Sarah & Duck Scarf Lady Cake

Sarah & Duck Scarf Lady Yule Log

INGREDIENTS

For the Cake:

• 400g unsalted butter (room temp)
• 400g caster sugar
• 8 eggs
• 2tsp vanilla extract
• 400g self-raising flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder

For the buttercream:

• 150g unsalted butter (softened)
• 300g icing sugar, sifted
• Milk, to loosen
• 300g light brown fondant
• White fondant and food gel colouring, or different coloured fondants, for Scarf lady and wool balls

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line a 33 x 22cm Swiss roll tin, using paper clips to secure the corners of the paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and caster until white and fluffy using electric beaters (this may take about 5 minutes). Alternatively, use the whisk attachment in a freestanding mixer.
3. Sift the flour and cocoa into the bowl and use a large metal spoon to carefully fold the dry ingredients into the eggs and sugar.
4. Spoon or pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cake looks set and is pulling away from the sides of the parchment paper.
5. When the cake comes out of the oven, carefully invert it onto a large sheet of parchment paper on the kitchen counter. Trim the edges of the cake then make an indent all the way down one of the longer sides. Then roll up the cake, with the parchment paper between the rolls, using the indented strip as your starting point. You should end up with a long roll, with parchment on the outside. Set aside to cool.
6. To make the icing, place the cream and chocolate in a glass bowl, over a pan of simmering water, until melted. Chill until thickened.
7. To make the filling, whisk the double cream with the icing sugar until forming medium peaks. Carefully unroll the Swiss roll, trying to avoid it breaking. Spread with the double cream and then re-roll. Place onto a board for presentation. Spread the chocolate icing over the top and ends of the log, and use the springs of a fork to add extra details, if liked.
8. Make your toboggan by stretching out a slab of red fondant and making a dip in the middle for your characters to sit in. Form the front into a slight point and top this with some orange fondant. Add black stretches to make the front and back of the snow blades, underneath the toboggan. Make scarf lady, Sarah, Duck and tortoise and sit them in the toboggan. Allow to stiffen up for an hour or so before carefully securing to the log (you may need to use a couple of cocktail sticks or a bit of dowelling to keep the toboggan in place).Preheat the oven to fan 180°C Grease and double-line the base and sides of 2 x 20cm deep cake tins.
9. Using electric beaters or a freestanding mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, crack the eggs and whisk together with a fork. Slowly add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture, with the vanilla extract.
10. Sift together the flour and baking powder, then add to the egg mixture, using a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure it is well combined.
11. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Leave to cool in their tins for 10 minutes before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely.
12. To make the buttercream, whisk the butter until light (using an electric hand whisk or a freestanding mixer). Slowly add the icing sugar, loosening with milk, until light and fluffy.
13. When the cakes are cool, use a serrated knife to level the tops, then slice each one in half. Sandwich all four halves together using jam, and secure to a cake board using a bit of buttercream. Spread a thin layer of buttercream over the outside of the cake and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
14. Roll out the light brown fondant to 3mm thickness in a large rectangle then use a knife to cut 1-1.5cm wide strips from the length of it. Roll out more fondant and cut this into shorter strips of the same thickness. Lay the shorter strips on a flat surface at 2cm intervals then weave the long strips under and over, alternating the pattern so that you end up with a basket weave effect. Carefully wrap this around the outside of the cake. (You may have to do this in three sections so that the fondant doesn’t become over-stretched). Twist any remaining fondant into a loose braid to make a knot at the front of the basket and secure this to the cake.
15. Roll out a circle of coloured fondant to lay on top of the cake, to be the base of Scarf Lady’s wool basket.
16. Use different coloured fondants to make a miniature Scarf Lady to sit on top of the basket, then wrap strings/sausages of different shades of fondant around balls of fondant to make edible wool balls, then sit these in the basket.

Recipe by April Cartel