Growing in Grace: Race Track Cake

Scripture to Live By: Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:1,2

Cake Decorating Post:

I was ask to make a birthday cake for a little boy who had picked out these little cars for his birthday. So I started working on what I could do with these little cars. I decided I should make him a race track for all these little cars. I took a sheet of freezer paper and using a soup bowl I drew the ends of the race track and then I used some duct tape to make the width of the track even. I just drew the track then cut the track out.

Next, I decided to make fondant for the track. (Fondant cost more than I wanted to pay for it, so I decided to make my own.)

Recipe for fondant:

1 cup of corn syrup

1 cup of Crisco

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of vanilla

8 cups of powder sugar

Mix the first 4 ingredients, then add 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time until all eight cups of powdered sugar have been added or until dough is stiff. I needed black fondant, so I colored my dough with Wilton black coloring. (If you would like several colors of fondant, divide dough into that number of parts and color as desired.)

Sprinkle powdered sugar on counter top

Roll out dough to about 1/8 inch thickness.

(Mine was a little thicker because I was afraid it would break when I tried to move it.)

I then laid out the pattern I had made and took a knife and cut around the pattern.

I then removed excess fondant.

I had baked the cake and frosted it ahead of making the fondant. If you would like to have instructions for making the cake and frosting go here.

Move fondant by rolling it onto a rolling pin and move it to the frosted cake. My fondant stretched so I had to cut it to remove the excess so it would fit on the cake, as I had planned. I smoothed it out later with a little bit of black frosting.

Next, I put the borders around the track inside and out and added both top and bottom borders,

then I added the little cars and the road signs. For the lettering, I used edible decorating lettering.

Bo really enjoyed his birthday cake. I was pleased the way it turned out. It is simple to make and you do not need to have much experience to decorate this cake. It was my first time of making fondant.

I added M&Ms around the sides.

I also made a cake for Jackson, who is one year old. It was his personal cake. I decorated it the same way I did Bo's with the frosting and trim.

I made the number one out of the black fondant. I added some M&M's around the sides. I used a little birthday sign, I had on hand. and a little giraffe with a little cake and one candle that I put on the top. I used the same lettering for his cake as I did for Bo's cake.