If you've ever burned the midnight oil making that perfect cake for your little one, then you probably know that sinking realisation shortly thereafter that you actually made it for yourself.
If you've been to a few kids' parties, you know that no cake gets eaten, just icing.
I made a lot of cakes for my nephews in the early days as special presents. By the time I got to my kids, I got wise. Nobody cares if the inside is unique or baked or even edible, so long as the outside is tantalising and the cake is tall.
So my no-bake no-stress no-eyebags cake secret is that I buy the best and freshest unfilled sponge cake I can find, I manipulate it and I decorate it.
I don't care if the kids only eat the icing. And I love that I don't burn my cake, have to wait for it to cool and then shave bits of it off trying to get it even.
My mother had no idea the first time I used a shop sponge and she called my Aunty and said "Laura baked the softest moistest sponge cake I have ever had!". Yeah I did.
This is a really great cake for all ages and genders. Everybody loves a sprinkle cake.
- Buy that sponge cake. You can buy two - you'll get four layers. If you use three you get a nice high cake that is level. You can put jam and icing in-between them. Use skewers if gravity is making your nervous.
- For this sprinkle cake I used a smaller rounded container to cut into two layers of sponge because I wanted a small and tall cake. Cakes are always impressive if they are taller.
- Make butter cream icing. 125g butter whipped until as white as possible. Add 3/4 cup icing sugar. Mix. Add 2 tablespoons of milk. Mix. Add another 3/4 cup of icing sugar. Stir in sprinkles.
- Ice the cake. It really does help to have a proper icing knife and a lazy susan. I use an marble cheese platter that rotates on a ball-bearing base.
- Get the kids to crush some off cuts of sponge with sprinkles in a bowl. Put them on the outer edge of the cake top. Put sprinkles inside that edge.
- Feel impressed with yourself. It looks good!
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