Remembrance Day Poppy ‘Peace’ of Cake

"They shall grow not old"

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years contemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.

Laurence Binyon (1869-1943)

Remembrance Day Poppy ‘Peace’ of Cake

It is Remembrance Day today in Britain so I have baked a cake in honour of this day. November is the time of the year when we wear a red poppy in memory of those who sacrificed their lives for Queen and Country during wars.

The cake is basically a Victoria sponge cake filled with butter cream and blackberry conserve. The covering is fondant icing and the poppies are made up with coloured fondant icing.

Serves 8

Ingredients
For The Sponge
175g (6 oz) self-raising flour, sieved
175g (6 oz) soft butter
175g (6 oz) caster sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk
For The Filling
2 tbsp blackcurrant conserve
25g (1 oz) soft butter
50g (2 oz) icing sugar sieved
1 tbsp milk
Few drops of vanilla extract
To Stick The Icing to the Cake
1 tbsp apricot jam
3 tbsp water
For The Icing
500g (1 lb 2oz) fondant icing
Edible food colouring, red, black and green
Edible cake glitter

You will need 2 sandwich tins 20cm (8 in) greased and the base lined with greased greaseproof paper.

Method

Preheat oven to 200°C/Fan oven 180°C/400°F/Gas mark 6.

In a bowl add the softened butter, sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add the beaten egg a little at a time, then vanilla extract until all combined. Fold in the flour gently and then fold in the 2 tablespoons of milk. Divide the mixture equally into each sandwich tin and place in the preheated oven, middle shelf for 20 – 25 minutes or until cooked. The tops should spring back slightly when lightly touched and a skewer inserted into the middle of the sponge should come out clean when cooked.Leave in the tins for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.Make the Butter Icing.

In a bowl cream the butter and icing sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and milk and beat again until all combine. Leave to one side and cover with cling film until required.When the sponges are cold, take one sponge for the bottom of the cake and spread with blackcurrant conserve and the butter icing, then place the second sponge on top.

For The Apricot Jam
Put the apricot jam and the water into a saucepan and heat on the stove on a low heat and give it a stir until it’s a smooth texture. This will be sticking the fondant icing to the cake.


For The Icing
Take the fondant icing and work it a little in your hands to make it pliable. Lightly dust the work-surface with a little icing sugar and with a rolling pin roll out ¾ of the fondant icing large enough to cover the whole cake.

With a pastry brush cover the whole sponge with the warmed apricot jam from the saucepan.

Carefully with your rolling pin lift the rolled fondant icing and ease it over the sponge cake covering the whole cake. Smooth the icing down on to the cake gently and cut off any excess overhang.

With the overhang fondant remains, colour this red and cut into a band to fit around the middle of the cake. You may have to cut two strips and stick down with apricot jam and smooth the red fondant out and the joins if you have any.

For The Poppies
Colour ¾ of the remaining fondant icing you put to one side red. With the remaining icing cut this in half and colour one-half black and one half green. Roll balls of red fondant enough to cover the cake as in the picture (8 poppies for around the side and 1 large poppy for the top), then flatten them down and cut four V shapes out and then mould into poppy petals. Roll small balls of black icing and flatten and stick on with a little of the apricot jam in the middle of the poppy. With green roll into a length and flatten with you fingers shaping into a leaf. With a knife make veins onto the leaf and stick it to the back of the poppy. For the centre poppy you will need to make a stem with the green icing by rolling into a cigar shape and also sticking this onto the back of the poppy.

Stick one poppy into the middle of the cake on top and sprinkle edible glitter over. Stick the remaining 8 poppies around the side with apricot jam and sprinkle with edible glitter