Argyle Cake

Argyle Cake

Makes 12 servings

We think argyle is as attractive on cake as it is on socks, and it’s as easy as press and play to make. Our Highland design uses shades of green and blue candy for the diamonds and chocolate sticks for the diagonal overlay.

  • 1 recipe Perfect Cake Mix (see recipe) made with French vanilla cake mix, baked in a 9-x-13-inch pan for 25 to 30 minutes
  • 1 can (16 ounces) vanilla frosting
  • ½ cup each blue, light blue, neon green, and pearlized green round candy-coated chocolates (Sixlets)
  • 36–40 chocolate-covered mint sticks (Ovation)
  • 35 white pearlized gumballs (SweetWorks)

1 Trim the top of the cake level (see On the Level). Place the cake, bottom side up, on a cardboard cut to fit (see Getting on Base) or a serving platter. Spread a thin crumb coating of vanilla frosting (see Got Crumbs?) on the cake and smooth. Place the cake in the freezer until set, about 30 minutes.

2 Spoon 2 tablespoons of the vanilla frosting into a freezer-weight ziplock bag. Press out the excess air and seal the bag. Spread the remaining vanilla frosting on the chilled cake in an even layer and smooth.

3 Place the cake with a short side facing you. Measure the sides of the cake and place a toothpick at the center of each side. To mark the center of the cake, score a line across the cake from left to right between the toothpicks and another line from top to bottom between the 2 remaining toothpicks. Place 4 same-color chocolate candies in a row at the center of the horizontal cross line, 2 to the left of the vertical line and 2 to the right. Add 3 same-color candies centered above the 4, pressing them against the center row. Add 2 same-color candies above the 3 candies. Finish with 1 same-color candy above the 2. Repeat below the center row to make the diamond in the center of the cake. Add mint sticks to each side of the diamond, trimming to fit and pressing the candies together to keep the diamond tight. Continue adding diamonds in alternating colors, working your way out from the center to the edges (use the photo as a guide for the colors).

4 Snip a small (⅛-inch) corner from the bag with the vanilla frosting. Pipe a dot of frosting on the mint sticks at each point of the diamonds and attach a white gumball.