HOW TO ASSEMBLE YOUR CASTLE

STEP 1 To make the turrets, cut the wide bases off 2 ice cream cones carefully with a knife, to make mini cones. Cover these and the 3 whole cones with royal icing using a palette knife. Sprinkle 100s and 1,000s onto a plate and gently roll each cone in the sprinkles until covered, then stand upright to dry. Roll 5 sausages of pink sugar paste for the turrets – mine were approximately 9cm long x 3.5cm wide, two 7cm x 2.5-3cm and two 5.5cm x 2cm.

STEP 2 Insert dowelling rods through the 3 larger sausages, leaving enough sticking out at one end to go up inside your cones – test the length using the cones – and enough at the other end to insert fully into the cake (about 17cm). Insert rods into the 2 small sausages, leaving enough sticking out at one end for the cone. Lay them all down to dry, turning occasionally so there is no flat side. For the ramparts, roll out five 22cm x 2cm strips of white sugar paste, 5mm thick. Cut out squares along one side and stick on the bases of the cones with royal icing.

STEP 3 Mould 5 blobs of sugar paste into rough cone shapes and push onto the tops of the dowels to support the cones. Stick the 3 larger sausages on their dowels into the top tier (our cake above is fully decorated, but yours will not be at this stage). Stick pearls on the ramparts with royal icing. Reserve some white sugar paste to make a door and heart later (see main recipe).

STEP 4 Place the ice cream cones on top of the dowels. Attach the smaller 2 sausages to the cake drum and sides of the bottom tier with royal icing. To make flags, cut 5 x 6cm lengths of ribbon, cover with double-sided Sellotape and fold in half over the top of cocktail sticks. Cut notches in the ends so they look like flags and insert gently into the tops of the cones.