Outer Space Cake
This cake is best made over a 2 day period so that the cooked cake has time to firm up.
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Mango Chocolate Mud Cake
- 500g/1.1lbs butter
- 375g/13.25ozs white Chocolate
- 3 cups caster or superfine sugar
- 3 cups mango nectar
- 3 eggs
- Orange colouring
- Mango flavouring (I use LorAnn's flavour oils)
- 3 cups plain all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cornflour/fine cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
Ganache
- 700g/25ozs. white chocolate
- 250ml/8.83fl ozs cream
Step 1 - Preheat oven to 150C/300F and line 2x20cm/8inch pans on the base and sides with parchment. In a large pot melt the butter, chocolate, sugar and mango nectar and stir until smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Whisk in the eggs and add in the flavour and colour.
Step 2 - Take a large mixing bowl and place the flour, cornflour and baking powder in it and whisk to combine. Make a well in the centre and ladle in some of the wet mango batter. Keep adding it ladleful by ladleful-lumps won't form if you add the liquid in gradually. Divide the resulting batter in the two tins and bake for 1 hour 30 minutes or until you can press down in the centre and it is not soft. Cool in the tin and wrap up in clingfilm. This cake is best made a day ahead of time.
Step 3 - Make the ganache by placing the chocolate in a double boiler. Heat the cream until hot (I did it just in the microwave) and pour over the chocolate. Use the heat from the double boiler to make sure that all of the chocolate is melted and smooth and then refrigerate until firm-ish. You want it spreadable but not hard.
Step 4 - Place a dab of ganache on an 8 inch cake round. Put one of the cakes on this and then spread ganache on top. Place the other round on top and then spread ganache on the sides nad top. Refrigerate.
Step 5 - take an angled spatula and a glass of water and dip the spatula in, tap it on a teatowel and the smooth the sides. The water acts as a smoother. Smooth the cake all over the top and sides. Refrigerate until firm.
Step 6 - Take the white fondant and sprinkle cornflour on a large clean surface. Roll it out and then carefully lift it on top of the cake. Smooth it down and cut off an excess folds on the side. Use clean and dry hands to smooth it down and then a paring knife to trim the bottom of the fondant.
Step 7 - Spray patches of the cake with the purple mist spray and then fill on other patches with the blue mist spray. Then take the white white edible colour and drop or flick it against the cake for stars.
Step 8 - Clear and clean your space and then roll out the colours to make the aliens and spaceships. I used a paring knife to make the spaceship and then cutters to make the aliens.
You can also cut out a name using letter cutters. Use a little water and a brush to adhere the letters, aliens and spaceship to the cake. Then sprinkle edible gold dust on top to give it on final magical touch!