If you want to score some major points with relatively little effort, a volcano cake is the way to go. We just made a pile of cake, threw some brown fondant on top and let it fall where it wanted, and then tinted some buttercream frosting to make it look like lava. All of the haphazard messiness only made it look more natural.
Our one bit of creativity came from Bear. To complete the volcano look, he cut a section of cake out of the top before we laid down the fondant to create a dip to represent the mouth of the volcano. We made all the lava buttercream come out of the mouth, and then when we put in the birthday candles, we were able to put them low enough that it looked like the flame was coming from inside the volcano.
We had the whole thing put together in not much more time than it would have taken to frost a regular cake, but you should have seen the reaction this got from a few really excited little boys. We felt like the coolest grownups ever.
i told you that you should get into the business. that cake is fabulous just like the family camping cake you made. maybe it was so easy to make this time because it's your calling!!! sonia