FIRE ENGINE CAKE

PREP + COOK TIME 2 HOURS SERVES 12

EQUIPMENT

14cm x 21cm loaf pan

25cm x 30cm rectangular prepared

cake board

CAKE

1½ x 470g packets butter cake mix 1 quantity butter cream

(recipe on page 117) red food colouring

DECORATIONS

200g ready-made white fondant icing ¼ cup (40g) pure icing sugar, to dust black food colouring

20cm piece black licorice strap,

halved lengthways black edible cake marker

4 chocolate cream-filled biscuits 2 each red, blue and yellow Smarties 9 mocha sticks

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

2 Make cake according to directions on packet. Pour mixture into pan; bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into centre comes out clean. Stand cake in pan for 5 minutes; turn, top-side up, onto a wire rack to cool.

3 Level top of cake; reserve cake scraps. Turn cake, cut-side down, onto surface. Cut into cake at one end to a depth of about 5mm, for the windscreen (Step A); reserve scraps of cake. Position scraps of cake on board to elevate the fire engine slightly; secure with a little butter cream. Position cake on cake scraps. 4 Tint butter cream red; spread evenly all over cake.

5 Knead ready-made icing on surface dusted with sifted icing sugar until icing loses its stickiness. Roll out a quarter of the icing into a disc, about 3mm thick. Using cake picture as a guide, cut out the windscreen, windows and number plate (Step B). Press the windscreen and windows onto cake.

6 Tint remaining icing grey using black colouring; roll out to a large disc, about 3mm thick. Cut out one 8cm square and two 3cm x 7cm rectangles. Using the side of a metal spatula, make indents, 5mm apart, on rectangles to represent roller doors (Step C).

7 Using picture opposite as a guide, position square on top of fire engine and press roller doors onto sides. Position licorice along sides of fire engine. Shape remaining grey icing into two bumper bars; position on fire engine. Using marker, write child’s name on number plate. Attach to bumper bar with a little butter cream. 8 Using a little butter cream, attach biscuits to fire engine for wheels. Use Smarties to make sirens and lights. Trim mocha sticks to make a ladder for the roof. Make windscreen wipers from scraps of licorice.

STEPS

A Using a serrated knife, cut one end from cake for the windscreen.

B Shape windscreen, windows and number plate from white icing.

C Make indents in grey icing, not all the way through, using sharp edge of a palette knife or a small, sharp knife.