LITTLE CHICKEN CAKE

PREP + COOK TIME 2 HOURS (+ COOLING) SERVES 12

EQUIPMENT

26cm x 35cm baking dish

35cm square prepared cake board

CAKE

2 x 470g packets butter cake mix 1 quantity butter cream (recipe left) yellow, red and orange food colouring

DECORATIONS

2 cups (20g) popped popcorn

2 small potato chips

1 white marshmallow

1 yellow Skittle

4 ice-cream wafers

50g ready-made white fondant icing 2 tablespoons pure icing sugar, to dust 4 wooden toothpicks

1 Preheat oven to 150°C/130°C fan. Grease and flour dish.

2 Make cake according to directions on packet. Spread mixture into dish; bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Stand cake in dish for 10 minutes; turn, top-side up, onto a wire rack to cool.

3 Level cake top; turn cut-side down. Using picture opposite as a guide, cut out a chicken shape from cake. Place cake on cake board, cut-side down; secure with a little butter cream.

4 Tint butter cream yellow; spread all over cake.

5 Using picture opposite as a guide, press popcorn onto body of chicken. Gently push chips into cake for beak. Cut marshmallow in half; position, cut-side up, on cake for eye and top with Skittle. Sprinkle two wafers lightly with a little water (this makes them easier to cut), then cut out feet. Gently push into cake.

6 Knead ready-made icing on surface dusted with sifted icing sugar until icing loses its stickiness. Tint red using red and orange colouring; roll out until 3mm thick. Using picture opposite as a guide, cut out comb. Cut two wafers into same shape as comb without trimming the base. Attach icing comb to wafers with a little butter cream. Gently push base of wafers into cake (Step A). Secure comb underneath with toothpicks.

STEPS

A Gently push wafer into head of chicken to resemble its feathers.