DIY Unicorn Emoji Cake

We’re totally obsessed with Cakemoji, a fabulous new book dedicated to showing you how to create the coolest emoji inspired treats! This may well be our favourite how-to from the book, it shows you how to create the most beautiful unicorn emoji cake!

You Will Need

• One quantity of 20cm (8 in.) round sponge cake batter, in the flavour of your choice, made following the recipe on page 68, then divided into five equal parts with each fifth being coloured with either pink, purple, blue, green or yellow gel food colouring.
• One quantity of filling in the flavour of your choice (see below)
• One quantity of buttercream in the flavour of your choice (see below)
• Small amounts of fondant in the following colours, white, pink, black, yellow, green,
• Edible glue and paintbrush
• Edible dust in pink and purple
• Edible gold stars and sugar balls
• Paper template

How to Assemble

Bake, cool, then level and layer the sponges, following the instructions on pages 72–74 using the filling of your choice, placing the layers in the following order – yellow, green, blue, purple and red.

Crumbcoat the layered sponges with a thin layer of buttercream, following the instructions on pages 76–77. Chill for 30 minutes in the fridge.

Divide the remaining buttercream into four equal parts. Colour three of the quarters with blue, purple or pink gel food colouring. Add green food colouring to a tiny bit of the fourth buttercream. Place in piping bags.

Pipe generous stripes of coloured buttercream around the sides of the cake. Start with the blue buttercream, covering the bottom third of the sides. Repeat with the purple buttercream in the centre and finish with the pink.

Pipe the remaining pink buttercream around the cake top. Using a palette knife, smooth the buttercream surface.

Using a metal scraper, work around the sides of the cake to smooth and blend the coloured stripes together. For smoother buttercream, warm the scraper by placing it under a hot tap.

Using a palette knife, level up the buttercream surface on the cake top again, removing any excess.

Roll out the white and coloured fondants to 3mm (1⁄8 in.) thickness. Using your paper templates and a sharp knife, carefully cut out the main head shape from white fondant.

Using a knife and small cutters, cut out the facial features from the coloured fondants. Use pink for inner ears, purple for snout and mane, black for eye and nostril, white for pupil, and bright colours for the horn.

Brush the snout and mane pieces with pink and purple edible dusts, blending the colours together to add shade and highlights.

Using edible glue, stick the facial features to the unicorn head. Refer to the emoji to make sure each piece is in the right place.

To add some shading to the unicorn, use edible dusts in pink and purple. Using a dry, soft paintbrush, pick up a small amount of edible dust and work gently, slowly building up the layers of colour.

Using pink buttercream to hold it in place, carefully position your fondant unicorn on the cake top.

Starting with the largest nozzle size, pipe swirls around one edge
of the cake then build up the design, finishing with the smallest nozzles.

Pipe stars and dots down the sides of the cake in the different colours of buttercream.

Finish off the cake with additional sprinkles, such as edible gold sugar balls and glittery gold stars.

Cake Filling Ideas

These cake recipes are simple and tasty, but you can also have fun with your fillings. Here are some ideas:

• Add peanut butter to the basic buttercream recipe and layer with caramel or raspberry jam.
• Add a mashed banana and 1⁄2 tsp ground cinnamon to the 15cm (6 in.) vanilla cake (double for 20cm or 8 in. cake) then layer with vanilla buttercream and caramel for a banoffee cake.
• Replace the vanilla from the 15cm
(6 in.) cake with the zest of 1 unwaxed lemon (2 for 20cm or 8 in. cake) then layer with a good quality lemon curd.
• Put some marshmallows on a baking tray lined with parchment. Pop under a hot grill until they are browned (be careful they don’t burn!) Whilst still warm, add them to the basic buttercream and beat on high speed for a toasted marshmallow buttercream which goes perfectly with the chocolate cake.

Vanilla Buttercream

You Will need

• 400g (14 oz./13⁄4 cups) unsalted butter, softened
• 900g (2 lb./72⁄3 cups) icing (confectioner’s) sugar, sifted
• 6–8 tbsp milk
• 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter for 2–3 minutes or until it's pale and fluffy. (If you are adding Nutella or peanut butter, beat it in with the butter now.)
2. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add half of the icing sugar and mix again, starting slowly and building up the speed, for 2–3 minutes.
3. Add the remaining icing sugar and mix again for another 2–3 minutes, then add the milk and vanilla extract and mix again, starting slowly and building up the speed, until the buttercream is smooth, light and fluffy.
4. For extra flavour, add any of the following to the basic buttercream:
   • 200g (7 oz.) Nutella (omit vanilla)
   • 140g (5 oz.) peanut butter (omit vanilla)
   • 200ml (7 fl. oz.) caramel sauce
   • 200g (7 oz.) Malteasers, crushed

Chocolate Buttercream

You Will Need

• 300g (10 1⁄2 oz./1 1⁄3 cups) unsalted butter, softened
• 550g (19 1⁄3 oz./4 3⁄4 cups) icing (confectioner’s) sugar
• 3–4 tbsp milk
• 200g (7 oz./1 1⁄3 cups) dark chocolate chips, melted and cooled

1. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter for 2–3 minutes or until it is pale and fluffy.2. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add half of the icing sugar and mix again, starting slowly and building up the speed, for 2–3 minutes.
2. Add the remaining icing sugar and mix again for another 2–3 minutes. 4. Add the milk and mix again for another 2–3 minutes.
3. Add the melted but not hot chocolate and mix again, starting slowly and building up the speed, until the chocolate is fully incorporated and the buttercream is smooth, light, and fluffy.
4. For an alternative flavour, replace the dark chocolate with 200g (7 oz./1 1⁄3 cups) melted white chocolate.

Cakemoji by Jenni Powell, Published by Quadrille (£10)

Photography – Rita Platts

Available from Amazon