Baking and Assembly

• Bake the cakes: Start by baking 2 yellow sheet cakes and 2 chocolate sheet cakes in 9x13 pans, along with 1 cotton candy dome cake in a 5-inch diameter pan. Allow them to cool completely for easy assembly.
• Prepare the frosting: Whip up a delightful batch of yellow American buttercream frosting to use for icing and decorating your cake.
• Frost the cap cake: Place the dome cotton candy cake on a cake board. Smoothly frost it with buttercream and chill for about 20 minutes. Then, roll out black fondant and carefully cover the chilled cake, trimming any excess at the base.
• Create the cap top: Using a square piece of cardboard, color it with a black edible marker. Spread a thin layer of icing on top, cover it with black fondant, and trim off any excess.
• Make the diploma: Cut a small circular piece from fondant, brush corn syrup on the cardboard, and place the ribbon and circle fondant on it. Attach this to the dome cake with melted chocolate or thick royal icing for added stability.
• Assemble the diploma: Roll the rice krispie treats into a log shape and spread buttercream along the sides. Encase it with rolled white fondant, trim any extra, and add circles of fondant with buttercream, wrapping it with a red ribbon for detail.
• Build the main cake: Place the two chocolate sheet cakes side by side on a large rectangle cake board. Spread a layer of icing on top and gently lay the two yellow sheet cakes on top of these. Ice the entire cake smoothly for a finished look.
• Decorate with roses: Fill a piping bag with yellow icing and use a large star tip to pipe beautiful roses around the sides and top of the cake, adding a touch of elegance.
• Position the decorations: Decide where to place the diploma and cap on the cake. Insert support dowels or straws where needed, then elegantly place the prepared cap and diploma pieces atop the cake.
• Finish with a message: Cut out letters to spell 'Congratulations Class of 2024' using cookie cutters, sticking them onto the cake board with buttercream icing for a final celebratory touch.