’s time to start the detail work.

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Crazy, right? This is what separates the men from the boys.

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Further detail work.

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Now the “torso” gets the special treatment. All edible, mind you.

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Nearing completion…

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Almost there…

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Success!

So now you have photographic proof that yes, the R2-D2 cake is actually cake. Mark is amazingly talented, and if you live in the New York City area, you should seriously consider speaking with him if you need a cake. This isn’t just a gushy friend speaking. He’s really excellent at what he does. He’s even been on the Food Network’s Extreme Cake Challenge where he and his then boss created a giant monkey cake with fireworks. It was awesome (and they won).
Anyway, for more information on Mark Joseph Cakes, check out his site here. And if you get a cake from there, take pictures and send them along!
UPDATE: Here are the goods from Mark and Leslie about what’s inside the cake: “The whole thing is layers of red velvet cake with white chocolate ganache and chocolate hazelnut buttercream filling throughout. And yes, the rice krispy treat arms.”
UPDATE II: Here are photos from the birthday party where R2 was lovingly consumed.
PS: If this is your first time at the site, welcome! Feel free to click around, and hopefully you’ll find more stuff to amuse you!

81 replies on “Making The Most Amazing R2-D2 Cake Ever”

  1. That is fabulous. How long did the whole thing take to finish?
    I love red velvet cake. My mouth is watering right now. 🙁

  3. That is freaking amazing. What a feat of engineering.
    Last week I was in a bakery, saw the most lovely red velvet cupcake, and decided, no, I really didn’t need to eat that. Now, my appallingly bad decision has come back to haunt me. I predict I will be acquiring that cupcake’s cousin in less than 24 hours.

  4. “This isn’t just a gushy friend speaking. He’s really excellent at what he does.”
    I second that! I’m a big fan of the chocolate luciousness which I so lovingly call “The ‘fro Cake”; every chocoholic’s dream cake. I had it several years ago, but remember it like it was yesterday!

  5. i would so eat the shavings he took off to make R2’s head.
    cake is one of the top 10 requirements in my life.
    hb

  6. Utterly amazing…my only requirement would be that it was chocolate and more chocolate.
    I’m with you, hb, cake is a requirement in my life. First Chipotle burrito, second chocolate milkshake, third chocolate cake.

  7. My name is braunie, and I have never tasted red velvet cake. I have admitted my problem, and I know I must remedy that. NOW.

  8. Yum! and Wow! How cool is that cake. I can’t believe he can carve like that with rice krispies.

  10. My youngest kid is now so jealous. Except that this so the wrong color. Blue is R2D2.
    B-side this rocks.
    I am so on the hook to make him a rocking cake…Maybe.

  11. You should totally get a cake! And then take pictures!
    I really want someone to order a cool cake of something. Like a BioShock character or some Super Mario thing. Or Iron Man. I don’t know why sci-fi and videogames translate so well into cakes, but they do.

  12. I can confirm that Mark’s cakes taste as good as they look…(as in tasty, not like a metal robot android thingy)…I love the progression photos!
    I want to see a B-Side effigy cake…think Mark and Leslie are up to the challenge?

  13. B-side my kid so wants a Link cake. Linktheheroofhyrule is his name, or something like it.
    Zelda rules at my house.
    I had a red velvet cake for my 40?? birthday and it freaked out a friend the next day. He thought he was dying. We still bring it up. Such bad friends we are…

  14. I must also admit that I`ve never heard of a red velvet cake…is this mainly an american thing?
    Judging by the other comments it sounds delicious. Oh, and the cake…well, that is just awesome! The man is an artist. Any idea how long it took him to create it?

  15. Braunie red velvet is so delish, it was two of the three layers of my wedding cake 🙂 The top layer is currently in my FIL’s beer fridge, well the freezer portion since he doesn’t use it but if you come out in April I will share.
    For a while there it was hard to find red velvet if you didn’t make it yourself so I poof’ed when it was on my baker’s list. Now I am starting to see it everywhere.

  18. That cake is amazing. Truly a work of art! (Though, as someone mentioned above, I do wonder why it is red instead of blue.)

  19. about the color…
    R2D2 was blue but there are other R2 units in the movies that were other colors. So this is an R2 unit but not R2D2…
    There was also R5D4 which shows up in the jawa sand crawler in episode 4. He was red.

  24. The best match is R2-M5 from the Royal Naboo Starship. R4-P17 is close but the dome and markings are reversed.

  28. Welcome, Fark people (farkers?). This is very exciting. I’m having a huge amount of traffic. And at 9 diggs, this is my most dugg story ever. I just hope this all translates to sales for Mark and Leslie.
    If anyone needs a wedding cake, I’m telling you, they’re the tops.

  30. MMM…grate and all, but the small thing that made that cake horrible was the small congratulation-phrase there. If it would’ve been meant for me, I would totally hate it! Learn to make some damn good looking letters!

  31. Great cake, good job.
    I love how all the Star Wars geeks, like myself, were quick to point out that it is an R2 unit, just not R2-D2.

  32. the commint “I think this is fondant that’s now been wrapped around the cake. Don’t hold me to it though.” for pics 8-9 thats not fondant its more icing you can still see shades of the cake threw it the fondant is on at pic 15 and below
    I saw your friend on the episode of extream cakes hosted by Duff
    Truthfullyany professional should be able to make a cake like this its just a layered cake with a dome top and far less detail than 70% of wedding cakes you just have to make sure theres not imperfections because they will stick out more on a cake of this detail lvl
    if your in bosten swing by charm city cakes you will see some pretty impressive cakes like that one

  33. Charm City Cakes is in BALTIMORE not bosten……………….
    Fab cake anyway, and I’m sure they charged accordingly.

  34. Charm City Cakes is in BALTIMORE not bosten……………….
    Fab cake anyway, and I hope they charged accordingly.

  36. Wow, that’s great to know! I wonder if George Lucas has seen this. That would be awesome. Does George Lucas have a summer place in the NY area? I bet Mark and Leslie would totally make a cake for him.
    Nevertheless, welcome to the site everyone! Click around! There’s lots to see!
    Sorry for the abundance of exclamation points.
    Anyway, I think the details are made of fondant. Not positive. I can find out.

  37. I’m not sure if GL has a place in New York. Nevertheless, I hope he does see the cake. This is one of the best looking Star Wars cakes I’ve seen (the Star Wars blog has already featured a number of them). The idea of using the rice krispies… brilliant! And I hope Mark and Leslie make other Star Wars characters, that would be totally awesome.
    Please do ask about the detailing. Thanks so much. 🙂

  41. I am actually astonished something this cool was somewhat wasted on a 4 year old. 4 year olds eat crickets and the contents of their own noses. For shame.

  42. Awesome cake!!! Just one point of interest. R2-D2 is blue and not red. This is actually a replica of R2-D1 (R2-D2’s red cousin). Nobody cares, I know. I just have this thing for getting the details correct.

  47. Wow, Nice job. I am now starting to realize how old I am. Would a small child getting this even know what it was about.
    Can I have the scraps where you trimmed the top?

  50. Just to clarify, this is quoted from the man who ordered the cake. There is a link on this page for photos from the family who bought this cake and on there the dad states:
    “My son loves Star Wars from playing the Wii Lego Star Wars games. R2-D2 comes in different colors in the game (Blue, Red, and Black/Yellow) and he loves the Red R2 the most. So, a few months before I came up with the idea of having a Star Wars themed party. I had recalled your original post (which I came across on BoingBoing), and got in touch with Mark about doing a similar cake but in Maroon, as the piece de resistance of the party.”
    Just thought that might help a bit with the color debate. Great job on this cake!!!

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