Cheap birthday cake ideas please

[GreatAuntieWurly]

cut a long story short, have lost my purse with the money I had put by for ds2 birthday cake, have retraced my steps etc etc and its no where to be found.

Anyway I can make cakes, thats the easy bit, but I need a really simple cake idea for him to take into school, he's gonna be 4 and is sooooooo looking forward to his birthday and I really dont wanna let hime down. I have til 21st to come up with something fantastic that doesnt look too home-made (IYKWIM)

Any ideas???
TIA

How about those icing pictures you have have done at supermarkets that they develop from photos you've taken? They're not too expensive and it could be a pic of him or his class, school, pet etc?

thats what I was gonna get but now dont ahve the money to get it done and no money due in til after his birthday.

Oh no .
Do you have stuff for icing in - like icing sugar & food colouring? If you have you can let DS 'help' you make it and he can tell all his friends he made it and it doesn't matter if it looks home made

make a big oblong sponge, cut it into a big 4 and cover it in sweets

or a round cake iced as a clock with the hands pointing to 4 o'clock

Or make a fairy cake for each child in his class with their name/initial in icing on it?

This is to DIE for:

Primary Choice Sponge

First amount is for 4 people, 2nd amount is for 96!

Serves 4 Serves 96
Sponge
115g (4oz) Butter or margarine 1.3kg (3lb)
115g (4oz) Caster sugar 1.3kg (3lb)
2 Eggs 24
225g (8oz) Plain wholewheat flour* 2.7kg (6lb)
15g (½ oz) Baking powder 175g (6oz)
85ml (3fl oz) Milk 1 litre (1 ¾ pints)

Topping
85g (3oz) Butter or margarine 900g (2lb)
85g (3oz) Golden syrup 900g (2lb)
175g (6oz) Icing sugar 1.8kg (4lb)
1 tablespoon Drinking chocolate 225g (8oz)

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4.

To make the sponge, cream the butter or margarine and sugar together in a bowl. Beat the eggs, and then beat them into the creamed mixture. Sift the flour and baking powder together then add gradually to the creamed mixture. Add sufficient milk to give a soft consistency.

Put into a greased 20cm (8?) square cake tin and bake in the preheated oven until springy to the touch, about 30-35 minutes.

For the topping, melt the butter or margarine and the syrup together in a pan. Sift in the icing sugar and drinking chocolate, and beat until smooth. Spread on to the cake, and leave to set.

• the original recipe ? from The Dinner Lady by Jeanette Orrey ? states plain flour, I used Waitrose Wholewheat Flour and it was lovely!

I made it for a cake sale at school and it went in about 5 mins. Am about to do another one for Football on Saturday morning. Have done a round one in the past, covered it in frosting and stuck smarties all over it!

see this thread for sponge bob square pants cake

the only thing that worries me is i've never worked with icing (the ready to roll stuff) Maybe i can make a big oblong out of a roasting tin, cover with fudgey choc icing (i can make that) and put is name and 4 in smarties or would that look pants???

ready to roll stuff is really really easy to use (but i think a bit sweet for adult tastes)

GAW, I had my daughter 2nd birthday party on monday and had a fantastic cake and it was soooo easy. I didn't have the time to bake a cake so bought Tesco Madeira Cake @ £1.09 a cake, made icing and used smarties and jelly tots to decorate. Didn't cost that much and EVERYONE enjoyed the cake. The madeira cake is nice and moist. You can buy a couple and ice them toghter in the form of a four your DS can then help you to decorate it. Well worth it!!!

HTH

For the icing I use betty crocker ready to spread icing - v, v sweet but the kids love it!

How about making a number four shape from oblong cakes (bought or home made) and then icing with butter icing and decorating the top with lots of different sweets in lines - smarties, jelly beans, choc drops whatever - it looks really good.

Sorry c2ndbaby didn't read your post properly and i've suggested pretty much the same

Morgan as the saying goes GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE!!!!

are you sure he's allowed to take a homemade cake into school, most school only allow shop bought

a yummy topping is simply dairymilk melted- and a few dollops of chocolate spread quickly stirred in- this will thicken the dairymilk up to something like buttercream consistency.

no idea of exact weights as i always do it 'by the eye!

also works great with milkybar white coc and white choc spread