Apparently cake really does melt when kept in 100+degree heat, who knew.
So I scrapped that one and started over fresh , this time keeping the cake inside which meant emptying out my kitchen fridge and sending all my cheese to my mom’s house.
Now I am horrible at describing what I do, I wing it most of the time (okay all of the time) so bare with me.
First I started off by making a trip to the hardware store, you’d be surprised how many caking tools can be found there.
I use 1/2” CPVC pipe for the internal support structure of Yoshi along with 45 and 90 degree connector thingies and yes I do believe that is the technical term.
I eyeballed the measurements and cut it with a hack saw, rulers are overrated anyways.
Once I had the structure put together I screwed it into a plywood base which had been cut to fit snugly into my fridge.
Next came the happy dance, a very vital part of the cake building process.
I then made Mario and Princess Peach from a mixture of fondant and Tylose powder.
The Tylose allows the fondant to dry faster and stronger, similar to gumpaste.
I also made the arms, spikes, egg and mushrooms, all things that needed to dry hard.
Next came the rice crispy treats, using rice cereal and marshmallows gives you a light edible medium that can easily be shaped and more importantly hang upside down, which is something cake is not so good at.
I shaped the underbelly , tail and head from the rice crispy treats.
Added the fondant detail to the head and coated everything in a nice yummy layer of white chocolate.
Then it was baking time, I made two 1/2 sheets of my Triple Chocolate Fudge cake, it’s sturdy and firm, perfect for carving.
I made more then I needed because a lot would be lost in the carving.
I also made a triple batch of chocolate ganache which is a mixture of chocolate and heavy cream, it firms up nicely and makes a perfect glue to hold everything together.
Stacking came next, I layered cake and ganache around each leg and onto the back and up the tail.
After chilling in the fridge I carved him down and then iced him in the remaining ganache.
Next came the fondant, I started with the green fondant covering his back and legs in separate pieces, then his chest in white.
After that I added his turtle shell which had been imprinted with a cobble stone pattern.
I attached his head with a wooden dowel that was inserted into the pipe that was supporting his neck, smoothed the seam and began the detail work.
I used a toothpick to shade with tiny dots, lot’s and lot’s of tiny dots.
Once his shading was done I used a mixture of brown food coloring and vodka (the alcohol evaporates and leaves the color behind) to paint a nice heavy coat of color on him.
Then using a moist paper towel (a whole by the time I was done) I wiped away the excess paint leaving paint in the tiny holes.
This brought out all the detail and gave him the rustic look.
I also did this method on all the figures and details.
Once that was done I assembled the figures directly on him, using bamboo skewers to attach them.
I finished off the board with some green royal icing and cake crumbs and a quick coat of brown paint, added the mushrooms and took a deep breath, he was done!
The entire process from baking to finish was about 3 days, not including building the structure or the first disaster that I threw away.
It was worth it though, I was very pleased with my work.
People always ask me if I hate to cut into my cakes I always smile and say “It’s cake, you’re supposed to eat it”.
The truth is I’m rarely there when they get cut into so it’s not a problem, out of sight out of mind.
This was different , I was the one holding the knife and once I made that first cut it was the point of no return.
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