Chocolate Oreo Spider Cake

Chocolate Oreo Spider Cake topped with cinnamon eyes is creepy crawly and delicious, perfectly festive for all things Halloween!

Spooky, festive desserts are a must for us during October like our Chocolate Pudding Spider Pies, Gooey Monster Cookies, and Halloween Cookie Cake. They go right along with our creepy Chocolate Oreo Spider Cake!

A CREEPY CRAWLY Cake

Chocolate Oreo Spider Cake was inspired by our Chocolate Pudding Spider Pies. They’re individual-size treats, and I thought it would be fun to make one big Oreo Spider Cake. It’s perfect for all of your fall or Halloween festivities.

I love how festive it turned out and the kids LOVED how tasty it was. The best part is it’s very simple to make!

In fact, I ended up using a cake box for the actual cake and then made an amazing homemade chocolate buttercream frosting to go with it. Then I topped it all with crushed Oreo for extra chocolatey flavor!

This Halloween Spider Cake really is perfect for any Halloween event you have coming up, and will be a hit with all the kids. If you love chocolate and Oreos you’ll love this creepy, crawly cake!

HOW TO MAKE a Spider Cake

CAKE. Make cake batter as directed on box, using two 8″ or 9″ circle pans. Let cool once they come out of the oven.

OREOS. Crush Oreos in a Ziploc bag and set aside.

FROSTING. Stir together butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, whipping cream and vanilla. Beat until combined. Add more powdered sugar if you want it thicker or more whipping cream if you want it thinner.

DECORATE. Frost cake and add crushed Oreos all over (add chocolate jimmies for even more texture). Add cinnamon candies to the front for the eyes. Place card stock legs in the cake right before serving and enjoy!

Best way to frost this layered cake

• Once the two cake rounds have cooled, place the first cake round on a plate. If the cake has a domed top, use a bread knife to cut the top off and make it level. 
• Add a layer of frosting. Add as much or as little as you wish, but I suggest about ½ cup of frosting. Spread the frosting evenly over the entire cake.
• Place the second cake round on top of the frosting and add a crumb coating. (A crumb coating is a very thin layer of frosting designed to catch all the crumbs that flake off. Let it set before adding the final coating of frosting.) 
• Use the remainder of the frosting to evenly frost the cake and add the crushed Oreos before the frosting hardens. 

recipe Tips

Spider legs. I ended up cutting out one leg from black card stock and then tracing it to make seven more. I inserted these right before we served the cake so that they wouldn’t get messed up (or take up too much room in the fridge).

Serving. Have fun with the kids by dissecting the spider into individual servings.

Cake layers. Place a circular piece of parchment paper in the bottom of the cake pan. This makes it much easier to remove the baked cake without any of the pieces sticking. 

Crushing Oreo. Place the Oreos (with cream centers) into a gallon Ziploc. Use a kitchen mallet or rolling pin to crush the cookies into the desired size. A food processor will also work, but be careful to not chop them up too finely.

Variations

Although this cake turned out perfectly creepy and delicious, use a few of the following suggestions to switch things up:

• For thin hairy looking legs, use black pipe cleaners.
• Adding chocolate sprinkles or black/brown jimmies along with the Oreos may also give a hairy look.
• Add candy eyes. 
• Try using our homemade chocolate cake. 
• Use store bought chocolate frosting to save some time.
• Add some gummy or candy bugs to the middle layer of frosting.
• Add a spider web. Use a dark colored plate and pipe on a spider web design with white frosting. Place the spider cake onto the webbed plate.

Storing Info

Make this cake a day ahead. Store, covered, at room temperature. Use a large container, cover with a large bowl turned upside down, or carefully tent aluminum foil over the cake. Do not insert the paper legs before storing. 

FREEZE. For longer storage I suggest freezing the cake and frosting separately. The cake can be wrapped tightly with plastic wrap then again with aluminum foil and kept in the freezer for up to 6 months.

FREEZE the frosting in an airtight container, for up to 3 months. Bring the frosting to room temperature. The cake does not need to thaw before frosting it. 

STORE the cake in the fridge or on the counter covered with a bowl. It doesn’t need to be kept in an airtight container because the frosting protects the cake, but a loose covering like a bowl will protect it from anything like dust or hair from falling onto the cake.

For more Halloween Oreo Treats, try:

• Pumpkin Oreos
• Oogie Boogie Sundae
• Skeleton Pudding Cups
• Graveyard Dirt Cake
• Halloween Spider Trifle
• Halloween Sugar Cookie Cake