A perfect cake for a small child's birthday or as a bright Easter treat 

CUTE CHICK CAKE 

MATERIALS

• 1 x 2 litre ( 4 pint / 10 cup ) & 1 x 0.5 litre ( I pint / 2½ cup ) bowl-shaped cakes ,
• 30cm ( 12in ) round cake board.
• 1.8kg ( 3lb /10oz ) sugarpaste / rolled fondant
• green, yellow, orange & black food coloring pastes
• icing/confectioners' sugar in a sugar shaker
• 440g ( 14oz / 1 ¾  cups ) buttercream
• sugar glue

EQUIPMENT.

• large rolling pin
• sharp knife
• cake smoother

CUTE CHICK CAKE METHOD:

Color 375g ( 12oz ) of sugarpaste green Using icing sugar to prevent sticking, roll out the green sugarpaste and cover the cake board, trimming the excess from around the edge. Set aside to dry. Trim the crust from the cake, keeping the rounded top on each where the cakes have risen. Cut two layers in the large cake and one layer in the smaller cake Sandwich both cakes back together with buttercream.

Turn each cake upside down ( the cakes are decorated this way up ) and spread with a layer of buttercream to help the sugarpaste stick Colour 1.25kg ( 2 ½ lb ) of sugarpaste yellow. Using 30g ( 1oz ), pad the top of the smaller cake to heighten the top of the head

Roll out 625g ( 1 ¼ lb ) of yellow sugarpaste and cover the larger cake completely smoothing around the shape and tucking the sugarpaste underneath. Roll out 375g ( 12oz ) of yellow sugarpaste and cover the smaller cake in the same way. Position the cakes on the board with the smaller cake on top, using sugar glue to secure them in place. Smooth the surface of both cakes with a cake smoother.

For the wings, roll six long teardrop shapes of yellow sugarpaste. Stick three onto each of the chick bodies graduating down in size curving up around the back Model three smaller yellow teardrop shapes for the tail and three teardrop shapes for the hair tuft. Stick these pieces in place, curling up the points.

Color a tiny amount of sugarpaste black, then color the remaining pieces of sugarpaste orange. Split the orange sugarpaste into three equal-sized pieces from two pieces, shape two ovals, pinching four times along the top of each to make webbed feet, as in the photograph below. Stick in position, pressing the center of each to indent.

Roll a sausage with the remaining orange sugarpaste, then roll on either side of the center to create dips to shape the beak. Stick on the chick's face, just below half - way Finally, make the two oval-shaped eyes by rolling two small balls of black sugarpaste Stick in place in the center of the face, quite close together, securing with a little sugar glue.

 USEFUL TIP

When a large piece of sugarpaste is rolled out, lift it by folding it over the rolling pin. This will make it easier to position the sugarpaste on the cake.

Also Read: SPOOKY TOWER CAKE