Name: Birthday bug cake
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 1 h 20 min
Total time: 2 h 10 min
Yield: 16
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: Easy vanilla cake and syrup mix (see recipe below); 100g white chocolate (I used Milkybar); Basic vanilla buttercream mix (see Easy vanilla cake recipe below); 12 giant chocolate buttons 6 cut in half; treat-size pack chocolate buttons; 2 chocolate sticks (I used Matchmakers); hundreds and thousands; multicoloured candles; red (or whatever colour you like) writing icing tubes (I used Asda); multicoloured candles

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Birthday bug cake

Birthday bug cake

Jane Hornby

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Serves 16

Easy

Prep: 50 mins

Cook: 1 hr and 20 mins

A star rating of 4.6 out of 5.22 ratingsRate

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Children will love the butterfly and ladybird decorations on this colourful cake – and you'll love its simplicity

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Vanilla cake

A star rating of 4.6 out of 5.232 ratings

Ingredients

Nutrition

Units:

MetricUS

Easy vanilla cake

and syrup mix (see recipe below)
100g white chocolate

(I used Milkybar)
Basic vanilla

buttercream mix (see Easy vanilla cake recipe below)
12 giant chocolate buttons

6 cut in half
treat-size pack chocolate buttons
2 chocolate

sticks (I used Matchmakers)
hundreds and thousands
multicoloured candles
red (or whatever colour you like) writing icing

tubes (I used Asda)
multicoloured candles

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Nutrition: per serving

kcal536
fat30g
saturates18g
carbs64g
sugars47g
fibre1g
protein7g
salt0.28g

low

Method

step 1

Bake the Easy vanilla cake in a greased, lined deep 20cm cake tin as in the basic recipe; drench with syrup and leave to cool. Leave the oven on.
step 2

Break the white chocolate into cubes into a microwaveable bowl, and heat on High for 1 min (or melt over a pan of simmering water). Stir, then leave any remaining lumps to melt in the warm liquid chocolate. Once just-warm, beat the chocolate into the buttercream.
step 3

Start the butterflies. Put the whole giant buttons on a flat baking tray on non-stick baking paper, then put into the oven for 20-30 secs or until the chocolate looks shiny. Take out, scatter with hundreds and thousands, then leave to set completely before cutting in half with a large non-serrated knife. For the ladybirds, pipe dots of icing all over the already cut giant button halves, then leave aside to dry.
step 4

Spread the buttercream over the cake, then start to arrange the butterflies. Cut each Matchmaker into 3 – these will make the bodies. Press onto the cake, then stick four giant button halves around each body to make ‘wings’. For the ladybirds, place two spotty button halves together, then use a small button for the head. Scatter more hundreds and thousands all over the cake, then poke in the candles.

RECIPE TIPS

TIP

The decorated cake can be left, loosely covered, in a cool, dry place (not the fridge) for up to 24 hours before the party.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, June 2009

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A star rating of 4.6 out of 5.22 ratings

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