How to make a Tractor Cake!

[GillyT]

Help!! I want to make my son a Tractor Cake for his 2nd Birthday but I want it to be like cakes used to be - 3D & butter icing in a trillion colours!!! I'm using Nigella's sponge recipe but am trying to work out how to build it up & shape it into a tractor.

Does anyone have any ideas of what to do??!

Can you make a rectangular shaped cake in a loaf tin or a square one you can cut in 2 and layer ? Slice a triangle wedge off the front to make the engine and reuse that to form a cab on top of the other end. Stick together with warmed jam or butter icing to form the basic shape. Cover in whatever colour ready to roll icing you need , make windows out of grey squares of it or edible rice paper then get some Liquorice swirls or large biscuits to use for wheels and add any other details such as fornt grill and lights with offcuts of the icing, sticking on sweets or writing icing tubes. If you want to have grass underneath then put some dessicated coconut in a plastic food bag and add few drops of green food colouring shaking to disperse the colour evenly.

Sounds easy !

I put "tractor cake" into google images and this is what it came up with here - can you get some ideas from these?

Personally I'd take a tip from the Jane Asher car and train cakes and make a squarish body (probably loaf tin with end lopped off) stacked on bought Swiss roll 'wheels' (cut a wheel arch for the big one at the back, mini-roll at the front), then stick a squareish cab on top of that.

NB you are aware that at 2 he'll be just as excited by a cake with two candles on or, pushing the boat out, a cake in the shape of a '2', and all the tractorage is just for your benefit?
Good, just checking .

Thanks guys! And yes, it is really for my benefit in making a Tractor Cake...just want to get in practice for when he wants the Millenium Falcon at age 7!!!!!