It doesn't get much easier to create a party atmosphere with a special cake than this easy "Shamrock Cake" for St. Patrick's Day!
The picture to the left is of a lucky 4-leaf clover so you have a choice... will it be the real luck of the Irish with a lucky 4-leaf clover or a shamrock?
Whatever you and the kids decide, you'll need either 3 or 4 heart-shaped pans... 3 for a shamrock cake or 4 for the clover cake. I've seen small heart-shaped pans at the dollar stores... so have a look... don't make this an expensive activity... that's not our goal. And, the pans can't be too big or you won't have enough cake batter! The ones I've seen are smaller and the new silicone ones. The perfect size for this project!
You can choose your favorite homemade cake recipe or buy a white cake mix... OR, for a special treat, the kids really like the "confetti cake" mix. If you haven't tried the confetti mix, watch your grocery ads as they go on sale a lot so you could pick up a couple... and, it's a very moist cake.
All righty... so here's the road map to your St. Patrick's Day cake... Let the kids prepare the cake mix (or their favorite cake recipe). Note: Wally World has gotten into the "specialty cake mixes lately and I picked up a "green" Confetti Cake mix with matching icing... very cool for a St. Paddy's Day "cake project" :-)
Equally divide the batter into 3 (or 4) heart-shaped pans... Bake according to the directions and let the little heart cakes cool. Meanwhile, let the kids be stirring up make their favorite (and easiest) icing recipe. Tint it with green food coloring, of course (unless you're using a specialty cake mix)!
Now, join the heart cakes together at their tips, forming a shamrock or the lucky 4-leaf clover! How easy was that? Let the kids get icing all over them and lick it off and frost the cake green... the shade is only left to the kids' imagination!
Add to the fun and decorate the cake with little gold coins scattered across it or little store-bought shamrocks. There's tons of ideas for decorations and if you just turn the kids loose in the dollar store, I'm sure they'll find more than enough decorations.
Get ready for rave reviews on your St. Patrick's Day creation! Most of all, have fun!
Getting kids into the kitchen,
Jan McCracken, Culinary Coach for Kids
