Haunted Halloween Graveyard Cake

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Last Updated on September 12, 2024 by Alaina Bullock

Spooky, sweet, and frightfully fun, this Halloween Graveyard Cake combines Orange Fanta and OREO cookies for a dessert that will haunt your taste buds in the best way!

Why You’ll Love This Halloween Cake

There are so many frightfully fun reasons why I love this Halloween cake! Here are just a few:

• Fun and Festive: This cake is the perfect centerpiece for any Halloween gathering!
• Easy to Make: Just mix, bake, and decorate. No need for advanced baking skills here!
• Kid-Friendly: Kids will love helping decorate with OREO dirt and spooky tombstones.

How to Make a Halloween Haunted Graveyard Orange Fanta Cake

This cake is super simple to put together, and the results are both delicious and delightfully spooky. Let’s walk through the steps to create your haunted masterpiece!

Kitchen Tools You Will Need

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Before you start, make sure you have these essential tools ready:

• 9×13-inch baking pan
• Mixing bowls
• Hand mixer or stand mixer
• Food processor or plastic bag and rolling pin (for crushing OREOs)
• Decorating tools: Piping bag or plastic bag for icing

Ingredients You Will Need to Make this Halloween Orange Fanta Cake Cake

To make this cake, you’ll need a few basic ingredients and some fun additions for decorating:

For the Cake:

• 1 box of your favorite moist vanilla cake mix
• 1 cup of Fanta Orange Soda
• 1 (3-ounce) package vanilla instant pudding mix
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

For Decorating:

• 1 tub of your favorite chocolate icing
• 8-10 OREO cookies, crushed into “dirt”
• Tombstone-shaped cookies (or use marshmallow tombstones)
• Black cookie icing for writing on tombstones
• Bone-shaped sprinkles
• Marshmallow ghosts

For the Grass:

• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 6-8 drops green food coloring
• Plastic snack bag with a seal

For the Tree:

• Black licorice
• Thin black wire (like floral wire)

For the Fence:

• Pretzel sticks
• Chocolate chips for baking (to use as “glue”)

Instructions to Make Haunted Graveyard Cake for Halloween

Follow these simple steps to create your very own Halloween Graveyard Cake! From mixing the batter to decorating with spooky OREO dirt and tombstone cookies, each step is designed to make this cake both fun to make and delicious to eat. Let’s get baking and bring your haunted masterpiece to life!

Step One: Preheat the Oven and Prep the Pan

• Set your oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan and set it aside.

Step Two: Make the Cake Batter

• In a large bowl, combine the vanilla cake mix, vanilla pudding mix, eggs, and vegetable oil.
• Replace the water typically called for in the cake mix with Fanta Orange soda. Pour the soda directly into the batter and mix well for about two minutes, enjoying the fun bubbles that form.

Step Three: Bake the Cake

• Pour the batter into the lightly greased 9″ by 13″ baking pan.
• Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Follow the baking time on the cake mix box based on your pan type.

Step Four: Prepare the Decorations

• While the cake bakes, gather all your decorating supplies to make the dirt, tree, fence, and grass.

Tip: I found it easiest to put each ingredient into its own bowl. This is also the perfect time to make the OREO dirt, the licorice tree, the chocolate-covered pretzel sticks for the fence, and the coconut grass. 

Step Five: Make the Oreo Dirt

• Making the OREO dirt is simple. Just place several OREO cookies into a food processor and pulse on high until the crumbs are very fine.
• Or you can place the cookies in a sealed plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

Step Six: Licorice Tree

• Take six strands of black licorice and cut off the very ends. Now take a piece of wire and thread it through each licorice piece until it reaches the end. Use the wire cutters to cut off any extra wire.  Do that for all 6 pieces.
• Next, take another piece of wire, cut it to about 4″ long. Now bundle the pieces, slip the wire underneath, and then, about 1/4 of the way up, twist the wire to secure them all together.
• After that, simply bend each branch until you have the desired spooky shape.

You can watch a video here if you need some help. 

Step Seven: Make the Grass

• Place shredded coconut in a plastic snack bag, add 6-8 drops of green food coloring, seal the bag, and shake until the coconut is evenly colored.

Step Eight: Assemble the Fence

• Melt chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl, dip pretzel sticks into the melted chocolate, and arrange them on wax paper to dry. These will be used to create the fence.

Step Nine: Decorate the Cake

• Once the cake is fully cooled, spread the chocolate icing evenly over the top.
• Now comes the fun part! Decorate your cake with OREO dirt, tombstone cookies, marshmallow ghosts, and bone-shaped sprinkles. Finish by adding your licorice tree and chocolate pretzel fence.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• Get Creative: Use any Halloween-themed candy to personalize your graveyard scene.
• Store It: Keep the cake covered and refrigerated if you have leftovers—if there are any!
• Make It Your Own: Swap out decorations to fit your theme or add more colorful sprinkles for a pop of fun.

Show Me What You’ve Got!

Did you make this Haunted Halloween Graveyard Cake? I’d love to see your spooky creations! Share your photos on Instagram and tag me @bullocksbuzz or use #bullocksbuzz. Don’t forget to pin this recipe on Pinterest so you can make it again next year!

Looking for More Halloween Treats?

Craving more ghoulish goodies? Check out these other fun and festive recipes perfect for your Halloween celebrations! And don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter for more deliciously fun ideas delivered straight to your inbox.

• Halloween Graveyard Frosting Board
• Spooktacular Halloween Ghost Cupcakes Recipe
• Halloween Candy Bark

Free Printable Recipe Card