HUGE fairy/ cup cake

[melsy]

Would like to make one for dd's 1st birthday , do you think I would be able to get hold of a HUGE paper cup for the base IFYWIM !!!?????or would it be best to make it myself out of baking paper ?? & any ideas on the base to cook it in ?? Want to make it look quite authentically like an old fashioned cup cake. Would also like to make tiny mini ones to sit beside it and give to all the kiddies after, can you get mini paper bases?? oooh and some sugar icing wrapped parcels any ideas ???

Awwww paps thankyou. That is soo kind.

Ok greasy girls gonna practise baking & caking today and enjoy whatever the outcome !!!!!

Need some good sugar flowers , any online recommenedations girls ??

Ive just spent the last 2 hours experimenting and have done a successful batch of cupcakes (with chopped cherrys inside)and mini ones in petit for cases.I bought the barbie sprinkles they are pretty. I have also had the seal of approval from DH a he is the fanatical chef in our house. I have been crowned head patisserrie chef !!!!! Although I may not have the same success with my enourmous HUge one yet to be tried!!! Ordered all my bits from lakeland and awaiting the huge cake cases!!! Ive spent a fortune today on sugar and rice paper flowers , icing paint, edible glue, baby ribbon in pastel colours and sooooooooooo much more. Porbably would have been cheaper and easier to get somoene to make it!!!!!!! Nigella STEP ASIDE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ive just put a large one in the oven (excuse the pun)with the huge lakeland baking cups,thanx girls for the link) , its sitting in a large metal cake tin too. Wish it luck !!! My 1st go in big cake territory !!!!!! Forgot to put in the crushed chocolate bits!!! Gonna do another one double amount of mixture as its way to low in the paper , or is it gonna rise like mad in a bit ?? Coorr Im soo impatient i wanna see it do its thing NOW !!!!!

Ooooh! Sounds lovely!

Please can you put a photo for us to look at if at all possible???

Just lifetd from oven and tried to tkae it out of cake tin and it fell !!!!!! PMSL , its ok though its just come away from the paper. Defffooo needs dounble cake mix , although my nerves will be raw when doing that one. Its now flopped in the middle !!!!! Oh well was my 1st try.

Will take some piccies if possible and get them online , it doeesnt look much this one !!!

the round ones at the back fit a 7 inch tin
I use them

helloooo mooodum coderama !! I think I bought the 7" ones.

Just summoning up the oooompph to mix up another batch. Is it possible to freeze a few weeks before or will it be nicer a couple of days ahead ?? thats if i get any to rise higher and not flop !! although I a covering it eventually in tons of glace icing!!!

ooohhh its flopping reallly bad now , my little ones didnt flop .

Any tips on stopping the flopping ????????

Could it be the cake tester thing p haps that I STUCK IN THE MIDDLE before removing from oven may be ?

heeeeeeeeeeeeeelp what did I do wrong !!!???

Is it the cold air outside the oven that makes cakes flop?

may be , not sure , Im a novice !! Ive put it back in the oven to see if it helps as I noticed gooey stuff in the middle. So much for lakelands cake testers !!!! Dont know what Im fretting about !!!

I wouldn't use a cake tester unless cooking a very rich fruit cake.

For cooking a sponge if you place a finger on the top (gently) then remove it the sponge should dip then rise back - if it doesn't then it isn't cooked.

Are you doing a victoria sandwich mixture or a whisked sponge?

Ive used the same ingredients as I di for small fairy cakes , am I meant ot have changed the density if the mixture for a larger sponge??

I cream sugar and baking butter, add flour baking powder ,vanilla essence(the good one), 2 eggs and wisk up. I added fresh chopped cherries last time , & didnt this time the mixture had a better consistency with the chopped fruit.

lower temp of oven and cook for longer

Great dh just walked in and went "oh that didnt work did it" Cheers MATE !!!!! Talk about encouragment !!! Silly ar*e !!

we learn from our mistakes!! but it helps if somone thinks its great Im trying GGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRR.

No your ingredient are for a Victoria sponge - I do a different order Butter & sugar, beat in eggs then fold in flour & bits. If you fold in the flour with a metal spoon - you should get a better rise.

Try not to open the door too soon (it's easier said than done) - do you have a fan oven (it makes it a bit easier)

OOOH CRAP & CRAP & more CRAP .I think Nigella needs to come back , my next disaster is sitting on the kitchen table in all its FLOPPED glory !!!! Ive been sitting watching feeling very deflated myself !!! I wnat to stay positive and try again ,but Im slightly peeved Ive spent so much on everything and its going to look NAFF !!! I wish Id just got someone else to make it now , someone please encourage me otherwsie dh will say "told you so" !!!

WHAT DO I DO ??? WHY IS IT FLOPPING????
I wipped byhand soft baking butter with sugar , then added in the eggs and used an electric hand wisk , I then added the vanilla and then folded in the flour by hand , so what gives ?? Was it that the mixtrue looked curdled ??? Does that tell me the eggs were too cold ??

How about making a huge pile of small fairy cakes instead? Make a pyramid of them, drap ribbon (fondant icing?) all over the pile in twists and shake edible glitter (fairy dust!) over it.

so make them and pile up before the icing , then ice ?? and then have one nice one on top all iced lovely with number in and candle ??

How many roughyl would I need for that ??

Ice each one individually, leave to set, pile up and drape either real ribbon or made from fondant icing, shake over edible glitter. Big blob of icing on top cake where the ribbons spring from and put 1 candle in the top.

Friends had a HUGE pile (over 200) as the cake at their wedding blessing. It looked fantastic.

You really need one per person I guess but basically as many as make a neat pile.

Probably not 200!!!

That is a lovely idea and ive seen it quite often on cake websites. I was just soo set on doing one biggun , but may be I have to stay open minded about it and try somehting different. I could still do the mini ones to lay randomly & make presents to lay randomly with the sugar and rice flowers. I like the idea of lots of very thin pastel ribbon floating from the top one, may be attached in the center top one with flowers & bits around the number.

Im still going to attempt another big one this week and follow a different recipe. I havr to try things over and over and over, I am very persistant !!!!!!!

Could you try a muffin recipe rather than fairy cake? Maybe it's just to delicate to hold itself up when baked as a large one.