Barnyard Pals

Hi, I'm Lee Woodruff in the kitchen with Family Fun. Barnyard pals are a terrific project for a farm or an animal themed party. To make a cake shaped like a cow, you'll need a round cake, three cupcakes, a domed cake baked in a bowl, black shoestring licorice, candy fruit slices, malted milk balls, vanilla and chocolate frosting, and licorice gumdrops.

After you chilled the cakes to make frosting easier, and sliced off the top of the dome cake, spread a thin layer of icing on a section of the round cake. This is where you place your upside down dome cake, now you've made the cow's face. For the hoofs place two cupcakes at the bottom of the cake, and for the ears put two half's of a cupcake at the top. You can attach them with toothpicks if they don't want to stay in place.

The next step is to frost the whole thing with white icing, then use the chocolate frosting to make the brown spots on the cow. Now for the finishing touches. Use malted milk balls for the eyes. Black gumdrops for the nose. Half of a pink fruit slice for the mouth and whole pink fruit slices for the ears. Create some hoofs and eyelashes with the shoestring licorice and you're all set. If you're baking for a lot of kids you can add another animal in the mix, like a sheep covered in mini-marsmallows. Add a checkered tablecloth and you've got the makings of a barnyard birthday party.