Special Occasion Cakes Recipes - Christmas Stocking Cake

Ingredients

• 20cm/8in square rich fruit cake

• 45ml/6 cups marzipan

• 1.2kg/7 1/2 cups sugar paste icing

• 15ml/1 tbsp royal icing

• red and green food coloring

MATERIALS/EQUIPMENT

• 25cm/10in square silver cake board

• 1.25ml/1 1/2yd red ribbon, 2cm/3/4in wide

• 1m/1yd green ribbon, 2cm/3/4in wide

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Method:

1. Brush the cake with the apricot jam and place on the cake board. Cover with marzipan.

2. Set aside 225g/80z/1 1/2 cups of the sugar paste icing. Cover the cake with the rest. Leave to dry. Secure the red ribbon around the board and the green ribbon around the cake with royal icing.

3. Divide the icing in half and roll out one half. Using a template, cut out two sugar paste stockings, one 5mm/ '!.in larger all round. Put the smaller one on top of the larger one.

4. Divide the other half of the sugar paste into two and tint one red and the other green. Roll out and cut each color into seven 1 cm/1/2in strips. Alternate the strips on top of the stocking. Roll lightly to fuse and press the edges together. Leave to dry.

5. Shape the remaining white sugar paste into four parcels. Trim with red and green sugar paste ribbons. Use the remaining red and green sugar paste to make thin strips to decorate the cake sides. Secure in place with royal icing. Stick small sugar paste balls over the joins. Arrange the stocking and parcels on the cake top.