touchdown{!} cake.

Super Bowl Sunday is upon us. For some, it’s the holiest of football days. For me, it’s all about the food.

I used to keep track of football, back when I felt like I needed to to impress boys. Thank god that’s over! I’d have to really think to come up with the two teams duking it out this weekend.

The year I was pregnant with Teensy-Weensy, I made the entire spread that had been in the Martha Stewart Living story on hosting the Super Bowl party. Wings. Personal 7-layer bean dips. Other stuff. My friend Marie {also pregnant} and I enjoyed a jolly day of eating way. too. much. The other stuff paled in comparison to the piece-de-la-resistance, though: this cake.

This cake was the keeper. I’ve loosely adapted it from Martha.

I call it my Touchdown! cake, and I make it once a year.

Now you can, too. It impresses the heck outta your guests, and it is darn tasty. It’s really moist. And those are Andies Candies footballs on top!

I recommend baking the cake the night before. At the very latest, you can bake it on the morning of game day.

Here’s what you’ll need for the cake:

3/4 c. cocoa powder

1 and 1/2 c. flour {I’m mixing whole wheat with regular this year}

1 and 1/2 c. sugar

1 and 1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 c. warm water

1/2 c. milk

1/4 c. sour cream

1/3 c. melted butter, plus some for greasing your 9×13 pan

1 tsp. vanilla

The corners off of 12 Andies Candies {cut them off in a way that will give you what sort of looks like 12 football shapes}

Do This:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9×13 pan. Line the bottom with parchment {that is, if you want to dump it out like in the picture above…which really isn’t necessary}. Butter the parchment. Dust with cocoa powder.

2. Whisk all your dry ingredients together. Add your wet ingredients and stir until smooth and incorporated. Fold in the Andies Candies corners.

3. Pour batter into your prepared pan and bake for 35-40 mins. {toothpick test}.

4. Let it cool on a rack for 15 mins. Then gently turn it out onto the rack to cool completely. If it’s the night before, lay a sheet of plastic wrap over it.

This is my favorite part of the Super Bowl at my house.

This is what you’ll need for the delicious frosting:

2 egg whites

1/2 c. sugar

1 and 1/2 sticks of softened butter, cut into chunks

2 and 1/2 Tbsp. creme de menthe

1 tsp. vanilla

The 12 Andies Candies that are shaped like footballs

36 white sprinkles {nothing makes me laugh harder than watching guests pick out the white sprinkles from a little jar of mixed ones when they’ve asked to help me!}

Do This:

1. Mix egg whites and sugar together in a heat-proof bowl. Set it over a pan of simmering water {double boiler}. Whisk it until the sugar dissolves, about 2 or 3 minutes.

2. Take the bowl off the heat and whisk it on high until stiff peaks form. Add your butter, a few chunks at a time, and whisk after each addition. Add creme de menthe and vanilla, and beat for a couple of minutes. If it’s not green enough for you, you can add some green food coloring.

3. Using some frosting as glue, press three white sprinkles into the center of each little candy football. This part’s kind of a pain in the butt. But it’s worth it!

4. Frost the cooled cake. It kind of looks like a football field, right? Arrange the footballs in a grid so that there’s one for each slice of cake.

This cake will keep if you cover it. Four days! But why the heck would it still be around after four days?! Who are your guests, man?

May the best team win!