Spaghetti-and-Meatball Cake

Ingredients

• 1 18.25-ounce box chocolate cake mix (plus required ingredients)
• 2 16-ounce tubs vanilla frosting
• 2 to 4 drops yellow food coloring 1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder
• 1 16-ounce bag frozen strawberries, thawed
• White chocolate, for grating

Directions

• 1.

  Make two 8-inch-round chocolate cakes as the cake mix label directs; cool completely. Crumble 1 cake into a bowl. Squeeze a handful of crumbs into a 2-inch ball; roll between your hands until smooth. Repeat to make 2 more cake balls.

• 2.

  Sprinkle some of the remaining cake crumbs on a clean surface. One at a time, roll the cake balls in the crumbs, pressing lightly to coat. If necessary, moisten the cake balls with water to help the crumbs stick.

• 3.

  Assemble the cake: Put the remaining whole cake on a serving plate or cake board. Spread about 1 1/2 cups vanilla frosting on the cake with an offset spatula; run the spatula around the sides to make it smooth.

• 4.

  Arrange the cake balls on the cake. Mix the remaining frosting, the yellow food coloring and cocoa in a bowl; transfer to a pastry bag with a small round tip. Pipe the yellow frosting around the cake balls in a figure-eight motion to look like spaghetti.

• 5.

  Make the strawberry sauce: Puree the strawberries in a food processor until slightly smooth with a few chunks. Spoon 1/2 cup strawberry puree around the meatballs to look like sauce.

• 6.

  Grate white chocolate on top of the cake to look like parmesan cheese. Serve the cake with the remaining strawberry puree on the side.