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planet cake toppers and a milky way cake

Planet Cake Toppers

A couple weeks ago we received a fun package of books in the mail. The new Ricky Ricotta series by Dav Pilkey & illustrated by Dan Santat. The books were immediately whisked away and it was literally a full hour before I heard another request from the twins. As new readers, my kids love books almost as much as they love chocolate cake:) These half reader/half comic books (with an included flip section) couldn’t have been more of a win for my dinner making sanity.

To showcase how much we loved the series, I took inspiration from Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot solar system adventures to make a set of planet cake toppers. The cake toppers are a fun project to incorporate a new school year’s learning about the solar system into a tangible and festive afternoon. Making a milky way chocolate cake takes the concept into complete party mode. It’s a fun combination for a birthday party, school bake-sale, or star themed playdate.

Planet Cake Toppers

DIY Planet Cake Toppers

DIY planets

To make the planet cake toppers we used a package of ping-pong balls (mom tip: Target has them on clearance in the sports end cap this week). We also used a couple white foam balls for added texture.

I looked up a list of each planet’s coloring and grabbed my selection of paints that matched pretty close. To be fair, this project is more artistic than scientific, but the kids and the cake sure didn’t seem to mind! Begin painting each ball for a different planet and allow to fully dry, about 4 hours. The kids got in on the painting fun and we learned together in the process. Earth was definitly our favorite to create.

Turn the planets into cake toppers by using the pointy end of a kitchen skewer. Hold the painted ball in one hand and carefully poke the skewer directly through the other side. Cut down the skewers if needed for sizing.

Planet Cake Toppers

Planet cake toppers

Planet Cake Toppers

After the planets are completed, make a Milky Way cake to go along with the theme. Find the nearest frosted chocolate cake and sprinkle coconut flakes to form a solar star display.

The cake is great backdrop for enjoying these simple and sweet books your kids are sure to love.

Isn’t the trailer great!?! Visit the Ricky Ricotta Official Site and learn more about the book series. You can follow Scholastic and ScholasticTeach on Twitter. And for more flip book fun like Scholastic Parents and Scholastic Teachers on Facebook.

Ricky-ricotta-covers

This post is shared in promotional partnership. The DIY project and the raving review are all my own.

(Photography by Jocelyn Noel for A Subtle Revelry).

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