From HERSHEY’S

Makes 18 servings

It’s someone’s big day and you want to make something special for their birthday…especially if they are a sports enthusiast! This Gridiron Cake is sure to do the trick and garner a lot of fans in the process! GO TEAM and GO SWEET with this sporty HERSHEY’S cake.

INGREDIENTS

GRIDIRON CAKE (recipe below)

1 can (16 oz.) creamy vanilla ready-to-spread frosting, divided

1 tablespoon HERSHEY’S Cocoa or HERSHEY’S SPECIAL DARK Cocoa

Green, red, and yellow food color

1 2/3 cups HERSHEY’S Premier White Creme Chips

1 package REESE’S PIECES Candy (8 oz.)

11 HERSHEY’S KISSES Brand Milk Chocolates

11 REESE’S Peanut Butter Cups Miniatures

3 HERSHEY’S HUGS Brand Candies

6 ROLO Creamy Caramels in Chocolate Candy

2 (7-inch lengths) floral or craft wire

2 TWIZZLERS Rainbow Twists

DIRECTIONS

1.PREPARE GRIDIRON CAKE. For chocolate frosting, stir cocoa into 1/3 cup frosting; stir until smooth. Set aside 2 tablespoons chocolate frosting. Tint 1/3 cup frosting orange with 1 drop red food color and 2 drops yellow food color; stir until blended. Tint remaining frosting green with 2 or 3 drops green food color; stir until blended.

2.Mark “end zones”, that are 2 inches wide, at each end of cake, using wooden pick; frost one end zone with chocolate frosting and the other end zone with orange frosting. Frost the area between end zones with green frosting; mark 5 yard lines with wooden pick. Place white creme chips all across cake on yard lines.

3.Use white creme chips to spell out “HERSHEY’S” on chocolate end zone; use brown REESE’S PIECES on the goal line. Use yellow REESE’S PIECES to spell out “REESE’S” on orange end zone. Use orange REESE’S PIECES on the goal line.

4.Remove wrappers from chocolates and peanut butter cups. Arrange teams on cake playing field, using HERSHEY’S KISSES Milk Chocolates as one team and peanut butter cups as second team. Place HERSHEY’S HUGS Candies as referee officials on the field.

5.Unwrap caramel candies. Make goal posts* in the middle of each goal line on each side of the field by using reserved chocolate frosting to stack and “glue” together 3 caramel candies. NOTE: Goal posts are for decorative purposes only and should NOT be eaten. Insert floral wire into each twist, bending wire and twist to form “U” shape for goal posts. “Glue” this section with frosting to top of each stack of ROLO caramel candies and anchor with portion of wooden pick pushed into top of each stack.

GRIDIRON CAKE

INGREDIENTS

1 cup water

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine

1/2 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

3/4 cup dairy sour cream

DIRECTIONS

1.Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 15 1/2” x10 1/2”x1” disposable foil baking pan or jelly-roll pan.

2.Combine water, butter, and cocoa in medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture boils. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat; set aside.

3.Stir together sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt in large bowl. Add eggs and sour cream; beat until blended. Add cocoa mixture; beat just until blended (batter will be thin). Pour into prepared pan.

4.Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on wire rack.

Find this recipe and more holiday treats at hersheys.com