My Mom And I Will Continue Our Bunny Cake Tradition, Even If We're Apart On Easter

As I’ve mentioned in writing before, my family isn’t one with tons of traditions. That might sound cynical but trust me: The traditions we do keep mean a lot to us, and we really stick to them. Many family traditions occur around the holidays, and even more are food-based. It’s certainly easier to stay committed to a tradition when it’s delicious. One yearly baking project my mom and I will never give up? Our Easter bunny cake.

She and her mom baked it when she was a little girl, and we’ve done the same my whole life. It’s not a stunning Easter cake that will wow guests with your baking and decorating skills, but it’s a recipe that makes memories. It’s a great baking project for the kids, but we’ve continued to make it each year since I’ve been an adult. And even during the COVID-19 pandemic, my mom and I each baked our own bunny cake.

My parents and I live in different cities, so during the pandemic we, like everyone else, were unable to gather for Easter. As sad as that was, there was still a lot to celebrate—our safety, health, and the comfort of a bunny cake, among other things. Even though we weren't baking our bunny cake in the same kitchen, my mom and I FaceTimed to still share the experience. A different way to tradition? Yes. A bad one? There isn’t such a thing.

I’ve included recipe clippings below, which you can tell have aged a bit. The important thing to know is that with this bunny cake, the actual recipe isn’t all that important. You’ll need two round cake pans to create the bunny by cutting one of the cakes as indicated, but feel free to use your favorite cake recipe for your own bunny.

The bunnies have looked different over the years (one year, we tried to do a side-facing bunny at my grandmother’s house—he was not very pretty), and they’ll continue to change with our family. Rest assured: There will always be a bunny cake at Easter. And that’s the whole point of family traditions—you can always count on them. Even if your teenagers whine about putting on that Christmas sweater, they’ll look back on them fondly and even come to depend on them.

Whether your Easter tradition is a cake shaped like a bunny or butter shaped like a lamb (or something totally unrelated to food made in the likeness of cute animals), I urge you to keep it going. Don't give up on family traditions. It’s okay to alter them a bit; the sentiment is still there. Because one day, when they’re 25 years old and celebrating Easter in a one-bedroom apartment with no one but their partner, it’s going to mean more to your kids than they realize.

Included with the comically old pictures of bunny cakes is my mom’s recipe for marshmallow icing, in her beautiful handwriting. It’s our favorite way to top the bunny cake, but feel free to use any frosting recipe. From there, go wild with the decorations, especially on the bunny’s bow tie. Jellybeans are a go-to, as well as Twizzler whiskers. You can use shredded coconut all over the bunny or simply dye a small amount pink to sprinkle on the ears (pink icing works as well). Your bunny does not have to be beautiful, and honestly, it probably won’t be a looker. All that matters is you have fun and make a sweet memory.

Southern Living’s bunny cake recipe sets up the bunny a little differently and admittedly, in a prettier way than ours. Get the recipe here.