Marmalade cat Birthday cake
For the medium sponge
a.. 175 g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
b.. 175 g caster sugar
c.. 3 large eggs, beaten
d.. 1 tsp vanilla extract
e.. 175 g plain flour
f.. 3 tsp baking powder
g.. 3 tbsp milk, at room temperature
For the large sponge
a.. 250 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
b.. 250 g caster sugar
c.. 4 large eggs, beaten
d.. 1 tsp vanilla extract
e.. 250 g plain flour
f.. 4 tsp baking powder
g.. 3-4 tbsp milk, at room temperature
For the buttercream
a.. 350 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
b.. 700 g icing sugar, sifted
c.. vanilla extract, optional
For the decoration
a.. orange food colouring
b.. 2 green fruit pastille sweets
c.. small liquorice sweets
d.. 1 large strip liquorice
e.. black writing icing
Method
1.. For the sponge cakes: preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. Grease one 18cm
and one 23cm round springform cake tin with butter and line the bases with
greased baking parchment.
2. Make the medium and large sponge cake batters separately, following this
method. Cream the butter and sugar in an electric mixer until pale, light and
fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Very gradually add the beaten eggs, mixing well
between each addition and scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula from
time to time. Stir in the vanilla extract.
3. Sift together the plain flour and baking powder and add to the cake
mixture in two batches, mixing until smooth. Add the milk and mix until smooth.
4. Pour your medium sponge mixture into the 18cm cake tin and the large
sponge mixture into the 23cm cake tin. Bake the cakes on the middle shelf of
the preheated oven until a skewer inserted into the middle of each one comes
out clean - the smaller cake will take about 30 minutes and the larger cake
35-40 minutes. Leave the cakes to cool in their tins for 10 minutes before
turning out onto a wire cooling rack. Turn the cakes the right way up and leave
to cool completely.
5. For the buttercream: Cream the butter in an electric mixer until really
soft. Gradually beat in the icing sugar until pale and smooth. Add a few drops
of vanilla extract, if using. Reserve 4-5 tablespoons of the buttercream in a
small bowl. Tint the remainder with the orange food colouring paste, adding it
a little at a time and mixing well between each addition, until you have the
colour you desire.
6. To decorate: use a long, serrated knife to level the tops of the cakes
and make them the same height. Remove about one-third off the top of the larger
cake by cutting it in a leaf shape and fit the smaller cake into the space
created. Cut the leaf shape in half to make 2 triangles and position them at
the top of the smaller cake to make the ears.
7. Cover the cake with the orange buttercream, spreading evenly with a
palette knife. Carefully spread the reserved plain buttercream to make a tummy
shape and the insides of the ears.
8. Position the fruit pastilles on the cat's face for the eyes. Slice the
liquorice sweet into thin slices to make the nose and position the liquorice
strip as the tail and the mouth. Use the black writing icing to make the
whiskers and the pupils in the eyes.
~ Have a nice day & Enjoy the recipes ~
Arlette Arthur
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CAKE-RECIPE/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CAKE-RECIPE/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
[email protected]
[email protected]
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[email protected]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
