For children, the birthday cake really is the party. It’s usually best to stick with the tried and true for birthday cakes if you have no special dietary concerns. If you are making one from scratch that you haven’t made before, do a practice run a week or so before.
But if you want to vary from the traditional cake, you can try serving a platter of cupcakes with candles blazing. The advantage: they’re precut, easy to serve, and all portions are the same size.
Or, make a rainbow cake by dividing white cake batter into thirds and adding a different food coloring to each for a three-colored layer cake.
For other frosting ideas, you can use big gumdrops, marshmallows, or life savers for candle holders on the cake.
Decorate the top of the cake or cupcakes with plastic miniatures that complement whatever party theme you’ve chosen.
Create a balloon design on a cake by using licorice whips and pastel mint wafers on a frosted cake.
And, after frosting a regular or square cake, use a red string licorice and put it in a cake to resemble a wrapped package. Now all you have to do is have a great day.
Vicki Lansky’s practical, common sense approach to parenting is familiar to millions throughout the world. Vicki’s first book, Feed Me, I’m Yours, published in 1974, and still one of the most popular baby/toddler food cookbooks in the country, was followed by The Taming of the C.A.N.D.Y. Monster, a #1 New York Times bestseller. Her other titles include: Toilet Training, Birthday Parties Best Party Tips & Ideas For Ages 1-8, Dear Babysitter Handbook, Welcoming Your Second Baby, Getting Your Child to Sleep … and Back to Sleep, Trouble-free Travel with Children, Baby Proofing Basics and Games Babies Play From Birth to Twelve Months, Koko Bear’s New Potty, A New Baby at Koko Bear’s House, Koko Bear and the New Babysitter, and Koko Bear’s Big Earache. Vicki Lansky’s Divorce Book for Parents: Helping Children Cope with Divorce and Its Aftermath
