Alpaca Cake
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
- 3 cups cake flour
- 2 cups caster or superfine sugar
- 2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
- 1.5 teaspoons fine salt
- 2 1/4 cups water
- 3/4 cup rice bran oil (or other flavourless oil, not EVOO)
- 4.5 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons orange flavouring
- Food colouring in red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet and pink
Buttercream
- 380g butter, softened
- 8 cups golden icing sugar, well sifted (you can also use regular and tint it slightly golden in colour or leave white)
- 2-3 tablespoons milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
You will also need a small ball of white gum paste, edible pink powder, brush, #233 piping tip, piping bag, a white chocolate ball, edible food colourings in black as well as orange, green, red, yellow and blue and edible dried flowers.
Step 1 - First shape the ears by cutting out two triangles of rolled out white gum paste. Make them curl slightly inwards and rest them against chopsticks to keep the curve and dry completely. Brush the centre with edible pink powder.
Step 2 - Preheat oven to 180C/350F and line 7 x 18cm/7.2inch shallow cake tins. Place the flour, sugar, bicarb and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine. In a jug measure the water, vinegar and flavouring and add to the dry mix with a spatula mixing until just combined. Weigh the mixture (subtracting the weight of the bowl) and divide into 7 equal portions in 7 bowls. Tint each bowl a different colour. Bake for 20 minutes or until the centre springs back when touched. Cool completely.
Step 3 - Beat the butter until smooth and white in colour and then add the icing sugar, milk and vanilla and mix on low speed at first. Then beat until fluffy.
Step 4 - Spread some buttercream on a cake base and place a cake layer on the bottom. I started with the darkest colour. Spread with buttercream and repeat until you use all the layers. Spread a thin layer of buttercream around the cake filling in all the gaps. Refrigerate until firm. Then add a thicker layer around the cake and scrape until smooth with a large scraper.
Step 5 - Spoon some buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a #233 piping tip. Pipe the "hair" all around the cake leaving some space for the face. You may need help tilting the cake so that you can get the hair down the sides. I had Mr NQN hold it for me while I piped and then he tried piping as my hands got sore doing it (I think he enjoyed it).
Step 6 - Cut out some grooves in the top of the cake to insert the ears and gently place them in. Place the nose on the face and tint some buttercream with black gel. Draw eyes and the detail on the nose. You can also tint some buttercream to make the colourful decoration around the cake. Use a little buttercream to affix the flowers. Refrigerate if it is hot or keep at room temperature if it is cold where you are.