Ingredients
Royal icing
Method
1.Trim cakes. Secure deep 20cm cake to largest board; top with remaining 20cm cake, joining cakes with jam or ganache. Secure remaining cakes to same-sized boards. Prepare cakes for covering with store-bought icing.
2.Reserve 500g of the store-bought icing for bow. Knead 1.5kg of remaining icing on surface dusted with a little cornflour until icing loses its stickiness. Tint pale pink with colouring. Reserve 500g for box lid.
3.Roll remaining pale pink icing on cornfloured surface until large enough to cover largest cake. Using rolling pin, lift icing onto cake; smooth with hands then smoothing tools. Trim icing around base. Reserve icing scraps. Use 3.5cm perspex measure to mark sides of cake where lid will cover sides of box.
4.Tint 500g of the remaining white icing medium pink. Reserve 200g for box lid. Roll remaining medium pink icing on surface dusted with a little cornflour until large enough to cover small cake in the same way as the large cake. Reserve scraps. Use 2.5cm perspex measure to mark sides of cake for lid.
5.Tint remaining icing a darker pink. Reserve 300g for box lid. Roll remaining icing on cornfloured surface until large enough to cover medium cake in the same way as the large cake. Reserve scraps. Use 3cm perspex measure to mark sides of cake for lid. Dry cakes overnight.
6.To make lids: Work with one cake at a time, using matching reserved icing and scraps, and corresponding perspex measure. Lightly brush a little water in marked area for lid.
7.Roll icing out on cornfloured surface until large enough to cover top of cake and extend over sides to cover marked area. Use perspex measure and a sharp knife to cut away excess icing. Reserve scraps. Smooth icing with hands then smoothing tools.
8.Using the stitching tool, mark around the bottom edge of all lids.
9.Push 4 trimmed skewers into centres of large and medium cakes to support the next tier. Assemble cakes, securing each tier to the tier below.
10.To make royal icing, sift icing sugar through very fine sieve. Lightly beat egg white in small bowl with electric mixer; add icing sugar, a tablespoon at a time. When icing reaches firm peaks, use a wooden spoon to beat in juice; cover tightly with plastic wrap.
11.Divide royal icing into three bowls, tint to match cakes. Half-fill each of the piping bags with royal icing; pipe around base of same-coloured cake. Use fingertip to blend icing into any gaps where cakes join the boards. Dry cakes overnight.
12.To make ribbons: Take tiny pieces of the reserved icing scraps, roll into tiny balls. Place balls under vinyl mat. Knead two-thirds of the white icing on cornfloured surface until icing loses its stickiness.
13.Measure height of stacked cakes, roll out icing long enough to match height of cakes. Place dots randomly over icing; gently roll over the dots to push them into the icing. Cut a 3cm-wide rectangle of the required length. Secure ribbon to cakes with a little royal icing. Repeat process to make three more ribbons.
14.To make bow, make more tiny pink balls, place under vinyl mat. Knead ½ teaspoon tylose into the remaining white icing on cornfloured surface. Roll icing on cornfloured surface until large enough to cut out a 10cm x 30cm strip and a 2.5cm x 20cm strip.
15.Roll balls into icing the same way as the ribbon. Place large strip under vinyl mat. To make tails for bow, cut the small strip of icing in half crossways; cut `V’s into ends. Secure tails to cake with royal icing. Pinch the blunt ends of the tails to make narrower.
16.Cut the large strip of icing in half crossways. Place cotton wool on both rectangles of icing, fold icing over to enclose cotton wool, join edges with a little water. Gently pleat edges together. Stand each bow on one end almost touching; cover join with a scrap of icing, secure with a little water. Stand overnight to dry.
17.Remove cotton wool from bow when dry. Position bow on cake, secure with a little royal icing.
Equipment: 30cm square wooden cake board, 15cm square wooden cake board, 10cm square woode cake board, smoothing tools, 2.5cm, 3cm and 3.5cm perspex measures, fine artist’s paint brush, stitching tool, 8 wooden skewers, 3 paper piping bags, vinyl mat tape measure, cotton wool. Use perspex measure to measure sides of cakes for lids. Press the measure into the icing to mark the area before the icing sets. White icing is also known as fondant (it’s the traditional icing used on wedding cakes). It is available in packets from the supermarket and cake decorating shops.
Note
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