Method
1.Trim cakes. Secure one cake to wooden board. Joining cakes with a little jam or ganache, top with remaining cake. Prepare cake for covering with ready-made icing.
2.Knead ready-made icing on surface dusted with a little cornflour until icing loses its stickiness. Tint three- quarters of the icing pale green.
3.Roll 1kg of the green icing on cornfloured surface until large enough to cover cake. Using rolling pin, lift icing onto cake, smooth with hands then smoothing tools. Trim icing neatly around base of cake. Dry cake overnight. Knead green icing scraps into remaining green icing.
4.Using apricot-sized pieces of both the green and white icing, roll out each icing, separately, into a rectangle the width of the pasta machine. Feed pieces through the pasta machine set on the thickest setting.
5.Using the 1.4cm perspex measure as a guide, cut 15cm (6-inch) lengths of green and white icing, each 1.4cm wide. You need 7 strips of each coloured icing for each side of the cake. Cover icing strips with vinyl mat to prevent drying out. Roll any icing scraps into same-coloured icing; cover, separately, with plastic wrap.
6.Brush a little water onto the sides of the cake, secure icing strips to all sides of the cake, alternating colours.
7.Before the icing strips dry, Use 1.4cm perspex measure to mark sides of cake for lid. Dry cake overnight.
8.To make the lid. Brush a little water onto the area where the box lid will sit. Roll out remaining white icing on cornfloured surface until large enough to cover top of cake and extend over the sides to cover marked area for lid. Using rolling pin, lift icing onto cake; smooth with hands then smoothing tools. Use 1.4cm measure to mark the sides of the lid. Cut off excess icing with a sharp knife. Reserve icing scraps. Use stitching tool to mark pattern around bottom edge of lid. Dry cake overnight.
9.To make royal icing, sift icing sugar through a fine sieve. Lightly beat the egg white into a small bowl until mixture is just broken up (do not whip into peaks). Beat in the icing sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches desired consistency. Using a wooden spoon mix in the lemon juice.
10.To make the plaque. Roll scraps of white icing on surface dusted with cornflour into 6cm x 16cm (2½-inch x 6½-inch) rectangle. Use stitching tool to mark edges. Roll half the remaining green icing into a 3mm (-inch) thickness, use alphabet cutters to cut out letters. Outline letters with stitching tool. Half-fill piping bag with royal icing, secure letters to plaque with icing. Leave to dry overnight.
11.To make bow. Knead ¼ teaspoon tylose into remaining green icing. Roll out half the icing on surface dusted with cornflour into 3mm (-inch) thickness. Using 4.5cm perspex measure, cut 5 strips of icing 4.5cm wide and 20cm long (1¾-inches x 8-inches). Run stitching tool along both edges of all strips. Fold strips in half to make loops, secure ends with a little water. Cut end into “V” shapes, turn loops on their side on a baking- paper-lined tray to dry overnight.
12.Roll out remaining green icing, cut 4 strips of icing 4.5cm x 20cm long (1¾-inches x 8-inches). Run the stitching tool along both edges of all strips. Using picture as a guide, secure the icing strips to four sides of the cake with a little water. Roll scraps of icing long enough to make 2 tails for the bows, cut “V” shapes into ends, secure to top of cake with a little royal icing. Position dried loops on cake to finish the bow, secure with royal icing.
