Kayaking Up A Cake-Fall

I've been a bit quiet on the blog front - but plenty of scheming is happening in the background!!! 

This month I've focussed on my first commissioned cake - a 21st birthday cake for the son of a lovely (and very trusting!) friend of mine. According to my friend, a personalised kayaker heading down a fearful waterfall is the epitome of her son's experience as a professional sportsman. And so I learnt how to make the figurine - my first sugarpaste model ever - and the other decorations from this image that I was given to base the design on: 

A challenge indeed! I'll let you decide how I did from the following pictures (photography by our talented friend Dru):

Admittedly, I did a practice figurine first and improved on my technique and colours, especially the arms. Moral of the story: wait until it dries! Drying each part separately before attaching to the torso was really important, as was waiting until the arms were solidly connected to the body before trying to position the oar. This waiting for drying saved many tears the second time round... The pebbles were two colours of sugarpaste rolled together for a marbled effect, and the river/fall was done in a similar way. The little trees went through a garlic press - I tried so many things to get a good effect until I stumbled on that tool!

The cake itself was my go-to chocolate cake recipe, filled with mango marshmallow buttercream made using a double quantity of this recipe plus mango puree, coated in dark chocolate ganache, and covered in chocolate fondant. Whew! It was a huge milestone for me, and not perfect (especially the fondant, as is evident in some of those photos). But it provided lots of learning and good practice for another scheme I have coming up... stay tuned for details! 

Choccy Rocky (and Roll-y) Road

I've always been a fan of big blocks of the lolly, marshmallow and nut-studded chocolatey mess that is rocky road. Recently one of my work colleagues produced some absolutely delish rocky road that set me on a spin for the stuff. So when a noticed a supermarket flyer with a recipe for it that I'd once stuck to the fridge, the writing was on the wall... (er, close enough!)

This version took me a little by surprise - it seemed to be a (slightly) healthier take on the treat masquerading as Christmas fare. While I would scoff at such a 'calorie saver' during the silly season, for the rest of the year we don't eat silly amounts of certain foods so a less calorific option is more welcome ;-) In this recipe marshmallows stay (they are fat-free after all...), and some freshly roasted peanuts were welcome, but over-sweet chewy lollies are replaced by dried cherries. Of course, we can't do much about all the chocolate that's needed.. 

The original recipe is here along with a lovely picture demonstrating how you could package yours and give it away as gifts (some of mine went to the students in our home group who were studying hard for exams). I found that there was definitely not enough chocolate compared to the other ingredients, and I 'finished packets' of some things, so ultimately I probably increased the recipe by about a third. But who's going to complain for more and thicker slices of this treat?!?!

Rocky Road Slice

750g dark chocolate buttons (two packets - buy the cheapest kind of choc bits!)
200g dry-roasted nuts (peanuts, brazil nuts, whatever you like)
200g glace cherries, or other fruit if you prefer
200g shortbread biscuits (I used Scotch fingers)
150g mini marshmallows

Line a 20cm x 30cm pan or dish with baking paper.

Place the chocolate in a bain-marie (small metal bowl above, but not touching, a saucepan filled with a small amount of simmering water). Stir the chocolate with a fork until melted and smooth.

[A word for the wise: I took a risk and didn't bother with a small bowl above the water - and subsequently burnt the chocolate!! All was not lost - I added milk until it went smooth again but it wasn't quite the same as if I hadn't burnt it in the first place. Alternatively you can melt the chocolate in the microwave but you will have more control over it by slowly heating it over the stove.]

After burning it, the chocolate returned to a smooth consistency by adding milk

If you have raw nuts, roast them for 15 minutes in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius in single layer spread over the base of a roasting dish, stirring occasionally; cool for half an hour before using. If you are using brazil nuts, roughly chop them before placing in a large bowl. Halve the cherries (if whole) and add to the nuts. Give the shortbread biscuits a few hits with the rolling pin so they break into pieces about the size of your thumbnail (leave them in their packet or place them in a plastic zip-lock bag first). Stir the biscuit pieces and mini marshmallows in with the nuts and cherries.

Pour the melted chocolate into the bowl of ingredients. Stir gently until everything is well coated in chocolate.

Pour the rocky road mixture into the prepared pan and smooth down with the spatula. Refrigerate until set (between half an hour to an hour, depending on how much of a hurry you're in to try it!), then cut into small squares to serve.

This recipe makes 30 to 40 pieces, depending on how generous you are with your servings! Happy mid-winter Christmas, perhaps!?!