jane asher cake guru type mums - i need you

[CrushWithEyeliner]

I want to bake a winnie the pooh cake for my DD 1st birthday. So nothing too rich or sugary...

I have never baked a cake in my life before.

Do you have any advice/ good books for novelty cakes you can point me in the direction of?

do you want a basic never fail cake recipe.
if so,
4 eggs
8oz self raising flour
8oz marge
8oz caster sugar.
cream sugar and marge
seperate flour into four and add 1 portion mix then add a egg mix ... keep on until all gone (always add the egg last so that it feels loose enough)
bake on a preheated oven at Gas Mark 5/190ºC:/375ºF cook for 30 ? 35 minutes, until cooked. shouln't dip or be to high in the middle if it does than the heat was to high, also use a skewer through the cake in the middle its cooked when it comes out clean.
and here is a cake tin on ebay you could buy, and put the reciepe above in.

and mix the egg, not egg mix

thanks so much - this is a good starting point

so how do i get it looking like winnie the pooh - is that all in the icing decoration ...?

x

You could ice it yourself then put a winnie the pooh cake topper on like this I'm sure there are cheaper things you could find on the net though.

AHHhh, I knew there would be some somewhere else! here

Or if you're any good at modelling with clay or plasticine you could have a try at modelling a Pooh out of ready made icing. Much easier than you think, I promise!

thats a great idea seeker!

I think i may have a plan......

dancer thay are amazing!

Crush, using Wideload's basic recipe you can certainly make successful sponges every time, once you have got used to your particular oven's heat (they do vary but I found a thermometer helps to ensure the temp is exactly what I know produces the right result - 180 in my case but I have a fan oven). When you've done it a few times you can knock one up in 10 mins max as I do My fussy daughter dislikes icing of any kind but will always pig down a warm naked sponge fresh from the oven!

Will only add that IME the preliminary creaming of sugar and egg is unnecessary and all you have to do is beat ALL ingredients together for a few mins with a hand mixer. The results are just as good and it saves mucho time.

I did a Pooh and a Piglet and and Eeyore once - great fun! Can't find the photo to show you, but it's much easier than you think. Ready made icing is brilliant to model with.

Thanks all: I am excited now I am entering the world of cake-baking...

I will have a practise run next weekend...ahhh!

I used these people for dd's 1st birthday cake and they were fab. she makes anything you want really flexible. found this one, hope it helps and good luck.

I only said to cream the sugar and marge seperatly as I don't use a mixer but when I have used a mixer in the past then I have thrown it all in together except for the last egg and let it mix then add the last egg to get the right consistancy, but how ever you do it, end on an egg then it won't b to stiff.