I used to love trains when I was little. I even had my own trainset on a table. My Dad had a huge one (I remember it huge – it was probably only 10′ x 5′ or something) and he set me up one like his. It had a little landscaping and maybe a mountain or two. My favorite part was the little farm with John Deere tractors on it. I’ll have to ask my parents if they have any pictures of it!

So, from this mini digression, you can probably tell I was super excited about the prospect of making a cake with a train on it. (Dad would be so proud!) Christopher was turning 9 and wanted a cake with a big kid train on it. This is what he got:

I have to give credit to Chandler – she did most (all) of the work. But it was fun project. Christopher’s name in fondant was too big to fit on the cake so it stayed in the front. The grass was my favorite detail – and took some time to get right. Everything is edible – the trees and rocks included.
The sand is super easy to make – mix white sugar and brown sugar until you like the consistency!

The trees were our first attempt. Super secret of the day: You can find videos on YouTube that will teach you how to do just about anything – including making trees out of fondant!

I guess I’ll have to make Ethan a train cake someday!