Hollywood starlet birthday cake

Serves:

Ingredients

• 4 pkt cake mixes (or equivalent cake recipe of choice to fill two 28cm x 23cm rectangular cake tin)
• 1 qty Buttercream icing (see Flower pot birthday cake for recipe)
• Meadow Lea or 1 qty Chocolate butter (see Bouncing balls birthday cake for recipe)

Decorations

• 200g white ready-to-roll fondant icing
• Star cookie cutters
• Alphabet cookie cutters
• Red ribbon
• Doll
• Gold cachous
• Yellow food colouring

Method

Following the packet instructions, prepare two packet cakes and pour together into the cake tine. Bake according to the instructions – you may have to increase your cooking time

slightly as you have doubled the recipe by putting to packets into one tin.

Repeat with the remaining packet cakes.

Level both cakes with a knife and spread the top of one cake with the Chocolate butter. Sandwich the remaining cake on top.

Ice the entire cake with buttercream.

Decorations

Knead fondant until soft and smooth.

Dust work bench with icing sugar and roll out fondant to approx. 5mm thickness. Using the star cutters, cut out desired number of stars and press gold cachous on star tips. Place stars

on a tray lined with baking paper and allow to dry and harden (this may take 24-48 hours.) Using the alphabet cutters, cut out the word Hollywood and put aside to dry and harden.

When the stars are dry paint the stars with yellow food colouring and allow to dry. (This will give a strong, vibrant colour.)

Position the ribbon down the middle of the cake leaving a space at the back of the cake for the Hollywood letters. (By putting the ribbon on first, gives you a centre to work from when

positioning your other decorations.)

Position the Hollywood letters at the back of the cake (you can curve this if the letters do not fit across the cake in a straight line.)

Position the stars at the front of the cake. Poke the feet of the doll either side of the ribbon so it looks like it is walking down the red carpet.

Carefully press gold cachous around the edges of the cake. This does take time but it is worth the effort to give the cake a bit of Hollywood glamour.

Notes:

• If you don’t have alphabet cutters, you can create the lettering on a computer to use as a template on the fondant icing. Use a sharp knife to cut around the templates.
• If you don’t wish to use packet cakes, any other cake is suitable. Adjust your recipe to suit the tin being used.
• You can mix a splash of vodka with the yellow food colouring. This helps it to dry quicker.
• Make the stars and Hollywood letters a couple of days before you need the cake to ensure they are completely dry. Store in an airtight container once dry and hard.
• This recipe was created by Katherine Petric for Kidspot, New Zealand’s best recipe finder.

Serving Suggestions

Note