ENGLISH BUNNY CAKES RECIPES

Steps:

• Place a rack into the lower third of oven.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Grease and flour a cake mold pan (such as a bunny cake or train cake mold) using vegetable shortening.
• Sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
• Mix 1 1/3 cup milk, lemon extract, 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract, and orange extract in a separate bowl.
• Beat unsalted butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until butter is creamy and smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in white sugar and continue beating until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 5 more minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally.
• Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating each egg in thoroughly before adding the next.
• Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture in several additions, alternating with milk mixture; begin and end with flour mixture. Do not overbeat. Scrape bowl occasionally.
• Pour batter evenly into prepared cake pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, 30 to 45 minutes.
• Place cake in pan on a wire rack and allow to cool for 15 minutes before inverting pan to remove cake. Allow cake to completely cool on wire rack, 3 to 4 hours.
• Beat vegetable shortening, 1/2 cup butter, confectioners' sugar, 2 tablespoons milk, and 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract in a bowl until frosting is smooth and creamy.
• Pack the frosting into a heavy resealable plastic bag; force the frosting into one corner of the bag. Clip a small corner off the plastic bag, seal the bag, and pipe the frosting onto the cooled cake in desired pattern.

Steps:

• Following the directions for your chosen cake make 4 8" round cakes. Layer the cakes with a flat side on the bottom and ice the center thick enough so the rounded top of the bottom layer will support the flat bottom of the second cake, with the top of the cake rounded. After you have iced centers cut one layer cake in half. Arrange the circular cake at the bottom of your platter and place the two halves with the cut side facing out above as ears. For best presentation put the doilies on the platter before the cake and arrange wax paper around the edges of cake so that when you ice sides the icing won't get on the doilies. Ice top and sides of layered cakes and then coat sides and top with coconut leaving a uncoated area where the eyes and nose will go and a smaller clear area where the teeth will go. Place the dark jelly beans for eyes and nose on cake and decorate with six licorice sticks as whiskers if sticks look too thick split them with a knife. Take on piece of licorice and cut in half length wise leaving about an inch uncut at the top. Spread it for the mouth and place the lighter jelly beans in between as teeth. Butter Cream Icing There are a number of tricks to a good buttercream icing. If your going to having the cake out in a warm area or if you want the icing to be very white substitute ½ to all the butter with shortening, if your going to use an all shortening recipe for a "very white" icing use about ¼ cup additional shortening.. There are a number of flavorings that are made "clear" use them to flavor an all white frosting, and if you truly like the butter flavor needed, use a no color butter flavoring. Basics for all the recipes are cream the butter well and then add the flavorings and slowly add the sugar. Scrap the bowl down often to completely combine the ingredients. The icing will appear a little stiff at this point, and to thin to your desired consistency add the heavy cream or light corn syrup and whip the icing at a higher speed to make it airy and light and fluffy. Refrigerate for a while before working with it. Directions for Buttercream Icing Cream the butter well, then add the vanilla and salt, slowly add the sugar with the mixer on a slow speed scraping down the sides of the bowl often to incorporate all the sugar. Once combined add the heavy cream 1 tbs at a time and mix at medium high speed until you have the desired consistency. Can be refrigerated up to a week covered in the refrigerator.