Birthdays are a wonderful occasion to be celebrated. There is an age-old tradition of cutting a cake on birthdays, though the significance of it is not known. Cakes are the most important part of a birthday party. One cannot imagine celebrating one's birthday without a cake. Children especially are thrilled when they get to cut some very rare birthday cakes (much to the envy of their friends) on their special day. There are many types of cake ideas that add the uniqueness to the theme of the birthday party. Let's see some of the birthday cakes that can be made at the comfort of your home. Kids love to have a different and attractive design for their birthday cake. There is a whole lot of variety in unique birthday cakes for kids. Though people think that they are not such easy cakes to make, once you have gone through the process, the result will be really rewarding. There are many designs of cakes for kids, that you can make and surprise your child on his birthday. Here are some recipes for the baking mouth-watering cakes with unique shapes. Pineapple Upside Down Cake Recipe Pineapple upside down cake is one of the coolest birthday cakes and a hot favorite among kids of all ages, because of its creamy nature and colorful appearance. Given below is the recipe of this cake, which is easy to make. Ingredients

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 6 tablespoons cake flour
• 4 large eggs
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 6 tablespoons ground almonds
• 1¾ cups sugar
• ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup sour cream

Ingredients for Topping

• 1 can pineapple slices
• 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• ½ cup unsalted butter

Baking Instructions Melt the butter and brown sugar in a medium saucepan till the sugar combines with the butter and the mixture becomes bubbly. Pour this caramel mixture in a cake pan and arrange the pineapple slices on top of it. In a large bowl, mix the flours, baking powder, eggs and salt and whisk them until the lumps disappear and the batter becomes smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk the butter, vanilla extract and sugar and transfer this mixture into the batter. Combine the batter well and pour this on top of the caramel and pineapple. Bake this cake in a preheated oven at 165 ºC for about 1½ hours. In order to check if the cake is ready, insert a knitting needle. If there is no residue on the needle, then the cake is ready or else bake it for a few minutes more. Cinderella Castle Cake Recipe Cinderella castle cake is another fascinating cake, that you can bake for your daughter on her birthday and surprise her. Here is the recipe for making this wonderful cake. Ingredients

• 2 baked 9-inch square cakes
• 4 baked cupcakes
• 4 Hershey's Kisses chocolates
• Pink frosting
• 1 cup grated coconut, tinted with green food coloring
• Green colored sugar
• M&M candies
• 2 cups blue Jell-O
• 1 graham cracker
• Necco wafers
• 4 ice cream cones

Baking Instructions Place one of the 9-inch square cakes on a large platter, coat it with pink frosting and place the second square cake on top. Now keep the cupcakes on all the four corners of the cake and place an inverted ice cream cone on each of them. Cover the cupcakes with pink frosting and create textured castle by using a fork. Add the candies and sprinkle green sugar on top of the cones. Now place a Hershey's Kiss chocolate on top of each cone and make the castle door with Necco wafers and M&M candies. Place the remaining Necco wafers on top of the cake. Place the blue Jell-O and green grated coconut around the cake castle to give it a feel of water surrounding the castle. Place the graham cracker as a drawbridge over the moat. Your castle is ready for the princess to cut and devour. Pirate Face Cake Recipe If you are throwing a pirate-themed birthday party for your little boy, then a pirate shaped cake is sure to enthrall him and his friends. Although it is a little difficult to make, the joy you see on your kid's face is worth the effort taken. Ingredients for the Cake

• Plain flour, 3½ cups
• Caster sugar, 2½ cups
• Cocoa powder, ½ cup
• Baking powder, 2 teaspoons
• Buttermilk, 1 cup
• Vegetable oil, 2 cups
• Eggs, 3
• Vanilla extract, 1½ teaspoons
• Red food coloring, 2 tablespoons

Ingredients for Icing

• Icing sugar, 2 cups
• Milk, ¼ cup
• Butter, melted, ½ cup

Ingredients for Decoration

• Red fondant icing, 50g
• Black fondant icing, 400g
• White fondant icing, 700g
• Paste coloring or blue gel
• Gold foil-covered coins
• Icing sugar, for dusting

Baking Instructions Take a large bowl and sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder. With a wooden spatula, combine them together. Blend the oil and sugar, using an electric mixer. Beat the eggs in the same mixture till it is incorporated. Add the buttermilk to the flour mixture and combine them together till a smooth batter is formed. Grease a tin with butter and pour the contents into it. Bake the cake in preheated oven (160 ºC) for about 1 hour 45 minutes. Remove the tin from the oven and allow the cake to cool down. Once the cake has cooled, refrigerate it overnight. For the icing, whip the butter, milk and icing sugar together. If the mixture is too watery, add some more icing sugar (or some milk, if it is dry) till it gets a creamy consistency and is easy to spread. Remove the cake from the tin and place it on a board. With the help of a spatula, spread the icing on all sides of the cake evenly. Now the final step is to make the pirate face on the cake. For this, knead the white fondant until it softens and carefully spread it on the icing. Trim the excess ends and smoothen the rest of the fondant. Shape ears on either side and stick a gold coin as earring. In the similar manner, knead the black and red fondants and flatten them using a rolling pin. Create a bandanna of the black fondant and place it on top. Using a carving knife, make pleats on it. Use the remaining black fondant for the eye patch and rope. Shape a mouth out of the red fondant and place it on the cake. Cut small circles and place them on the bandanna. The blue icing can be cut into small spots, reserving one for the eye and the remaining for the bandanna, along with white icing. The gold coins can be scattered below the cake. So, the next time there is a birthday party at your house, no need to rush to the bakery to order a cake. Just put on your baker's hat and bake one of these coolest birthday cakes and enjoy the appreciation from your kids as well as your guests.