RCPCH at 25 years: Ash's baking school

Happy 25th anniversary to our wonderful College!

To celebrate such a big milestone and the easing of lockdown (and hopefully the start of social gatherings again!), I felt a show stopping piñata cake was the perfect choice for such an occasion.

Not only is it easy to make, but the secret treats inside make it a perfect paediatric themed cake.

Enjoy and continue to spread the love of baking!

Ash shows his paediatric themed cake

Ingredients

To make vanilla sponge (for 4x 8” inch cakes)

500g caster sugar

500g unsalted butter, soft

8 large eggs

500g self-raising flour

6 tbsp whole milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

For the buttercream

150g unsalted butter, softened

340g icing sugar, sieved

¼ tsp vanilla extract

3-4 tbsp of full fat milk

Method

1. Make four plain sponge cakes of equal size (eight or ten inch) – these can be vanilla, lemon, chocolate sponge but just avoid cakes with any fruit in them. The ingredients I have provided are for vanilla sponge. I have not gone into too much detail but use any basic sponge recipe. Ensure they are fully cooled before handling.

2. Using a cake leveller, cut the tops of each sponge cake to make them smooth and of equal size.

3. Place a slightly smaller size cake drum or plate on top (e.g. for an eight inch cake use a seven inch drum), take a sharp knife and vertically trim the edges off each sponge.

4. Take a small round cookie cutter or glass (about two inches diameter), remove the centre of three of the four sponge cakes. Once you have removed one you can use that sponge cake as a template for the other two to ensure they are all identical.

5. Make the buttercream, using an electric or stand mixer if possible. Beat the unsalted butter for roughly five minutes until pale and soft. Add in the icing sugar in two parts, beating at a slow speed and then increasing the speed gradually. Add the vanilla extract and milk and beat for a further three-four minutes until the buttercream is soft, almost white looking and easily spreadable. You can add colour paste to change the colour of the buttercream if you so wish.

6. Assemble your piñata cake. Start with a layer of 'hole' sponge, spread an even layer of buttercream on top using a palette knife and repeat with the other two 'hole' layers. Make sure you line the central hole with a thin layer of buttercream as well. Fill the hole with your choice of filling– sweets, chocolate, but try to choose a filling that will easily fall out, so Smarties or M&M’s are a good shout. Finally, top the cake with the remaining sponge layer and spread buttercream over the top andsides to finish. You can add any additional decoration you feel on top – go wild!

Dr Ashish Patel, ST6 General Paediatrics and Sim Fellow, Brimingham Children's Hospital

@DrKidneyAsh