These lil' lions came from from the Martha Stewart Cupcake Book (which might be my favorite book!). I changed them a little bit to make them look more like lions by using black icing gel to make the nose and mouth. I think that they look more like lions if you arrange the toasted coconut in a triangle instead of a perfect circle.
So what do you need to make these cuties?
1. Toasted coconut - Simply preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spread coconut on a cookie sheet in a thin layer. Keep it in the oven for about ten minutes, or until they start turning brown. That's it!
2. Black licorice for whiskers. You could just use icing
3. White gum drops cut in half for the cheeks
4. For the frosting color, I had a crazy mix of yellow, orange and red. Don't ask me how I decided on those colors.
That's pretty much it! Apply the coconut first, followed by the gum drops, and then the eyes and mouth, and finish with the whiskers.
And then let out a big roar :)
