Cakes ho!

I had previously read The Incredible Book Eating Boy, by Oliver Jeffers, but apparently didn't blog on it. So sorry, because this is an amazing book! It's not so much a book for kids who need motivation to read, but should go over exceptionally well with kids who already enjoy it. It's a little bit silly and may be appropriate for an older audience. This book was the inspiration for my cake, which I made in celebration of today, marking the International Edible Book Festival. I've got pictures of the process below, to prove it wasn't that hard. These cake mixes came from a box, as I make two kinds of cakes: cake that look good, and cakes that taste good. Making a cake from scratch and trying to decorate it prettily leave me tired and or bored, and I start making mistakes. So here ya go: Picture One: Henry's head, naked and alone on a repurposed moving box. (Please ignore the incorrect date; my camera and I don't get along.) Picture Two: naked Henry munches his naked book leaf. Henry is coconut supreme (Duncan Heinz) flavor, the book leaves are chocolate devil's food cake. They were on sale. :)

Picture Three: Henry gets dressed. The frosting on both cakes is just vanilla, with food coloring in.

Picture Four: the book takes shape. The cakes are naked around the bottom, but it meant I didn't waste half the frosting on the plate, which is my usual problem. Picture Five: Finished product! Those crumbs around Henry's mouth are on purpose, so it looks like he's actually eating, eh? And his big cheek had a wee accident and had to go. He maybe looks better without it? Bonus points if you can put your librarian-ing to good use and identify the quote on Henry's book: "If a breath of air stirred, it made no sound here; for there was not a holly, not an ever(green)..." And if you missed the holiday and still want to celebrate, no problemo: the first rule for participation in the International Edible Book Festival is "the event must be held on April 1st (or close to that date)." So get all over that tomorrow.