Science experiment cake

Equipment

You'll need a 15cm cardboard cake board, a 33cm covered MDF round cake board, plus a torch.

Ingredients

250g butter, softened

1 1/2 cups caster sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

4 eggs

2 cups self-raising flour

1/2 cup plain flour

1 cup milk

30 gummi bears

Radioactive jelly

1 litre lemonade

1/4 cup powdered gelatine

10 red jelly frogs

5 blue jelly snakes

Buttercream icing

250g butter, softened

3 cups icing sugar mixture

2 tablespoons milk

Green gel food colouring

Method

Step 1

Make Radioactive jelly: Grease an 8-cup capacity metal pudding steamer with oil. Heat lemonade in a saucepan over medium heat for 3 minutes or until warm. Transfer to a heatproof bowl. Sprinkle over gelatine. Whisk until dissolved.

Step 2

Strain gelatine mixture into prepared pudding steamer. Cover. Refrigerate for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until thick and syrupy. Add frogs and snakes. Cover. Refrigerate overnight to set.

Step 3

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180C/160C fan-forced. Grease two 6cm deep, 20cm (base) round cake pans. Line bases and sides with baking paper.

Step 4

Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Add half the flours. Stir to combine. Add half the milk. Stir to combine. Repeat with remaining flours and milk.

Step 5

Divide mixture between prepared cake pans. Bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre of cakes comes out clean. Stand in pans for 10 minutes. Turn cakes onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Step 6

Make Buttercream icing: Using an electric mixer, beat butter until pale and fluffy. Gradually add icing sugar mixture and milk, beating constantly until combined. Tint green with food colouring.

Step 7

Place 1 cake on large MDF cake board. Spread top with 1?2 cup icing. Top with remaining cake. Spread top and side of cakes with icing. Place cardboard cake board on top of pudding steamer. Turn out jelly. Place jelly, on board, onto cake. Using the picture as a guide, place gummi bears around edge of cake. Place a lit torch behind cake. Serve.

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