GBBO Victorian Tennis Cake

Shopping list

• 225 g unsalted butter

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• 225 g soft dark brown sugar

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• 4 eggs large eggs

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• 225 g plain flour

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• 1 tsp mixed spice

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• 400 g mixed dried fruit — (currants, sultanas, raisins)

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• 50 g candied peel

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• 50 g glacé cherries

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• 1 lemon lemon zest

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• 1 orange orange zest

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• 500 g natural marzipan

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• 5 tbspn apricot jam — (for sticking)

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• 500 g royal icing sugar

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• 1 tube green food paste

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• 1 unit edible string — (for the tennis net)

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Step by step

1. 1

   Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

2. 2

   Beat in the eggs one at a time, then fold in the flour, spices, zests, and dried fruit.

3. 3

   Spoon into a lined 20cm round cake tin and bake at 140°C (120°C fan) for roughly 2 to 2.5 hours until a skewer comes out clean.

4. 4

   Cool completely.

5. 5

   Brush the cooled cake with warm apricot jam.

6. 6

   Roll out the marzipan and neatly cover the cake, trimming any excess at the base.

7. 7

   Mix the royal icing to a stiff-to-medium peak consistency.

8. 8

   Tint a portion green for the lawn or leave the marzipan exposed as the court background and pipe grass borders.

9. 9

   Pipe the white lines of the tennis court precisely using a fine writing nozzle.

10. 10

    Construct a miniature net using piped royal icing lattice work or fine dried sugar threads.