Ingredients

WINDOW BOX CAKE (see *Note):
2 cups Quick-cooking oatmeal
1 cup Dark-brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2-1/2 cups Boiling water
2-1/2 cups All-purpose flour
2 teaspoons Baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons Ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Ground allspice
1-1/2 teaspoons Salt
2 cups Granulated sugar
2 Eggs
Frosting:
2 boxes (1 pound Each) confectioners' sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Lemon extract
6 tablespoons Half-and-half OR: milk
1 package (14 ounces) mixed chocolate and vanilla ladyfinger style cookies
1 cup Ground chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (about 9 cookies)
Wooden skewers painted green with food coloring for flower stems
HYACINTHS:
6 tablespoons Unsalted butter
42 Large marshmallows
Purple food coloring
4 cups Frosted whole-grain oat cereal with marshmallow pieces removed (generic brand Lucky Charms, called Magic Stars, have the perfect star shape)
6 Green skewers
DAFFODILS:
Royal Icing:
4 teaspoons Powdered egg whites**
3 to 4 tablespoons Water
2-1/2 cups Confectioners' sugar
17 Marshmallows
1/4 cup Yellow decorator sugar
10 Large yellow gumdrops OR: 5 yellow, 5 orange gumdrops
10 Green skewers

TULIPS:
7 Green skewers
7 Green fruit leather strips from crazy-color fruit leather, about 4 inches long
4 Strawberry-flavored fruit leather sheets or fruit by the foot
7 Marshmallows
Royal Icing (See Daffodils)
1/4 cup Red decorator sugar
Variegated strips green fruit leather, cut into leaf shapes
LEAVES:
6 Wooden skewers
24 Green sugar coated spearmint candy leaves
Granulated sugar, for rolling
LADYBUGS: (optional)
1/4 cup Royal Icing (See Daffodills), tinted black
4 Red-coated chocolate candies (M&M's)
FLOWER POT CAKE:
1 Unused, clean clay flowerpot (6 inches across inside top, 6 inches deep)
1 package (18.25 ounces) devil's food cake mix
1 Container (1 pound) ready to spread vanilla frosting
Assorted food color pastes
1/2 cup Cake crumbs, reserved from trimmings
Hyacinths, Daffodils, Leaves and Ladybugs, Tulips (see instructions for flower recipes)

Description

View Full Recipe