Ingredients
Butter cream
Decorations
Method
1.Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Line mini muffin pans with the paper cases. Grease one hole of the standard muffin pan.
2.Make one cake according to directions on packet. Drop 2 level teaspoons of mixture into each mini paper case; bake about 15 minutes. Drop 2½ level tablespoons of the mixture into the greased hole of the standard muffin pan; bake about 20 minutes. Turn cakes, top-side up, onto wire rack to cool.
3.Reduce oven temperature to 170°C (150°C fan-forced). Grease pudding steamer. Make remaining cake according to directions on packet. Pour mixture into steamer; bake about 45 minutes. Stand cake in steamer 5 minutes before turning out onto wire rack to cool.
4.Using the pattern sheet, trace two wings onto baking paper, turn paper over onto a flat heatproof surface, like a wooden board or oven tray. After the bubbles have subsided in the toffee, pour the toffee slowly over the wing outlines. Leave toffee to set at room temperature.
5.To make the toffee; combine sugar and the water in small saucepan; stir over heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil; boil, uncovered, without stirring, about 10 minutes or until toffee is golden brown. Remove from heat; allow bubbles to subside. Carefully pour toffee onto outline of wing shapes on paper; stand at room temperature until set.
6.To make butter cream; beat butter until white as possible, gradually beat in half the sifted icing sugar then milk, then remaining icing sugar. Beat until smooth.
7.Level flat base of pudding cake. Secure cake, cut-side down, on cake board with a little butter cream. Trim top of the pudding cake into a more rounded shape.
8.Trim standard muffin cake into a more rounded shape; trim one side a little flatter and secure this side to the pudding cake with a little butter cream.
9.Tint two-thirds of the butter cream yellow; tint remaining butter cream black. Spread yellow butter cream over body and head of the bee. Spread remaining yellow butter cream over tops of small cakes in the yellow paper cases. Spread black butter cream over tops of small cakes in the brown paper cases. Using picture as a guide, alternate bands of yellow and black cakes to cover the bee’s body.
10.Position blue Smarties for eyes and mini M&M’s for mouth; secure with a little butter cream, if necessary. Cut chenille stick in half, curl one end of each; insert into cake for antennae. Carefully insert wings into the bee’s body just before the party.
EQUIPMENT 5 x 12-hole (1-tablespoon/20ml) mini muffin pans 12-hole (⅓ -cup/80ml) standard muffin pan 2.25-litre (9-cup) pudding steamer 60 mini muffin paper cases (28 yellow, 32 dark brown) 35cm (14-inch) square cake board Make the mini muffins in batches; the cake mixture will be fine to stand at room temperature. Make the toffee wings up to 3 hours before the party. If it’s too humid to make the toffee wings, shape some craft wire into the wing shapes then cover them with a yellow-tinted cellophane paper
Note
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