Can you envision attending a performance of the Nutcracker, and then coming home to a little “swans-a-swimming” dessert? Sounds like the perfect December evening! Anything involving sweets gets my vote! Speaking of…did you see our Caramel Reindeer Candies? How about a Rudolph-viewing party, and some caramel reindeer cupcakes? Whew, we’re finding lots of excuses to eat cake around here! We might as well get it all in before the New Year, right?

Thanks to the “12 Days of Christmas” song, we can combine two of our favorite things (Christmas and swans), into one little project! I have always wanted to throw a swan-themed Christmas party, and now we have the perfect cake toppers. I bought a light green cake (hey, you can’t make everything!), and a bag of gumdrops, and that’s really all you need to make the cutest swan cake ever. Well, that and a knife!

• White gumdrops (2 per swan)
• Orange gumdrop (1 will make a lot of beaks!)
• Cutting board
• Knife

Step 1
Lay a white gumdrop on its side, and use a knife to make a cut (the long way) between the middle and edge of the gumdrop. Make an identical cut on the other side of the gumdrop. These two pieces are the wings. Cut about four slits in each wing from the wide end (toward the narrow end) to almost the middle of the wing pieces. Fan the wings out, and attach them to a whole white gumdrop with the narrow ends of the wings touching the narrow end of the gumdrop. They are sticky enough to attach with a little pressure.

Step 2
Lay the remaining piece of white gumdrop flat, and cut a fairly skinny piece off the long side. There will be a sugary side, and a sticky gummy side. Next, cut an even skinnier piece off the remaining long side. This piece will be completely sticky. Roll the sticky piece up from one end (like a sleeping bag), until it is stuck together in a small white ball. Attach it to the top of the other piece to look like a head and neck. It is easiest to attach the head using the edge of the rolled end, and the sticky side of the “neck” piece. Once they are attached, roll the head to the sugary side of the neck, so that you can attach the neck to the body using the sticky side. It will make sense when you start putting the pieces together! Attach the neck with the head to the front of the body, right between the wings. Push the pieces together until they stick.

Step 3
Cut off a tiny piece of your orange gumdrop, and cut it down to make it triangular. You may have to cut it down again to get the correct size and shape. Hold it up to the swan to check the size, and when you are satisfied with the proportions, attach the beak by sticking it to the front and middle of the head.

Now you can put the swan on a cupcake, or make six more to put “7 swans-a-swimming” on an 8-inch cake. Merry Christmas friends!