Knights Castle Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease and base line a round 13cm cake tin and a round 18cm cake tin. Place two muffin cases in a muffin tin.
• Put the butter and sugar into a large bowl and beat together until light and creamy. Add all the remaining ingredients except the jam and beat well. Half fill the muffin cases and then fill the two cake tins 3/4 full. Bake in the oven placing the cake tins on one shelf and the muffin tin on another. Open the oven door and remove the muffins and smaller cake quickly when they are done as you don't want to let the heat out of the oven. The muffins will take about 35 mins, the 13cm cake about 1 hour 10 mins and the 18cm cake about 1 1/2 hours. You know each is done when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Allow the cakes to become completely cold before icing.
• Trim the tops of the two cakes so they are flat. Slice each one in half, spread with jam and then sandwich together again. Using a 6cm cutter, cut each muffin to make a cylinder. Trim the tops flat. Sandwich together with jam to make a tower.
• To make the butter icing put the butter into a bowl and beat until soft. Gradually beat in the icing sugar. Spread the butter icing over both cakes and the muffin tower. Roll out the white icing and use to cover the two cakes. Place the larger one on a cake board. Put the smaller one on top. Roll a strip of white icing and wrap around the muffin tower. Place on top of the cake. Push a wooden skewer though the cakes to hold them together.
• Using about 150g pink icing, mould into an onion shape for the dome. Put to one side. Roll out a little pink icing and cut out a 6cm round and place on top of the muffin tower. Using the made up royal icing, attach the dome to the top of the tower.
• Using the pink icing make two doors and two curtains. Attach to the cake using royal icing. Make windows by rolling out the lilac icing and cutting out hearts using medium, small and tiny cutters. Attach these upside down to the cake with royal icing. Roll a small piece of lilac icing into a thin sausage and stick around the curtains to make the window frame.
• Again using the royal icing, stick on the pieces of gum around the doors, and the sugar cubes around the edge of the cakes. Attach silver balls to the dome to decorate and to the doors to make handles. Score horizontal lines down the doors to give a textured effect. Attach a piece of gum under each window on the middle tier and then stick three flowers on top to make window boxes.
• Colour the remaining royal icing green and spoon into a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle. Pipe creeper branches up the castle walls. Attach mini sugar flowers.
• Stick coloured flags or candles into the middle tier of the cake. Sprinkle a little edible glitter over the dome and sugar cubes.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325°F. Generously grease Nordic Ware® Castle Bundt® cake pan with shortening and lightly flour, or spray pan with baking spray with flour.
• Make cake batter as directed on box. Pour batter into pan.
• Bake 33 to 43 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Using a long serrated knife, trim cake even with top of pan, if necessary. Turn pan upside down onto cooling rack; remove pan. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Place cake on 12- to 15-inch serving plate, tray or piece of cardboard covered with foil. Stir 8 to 10 drops blue food color into frosting. Spread frosting around base of cake to look like water. Sprinkle brown sugar around frosting on plate to look like sand.
• Place gumdrops on top of each tower. Cut long flag-shaped pieces out of fruit snack with sharp knife or kitchen scissors. Roll fruit snack around 4 toothpicks to make flags; insert toothpicks into gumdrops. Arrange crackers and rock candy in frosting, and add chocolate bar, upside down, for drawbridge as shown. Store loosely covered.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Grease or spray bottoms and sides of four 8-inch square pans. In large bowl, beat 1 cake mix, 1 cup of the water, 1/2 cup of the oil and 3 eggs using electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Divide batter between 2 pans. Bake 2 pans at a time for 23 to 29 minutes (26 to 34 minutes for dark or nonstick pan) or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. Repeat with remaining cake mix, water, oil and eggs. Chill cooled cake in freezer 45 minutes before cutting, to reduce crumbs.
• Spoon frosting into large bowl. Stir in enough food color until desired pink color.
• Using serrated knife, cut off domed top from each cake so they will be flat when stacked. On tray, place 1 cake, cut side down; spread 1/3 cup frosting over top. Add second cake, cut side down; spread top with 1/3 cup frosting. Add third cake, cut side down; do not frost.
• Cut fourth cake into quarters. Spread small amount of frosting on center of cake, about the size of a cake quarter. Place 1 quarter, cut side down, on top of frosting. Spread top of stacked cake quarter with 1 tablespoon frosting. Place second quarter on top of first quarter; spread top with 1 tablespoon frosting. Add third quarter; do not frost. Cut fourth quarter into quarters to create four 2-inch squares. Spread a small dollop of frosting on the top center of the second tier of cakes. Place one 2-inch piece on the center; spread top with frosting. Top with one more 2-inch piece. (Discard remaining 2 pieces.)
• Spread thin layer of frosting over layered cake to seal in crumbs. Freeze cake 30 to 60 minutes.
• Frost pointed-end cones with frosting; roll in pink sugar. Frost cake with remaining frosting. Place 1 upside-down cone on each corner of the first cake layer and 1 on top cake layer for center steeple. Top each cone with a candy star.
• Place sugar cubes around edges of the first and second layers. Top each of the 4 corner sugar cubes with a gum ball. Attach 2 cookies on one side of first layer to create doors. Cut 2 additional cookies to desired size for windows; place each cookie on opposite sides of doors. Cut remaining cookie in half; place 1 half in center of second layer to create accent window. Pipe on window panes and doorknobs with white icing. Store loosely covered.