Fancy Nancy Explorer Extraordinaire Cake

Last year, we were introduced to Fancy Nancy at Ella's Castle Birthday Party. Two of Ella's friends thought that the Fancy Nancy books were just right for her! Nancy is a girl who LOVES to dress up and be fancy...just like my Ella. And funnily enough, Nancy's mom is NOT fancy...and usually, neither am I. So, it wasn't a surprise when Ella said that she wanted a Fancy Nancy Birthday Party this year.

There are several Fancy Nancy books out there, but we chose to find our inspiration in Fancy Nancy Explorer Extraordinaire!

To make this cake, I used:

• A basic white cake mix (baked in two circle pans)
• 5 Minute Buttercream Frosting Recipe
• McCormick Assorted Neon Food Coloring & Egg Dye (I found this on clearance after Easter one year -- it has bright pink, purple, green and blue)
• Cardboard Cake Board
• Sweetened Flake Coconut
• Graham Cracker Crumbs
• Snowflake Decors (I used white ones to resemble flowers. Cake-Mate makes some pastel colored ones.)
• Green Sugar Decorating Crystals
• #5 Glitter Candle (from Target in the party section -- only $1!)
• Fancy Nancy & Bree Decorations (I printed the book cover art from the computer, taped to toothpicks and backed by cardstock for strength)

Once the cakes and frosting were prepared, I took about 1/2 cup of the frosting and dyed it hot pink with the food coloring. I placed leveled off one cake round and placed it cut-side down on the cardboard, spread the top with pink frosting and then topped it with the other cake round.
I dyed the remaining frosting bright green and spread a light "crumb coat" over the cake, and then chilled it for about 10 minutes. While it chilled, I made the "grass" by mixing a teaspoon of water and a few drops of green food coloring in a ziploc baggie. Then, I added some shredded coconut and mixed it together until the coconut was green. When the crumb coat on the cake was set, I put a thicker, swirling coat of frosting on. I created a "path" and "planter mound" with the graham cracker crumbs and trimmed the edges with snowflake "flowers". I added the coconut grass on the green frosting and added some green sugar decorating crystals for extra pizzazz. Then, to finish it off, I added Bree and Nancy to the path and the #5 Candle in the mound.


Voila! A Fancy Nancy Explorer Extraordinaire Cake! (Forgive the flash...it makes the cake appear far more yellow than it did in real-life and harder to see the grass!)
If you're looking for other cake ideas, be sure to stop by Life As Mom for Ultimate Recipe Swap and the Birthday Cake Round-Up!