What if we were to make our own Drake’s Funny bones? This was the question that set the wheels in motion, and had us looking to make a copycat Funny Bones cake recipe to see if we can come close to the real thing.
With the cost of goods going up dramatically, this means more people are cutting unnecessary expenses out of their lives. That’s why we’re going to be experimenting with taking our favorite fast food items, and other delicious branded treats and putting them to the test…in the kitchen so we can still enjoy them.
And you can too. Copycat Funny Bones will be our first challenge.
If you’ve noticed the rising costs of fast food these days then you know there aren’t many places left to get a quick, cheap bite. These changes are having consumers step back, and cook their own meals at home. In many instances, by making our favorite dishes at home, we’ll have more food for a fraction of the cost.
We chose to recreate the famous Drakes Funny Bones because Drakes Funny Bones have been a staple treat since childhood. And have you seen the cost of these bad boys in the store? They’re never on sale, and as such, have become a rare treat.
Funny Bones History
Funny Bones are a popular snack cake made by the company Drake’s (founded in 1896) which first came onto the scene in 1961. Drake’s are primarily available in the Northeastern part of the United States. In 2016, they made their way to the Southeast but it was a short-lived move.
The star of Funny Bones is the inner creamy peanut butter filling. Then we have the chocolate devils food cake enrobed in an outer shell of milk chocolate. It’s a great dessert (and pick me up) for any occasion, and the perfect legendary snack cake to attempt to make at home. And we’re more than ready for it.
Copycat Funny Bones Recipe to the Test
We’re taking these cupcakes out of the wrapper and attempting to recreate them in cake form. We’re not professionals so this could either be a total disaster or a remarkable success story.
**Skip below if you’d like to see the final verdict on the results of our Copycat Funny Bones “experiment”…
Ingredients You’ll Need
- For the cake:
- 1 (18 ounce) package devil’s food cake mix
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup sour cream
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- For the filling:
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- For the frosting:
- 1 (16 ounce) package chocolate frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking pan. You can also use two 8″ or 9″ pans, to layer the cake.
- In a large bowl, beat together the cake mix, oil, sour cream, eggs, powdered sugar, and vanilla until well combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, prepare the filling. In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
- Once the cake is cool, spread the filling over the top.
- Frost the cake with chocolate frosting.
- Cut the Copycat Funny Bones and way you would like and enjoy!
Many of these ingredients are most likely already in your pantry. We ended up buying a box of cake mix, and frosting to cut down on preparation time.
Making the Copycat Funny Bones Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking pan.
- In a large bowl, beat together the cake mix, oil, sour cream, eggs, powdered sugar, and vanilla until well combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Preparing the Filling
- While the cake is baking, prepare the filling. In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add small amounts of milk to get desired consistency.
- Once the cake is cool, spread the peanut butter filling over the top. If it’s too dry there will be issues with spreading, but this is nothing a small splash of milk won’t fix.
Frosting the Cake
We recommend waiting until the cake has cooled before putting frosting to cake. If you apply to soon, it’s going to be a melty, slippery mess…
- 1. Seat your second cake onto the cake already covered with the peanut butter filling.
- 2. Apply liberal amount of frosting over every inch to marry both halves. Don’t be afraid to really attack those sides with extra frosting.
- Cut into whatever shape you desire and enjoy your Copycat Funny Bones cake!
Tips
- For a richer flavor, use dark chocolate cake mix.
- If the filling is too thick, add a little milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency.
- For a more decorative look, pipe the frosting onto the cake..
The Verdict? *****
Out of a 5-star scale system, we gave our very own Copycat Funny Bones Cake…5 stars. That’s right, we just couldn’t believe how delicious this came out. The peanut butter filling was on par with the real thing and we ended up with a lot to spare! There’s enough here for two cakes…
… which we would be lying if we didn’t cop up to the fact that we actually ended up making this twice but thankfully we already had most of the ingredients on hand and just needed to buy another boxed cake mix, and jar of frosting.
For the first cake we used too big of a pan and weren’t able to stack the cake to have the desired filling effect. Instead of layering on the first one we simply left it as a sheet cake, and spread the peanut butter filling on top. Then added the frosting on top of that after placing the cake in the fridge for thirty minutes.
The frosting is a nice touch which complements the flavors exceptionally well, and lends to a very rich, scrumptious experience. We were delighted with the results, and ecstatic at the amount of dessert we got out of it for the cost.
The Copycat Funny Bones cake came out a little lopsided if you can tell from the picture it looks somewhat like a smashed hat but hey, it didn’t affect the taste one bit.
For the second cake, we also ended up omitting the extra egg, and sour cream from the cake mix, and let me tell you, we didn’t miss them one bit. It changed the consistency to be more dense, and for the better in my opinion. If you leave them in, it makes for a more authentic Copycat Funny Bones cake consistency but it’s up to you on how close you’re aiming to get to the real thing. And our omission cut down on ingredients which is always welcome if you’re on a budget.
Now that we’ve tried this…who’s to say we even need to buy Funny Bones anymore? Ok, we’re not crazy, we’ll still partake every so often but seriously, this is a nice option for an on-the-cheap alternative. Copycat Funny Bones for the win!
Tips
- For a richer flavor, use dark chocolate cake mix.
- If the filling is too thick, add a little milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency.
- For a more decorative look, pipe the frosting onto the cake.
- Refrigerate leftover cake
Variations
- Add chocolate chips to the cake batter for extra chocolate flavor.
- Top the cake with chopped peanuts for a nutty crunch.
- Use white chocolate frosting instead of chocolate frosting for a different flavor.
In addition to the above, here are some other tips for making a great Copycat Funny Bones Cake recipe:
- Use high-quality ingredients for the best results.
- Be sure to grease and flour the baking pan well to prevent the cake from sticking.
- Do not overbake the cake, or it will be dry.
- Let the cake cool completely before frosting it.
- Get creative with your decoration
- If you don’t have a 9×13 inch baking pan, you can use two 8×8 inch baking pans. Just bake the cake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- You can also use a bundt pan to bake the cake. Just bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- If you don’t have chocolate frosting, you can use vanilla frosting instead.
