April Fools' Day "Bowl of Cereal"

For a long time, I didn't like April Fools' Day because I don't like mean-spirited pranks. I am not a fan of tricking someone in order to make them look or feel dumb, to create a giant mess, to get their hopes up and crush them, or to get them to eat something disgusting. None of that is fun to me; it feels a lot more like bullying than an appropriate way to 'celebrate.'

I am, however, a big fan of the creative ways that businesses have celebrated April Fools' Day in the past few years, introducing such novel inventions as the Polite Horn, Beautiful Bond Salon, and Tranquility High Adventure Base. I'm also a huge fan of positive pranks - tricking someone in a way that delights them. That is the spirit behind my April Fools' Day "Bowl of Cereal."

Spoiler: It's not a bowl of cereal. 

There are a lot of not-funny food pranks out there, like serving cream-filled donuts that are actually filled with Miracle Whip or Oreos with the filling replaced with toothpaste. This is the opposite. The kids think they're getting an ordinary bowl of cereal for breakfast, but they get something even better. When they lift the spoon to have some cereal, they'll find yummy chocolate cake inside instead! 

Read on to learn how easy it is to make. Affiliate links below. 

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April Fools' Day "Bowl of Cereal"

Materials:

• microwaveable cereal bowl
• spoon
• chocolate cake mix
• vegetable oil
• Alphabits cereal
• Wilton Candy Melts (bright white)

Steps:

Make a single-serve microwave chocolate cake (Recipe A) in a microwave-safe cereal bowl. Let it cool completely. While it is cooling, sort through the Alphabits to spell out "APRIL FOOLS."

Insert a spoon into the cake so that it sits the way a spoon would sit in a bowl of milky cereal. Follow the package directions to prepare the candy melts, then pour them over the top of the cake so that the surface is completely covered and no chocolate shows through. It should self-level with some gentle jiggling. 

Place the Alphabits onto the melted candy to spell out APRIL FOOLS. 

If you serve it within 15 minutes or so, it will be easy to eat and enjoy. If you let it set much longer, the candy melts can harden to the point that it can be difficult to get the spoon out. If that happens, use a heat gun or hair dryer to warm up the candy melts enough so they soften. Don't put the bowl into the microwave with the spoon still in place!