If this rainy start to the holiday weekend has changed your plans, have some fun making this Space Shuttle Cake together. The recipe is via Party Pieces, the party company of the family of Catherine, Princess of Wales.* A hit on Instagram @kathleenhelenlevey last summer, in the US pound cake can serve as a substitute for Madeira cake. You did not read it here, but if you only have an hour to prepare this vs. the several you had planned, rumor has it that defrosted pound cake held together by canned icing, decorated with Skittles, licorice, and some tinfoil improvisation will make children celebrating the Fourth of July just as happy :).
Ingredients:
-1 x 4 egg quantity Madeira cake
-1 x 450g quantity of Buttercream icing
-4 or 5 shop-bought mini sponge rolls
-Red and blue Smarties, silver balls and liquorice to decorate
-orange or yellow sugar paste
-6 ice cream cones
Method:
- Cook the Madeira cake mixture in a greased 1.2 litre ovenproof bowl for 50-55 minutes. Turn out and let cool. Trim the crust from the cake and slice the top flat. This will create the base of the spaceship.
To assemble:
- Using buttercream, stick together the sponge rolls. This will form the middle part of the ship. Place them on top of the base, then stick an upturned ice-cream cone on top of them to form the nose cone. Cover the whole cake with the remaining buttercream icing.
3. Place the cake on a round cake board and stick five ice-cream cones around the base to form the space shuttle “legs”. Decorate the spaceship using blue and red Smarties, silver balls and liquorice wheels for portholes.
4. Roll out the orange sugar paste and cut into little triangles. Stick these around the base of the rocket and up around the sides to create a flame effect.
Sources: PartyPieces.co.uk blog (“The Party Times”) by Pippa Middleton Matthews and Children’s Parties by Ryland and Small.
*The Middletons sold Party Pieces in 2023. We thank them for the fun and wish them the best of luck!
Posted July 1, 2017 on “Writing New Jersey Life” Additional text: All Rights Reserved © 2017 Kathleen Helen Levey