Pretty Peacock Cake

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1. Tint batter. Prepare cake batter following recipe instructions. Divide into six equal portions. Tint one portion each dark teal, light green and dark blue using color combinations provided. Combine Teal and Kelly Green icing colors to get dark teal color shown. Combine Leaf Green and Lemon Yellow icing colors to get light green color shown. Combine Royal Blue and a touch of Violet icing colors to get dark blue color shown. Using Sky Blue, Lemon Yellow and Violet icing colors, tint remaining portions blue, yellow and violet.

2. Bake cake. Prepare pan with Bake Even strips according to package directions. Pour batter into center of prepared pan in the following order: blue, dark teal, light green, yellow, violet and dark blue.

   Bake and cool.

3. Assemble cake. Level cake; cut in half. Using spatula, ice leveled top of cake half with buttercream icing. Top with remaining cake, leveled side down. Stand cake upright, cut side down. Ice outside of cake smooth using buttercream icing.

   Chill until set, about 20 minutes.

4. Make fondant body. Tint 2 oz. white fondant dark blue using color combination provided. Combine Royal Blue and a touch of Violet icing colors to get dark blue color shown. Roll into a smooth ball, then form into a cone with a wide tip on the narrow end (this will form the head). Make sure neck is smooth and thinner than body and head portions.

   Press fondant lightly against surface to flatten one side. Bend narrow end down to form head.

   Using ½ in. ball of white fondant, roll small cone. Using small amount of icing, attach to head for beak, trimming as necessary.

   Using ¼ in. ball of white fondant, roll small strip using fondant roller with pink guide rings. Taper one end to form eye piece. Using damp brush, attach to head. Press Black Sugar Pearl into eye piece to form eye.

   Using Lemon Yellow icing color, tint ¼ in. ball of white fondant yellow. Using fondant roller with pink guide rings, roll out yellow fondant.

   Using craft knife, cut 3 to 5 strips, measuring 1 in. x 1/16 in. in size. Using fingers, press and shape one end into a triangle (wide end at top) to form peacock head feathers. Let set, about 1 hour.

5. Tint icing. Tint 1/3 cup icing each dark teal, light green and dark blue using color combinations provided. Combine Teal and Kelly Green icing colors to get dark teal color shown. Combine Leaf Green and Lemon Yellow icing colors to get light green color shown. Combine Royal Blue and a touch of Violet icing colors to get dark blue color shown. Using Sky Blue, Lemon Yellow and Violet icing colors, tint 1/3 cup icing each blue, yellow and violet.

   Prepare five decorating bags with tip 2. Fill separately with dark teal, light green, blue, yellow and violet icing. Prepare decorating bag with tip 4. Fill with dark blue icing.

6. Prepare design. Using toothpick, sketch feather design on cake.

7. Decorate cake. Using prepared bags, pipe design on cake. Starting with yellow icing, pipe eyes of feathers, then violet shading around each eye. Using dark teal icing, pipe several lines around each eye, forming feather.

   Using dark blue icing, pipe outline of petals, then inner line of petals using light green icing. Using blue icing, add lines to fill in each petal.

   Using light green icing, pipe tear shapes around top edge of cake, filling in shape with blue icing.

8. Assemble cake. Using toothpick, poke three small holes in top of bird head. Insert yellow fondant feathers.

   Attach body to cake using small amount of buttercream icing.