Bake Bilbo’s Birthday Cake from His Long-Expected Party in Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

It’s Hobbit Day! September 22 is the day we celebrate the birthday of two of our favorite hobbits — Bilbo and Frodo Baggins.

This year, I’m celebrating at home — because I think that’s one of the coziest places to be.

That house was a perfect house, whether you like food or sleep, or story-telling or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all. Merely to be there was a cure for weariness, fear, and sadness. — The Fellowship of the Ring

Looking for a fun way to celebrate Hobbit Day at home?

I’ve got some fun Lord of the Rings-inspired DIY projects and recipes for you to try!

—> DIY ‘Now Serving Second Breakfast’ Sign

—> DIY Gandalf Burglar Mark Window Cling

—> DIY Arwen and Aragorn Canvas Quote Signs

—> DIY Hobbit-worthy Herb Markers

—> DIY ‘Speak Friend and Enter’ Welcome Mat

—> Hobbit Door Cookies

And for more ideas, check out this great Hobbit Day guide from The Sartorial Geek!

Bilbo’s Cake from His Birthday Party in Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Of course, you can’t celebrate Hobbit Day without a birthday cake! I decided to make my own version of Bilbo Baggins’ birthday cake from his long-expected party in The Fellowship of the Ring.

My cake may not be as large as his — I’m not trying to feed the entire Shire! — but it is delicious! I went with a vanilla bean cake topped with my favorite coffee buttercream. To resemble the decorations of Bilbo’s cake, I added lots of candles, a printable sign (see the list below to print one!), a few fake flowers, and some delicious berries.

How to Make Bilbo’s Birthday Cake

What You Need:

CAKE

One 6-inch circular cake
One 9-inch circular cake

COFFEE BUTTERCREAM ICING

2 sticks of salted butter, room temperature
1 lb. of powdered sugar (1/2 bag)
1 tsp. of vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. of salt
3-5 tbsp. heavy cream
1 1/2 tbsp. instant coffee granules

DECORATING TOOLS

Angled spatula
Knife
Icing tip — star tip
Assorted berries or other fruit – (I used blackberries and raspberries)
Small fake flowers (with the stems cut off)
Candles
Happy Birthday Bilbo printable sign — DOWNLOAD
Decorative string (optional)
Two candy sticks

Prepare and bake a 6-inch and 9-inch circular cake. (I chose vanilla, but you can choose any flavor you’d like!)

CAKE BAKING TIPS: Grease your cake pans and then sprinkle flour all over the surface. Next, cut out a circular piece of parchment paper and lay it on the base of the pan before pouring the batter into the pans. These steps will help your cakes slide right out of the pan once they cool.

Once your cakes are out of the oven, set them aside to cool. Then, using a serrated knife, level off the top of the cakes, if needed.

Next, it’s time to prepare your coffee buttercream icing. (YUM — let me just tell you this icing MAKES THE ENTIRE CAKE. It is absolutely delicious.)

First, in a small bowl, combine your heavy cream and instant coffee granules. Mix well, but know that not all of the coffee granules will dissolve and that’s perfectly okay. Set aside.

Using a stand or hand mixer, beat your softened butter until fluffy. Then add the vanilla and salt and mix until smooth. (I let my stand mixer go for several minutes until the butter mixture is creamy). Slowly add your powdered sugar, a few cups at a time, until all of it is incorporated. Next, add one tablespoon of your coffee cream mixture at a time until you reach your desired coffee taste (add as much or as little as you’d like based on your strength preference). Taste test to be sure it’s perfect! 🙂

Place your larger cake on your cake board and cover the top and sides in coffee icing, using an angled spatula to smooth the icing around the edges.

Place the smaller cake on top of the iced based, then cover it in coffee icing as well, repeating the prior step and smoothing the icing around the edges.

Using the leftover coffee icing, fill an icing bag with a star tip and add a decorative edging around the base of each cake, if desired.

Print out the ‘Happy Birthday Bilbo Baggins’ sign (found in the list above) and tape it to two candy sticks, adding decorative strong on each side, if desired. Insert the birthday sign into the cake.