Castle Cake

So the other day my sister had a fairy tale themed birthday party and she asked me for a castle cake. So I came up, with much inspiration from Donna Hay, with this:

So I am going to just give a few tips on how to make something like this if you wanted to give it a go.

Obviously, a lot of the fun with this is getting creative, so search around the internet and other baking blogs and magazines for more ideas. As a starting point though, these are the two Donna Hay cakes where I sourced my inspiration from:

 
THE CAKE

There is a lot of freedom with the cake shape, but the basic principle is three layers, each one smaller than the previous one. If for the two smaller layers you don't have cake tins the right size, bake a cake in a larger tin and cut both smaller layers from the same cake. For example, a large rectangle from which you can cut two smaller circles.

If you like the look of the second Donna Hay cake, don't panic about baking the tall cylindrical cakes, buy some sponge rolls from your local supermarket and use them.

ICING

Pre-made fondant icing is a must for this kind of cake, with so many different layers. By using pre-bought icing you will have a smoother and cleaner finish for your cake. Instructions on how to use will be on the packet, but the general rule is knead the dough to soften it, then roll out until a few milimentres thick, then lay it over the cake and shape it, trimming off any excess.

If you want to add colour to your fondant, which will come coloured white, then just add some food dye when you are kneading and knead it through. Or, even easier, buy coloured fondant, though sometimes supermarkets don't stock coloured fondant.

For smaller adornments like windows and doors, you can either cut shapes out of the leftover fondant and layer them on, or buy icing pens and draw them on yourself, which I did on my cake.


TURRETS

You will need:
Store bought pack of ice-cream cones
1 block of white chocolate

Method:
Melt the chocolate in a microwave heat proof bowl. Make sure the bowl is large enough for you to fit the cones into. Once the chocolate is melted, dip the cones into the bowl and cover the outside with the melted white chocolate. Stand on a baking tray covered with non-stick paper and refrigerate until set.

MARSHMALLOW BORDER

You will need:
1 packet mini-marshmallows
Icing pens (these are the easiest, but if you want to make your own royal icing that's fine)

Method:
Place a small amount of icing on the end of a marshmallow and press onto the cake, holding for a few seconds to make sure it will stay in place. That's really all there is too it. I alternated between colours which I think adds a nice look, and the inclusion of the pink marshmallows means the cake isn't just white lollies on white icing. Feel free to switch between sizes and styles as well if you want, or do more marshmallow borders on all the layers. Or stick them on to the turrets even. Go crazy!

Erm... sorry, I really like marshmallows.


So that's about it as far as the cake that I made goes. Other things you could think about doing might be a moat out of blue jelly, adding some people, making Rapunzel hair out of spun toffee, creating a bridge out of kit-kats and licorice. Just let your imagination flow, and if it doesn't turn out the way you want, who cares?? You've still got an awesome cake to eat.


Until next time.