How to make a last minute Zombie cake

I was trying to think of something to make for our ward trunk or treat party for the Spooky Dessert contest. After looking around pinterest, I decided I wanted something gory/spooky, not just cutesy/spooky.

I knew I didn't have time for a trip to the store, so I needed to use stuff I had at home. In my Halloween stuff, I remembered that I had these skull head cup cake toppers.

 

 then I remembered this Bride Cake I made a few years ago...I had sent the rest of the cake home with the bride, since it didn't all get eaten. The mother of the Bride had washed the barbie doll cake topper and brought it back to me. So, I had saved it with my cake decorating supplies, thinking I might use it again...

 

hmmm, the skull seemed about the right size, so I popped off the doll head, cut a hole in the skull and popped it on. Then I cut off the doll face (which I left laying around the house and it kind of freaked out my kids, so I think I might use that for something...) and glued the hair to the skull.

I didn't have the time to make a real cake, and they cake be a little finiky in the skirt shape anyway, so I did rice crispy treats.

Also, I had no time to make fondant, and my husband broke my Bosch, so I would have had to do it by hand... uh, no thanks. No, buttercream it was.

I was in such a hurry, I left the back uncovered. Viel was cheesecloth slightly shredded, and the black part of my baby's Halloween costume that I had to cut off so she wouldn't trip on it.

I was hoping fake blood would be enough for the gory factor.

I think it was. BTW- to make quick edible fake blood, just mix corn syrup and red food color. It will even puddle cause the corn syrup is thick enough.

 

You can't really see it, but she's standing on a black doily and there are some skeleton hands coming out from under her dress.
My 5-year old was observing the process and was quite perplexed, "Why are you cutting that doll?"
"Why does she have a keleton face?"
"Why is she bleeding?"
I finally told her that she was supposed to be scary, and that she needed to make up a story to go with her. Then she smiled and said,:

"There was this girl, she was getting married, and um, on the first day when she was getting married, somebody shot her in the heart. And her face to turned into a skeleton. Her husband ranned away."
Suddenly she was Ok with it.

To me, the best part (aside from winning 1st place) was the girl that was serving it said that some of the kids would come up and look at it, and when she asked them if they wanted some, with big eyes, they would shake their heads and back away from the table. But then, if she pulled out a plate that already had a cut piece on it, they would take it. Funny.