Name: Friendly little lions
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: 2 1/2 cup (400 grams) firmly packed chocolate mud cake crumbs; 1/2 cup (150 grams) ready-made milk chocolate frosting; 375 gram white chocolate melts; orange food colouring; 22 lollipop or paddle pop sticks; 3 orange fruit sticks; 22 brown smarties; 88 yellow smarties; 66 orange smarties; 66 red smarties; 132 x 2.5cm lengths vermicelli noodles; 1/4 quantity royal icing; black food colouring; Royal icing; 1 1/2 cup pure icing sugar; 1 egg white; 1/4 teaspoon strained lemon juice

Ingredients

2 1/2 cup (400 grams) firmly packed chocolate mud cake crumbs

1/2 cup (150 grams) ready-made milk chocolate frosting

375 gram white chocolate melts

orange food colouring

22 lollipop or paddle pop sticks

3 orange fruit sticks

22 brown smarties

88 yellow smarties

66 orange smarties

66 red smarties

132 x 2.5cm lengths vermicelli noodles

1/4 quantity royal icing

black food colouring

Royal icing

1 1/2 cup pure icing sugar

1 egg white

1/4 teaspoon strained lemon juice

Method

1.In a medium bowl, combine cake crumbs and frosting. Using wet hands, shape level tablespoons of mixture into balls, squeezing firmly. Place on a baking paper-lined tray; freeze 1 hour or refrigerate 3 hours or overnight, until firm.

2.In a medium heatproof bowl over a medium saucepan of simmering water, melt white chocolate until smooth (don’t let water touch base of bowl); tint chocolate pale orange. Pour into a heatproof jug.

3.Dip the end of one stick into chocolate, then push it about halfway into a ball of cake. Return to tray. Repeat with remaining sticks and balls of cake. Place tray in the freezer about 5 minutes to set.

4.Meanwhile, cut 22 small triangles from fruit sticks for noses. Cut brown Smarties in half; attach to the top of pops with a little of the chocolate to make ears. Stand upright until set.

5.Dip one cake pop into the chocolate, covering the ears too, rocking back and forth to coat; don’t swirl the pop, or it’ll break. Allow excess chocolate to drip back into the jug. Stand upright in a styrofoam block until set. Repeat with remaining cake pops. Re-melt chocolate as necessary.

6.Cut an edge from each of the remaining Smarties; attach them to pops with a little chocolate for the mane. To make whiskers, attach six vermicelli pieces to each pop; top with fruit stick triangles for a nose. Stand pops upright until set.

7.Make royal icing: Sift the icing sugar through a fine sieve. Lightly beat the egg white in a small ball until mixture is just broken up (do not whip into peaks). Beat in the icing sugar, 1 tbsp at a time, until it reaches desired consistency. Using a wooden spoon, mix in in the lemon juice. Divide into quarters; reserve &3/4; for another use.

8.Tint royal icing black. Spoon icing into a small piping bag fitted with a 3mm tube. Pipe on eyes and mouths.

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