4 Eggs; (size 3)
-THE SAME WEIGHT OF-
Butter or margarine
Sugar; and
Self-raising flour
1 ts Vanilla essence
-GLAC? ICING-
225 g Icing sugar
2 tb Warm water
Food colouring
Writing icing
Weigh the eggs, then measure out the same weight of butter, sugar and
self-raising flour.
Set oven at 180C/350F/gas4. Line a 20x35cm rectangular swiss roll tray with
baking parchment. Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl.
When light and fluffy, stir in the eggs one at a time with spoonfuls of
flour. Add the vanilla essence.
Spoon the mixture evenly over the tray. Bake in the centre of the oven for
25-30 minutes until golden brown. Push a thin knife or skewer into the
centre of the cake; if it comes out without any goo, it’s done.
Wear oven gloves to remove the cake from the oven. Allow it to cool on the
tray for about 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges then turn the cake
out on a wire rack, or worktop. Leave the cake to cool completely. If you
ice it while it’s still warm the icing will melt.
Sift the icing sugar into a bowl. Gradually add the water, stirring briskly
with a wooden spoon. Keep stirring until it is smooth and thick enough to
coat the back of the spoon without running off. If yours seems too thick,
add only the tiniest amount more water ( 1/2 teaspoon). This is where most
people make the mistake of adding too much water and making the icing too
runny.
If you want the background of your picture to be coloured, add a few drops
of food colouring now and mix in. Use immediately to spread over the cake,
leave to set.
When set, use writing icing to draw a picture with lots of things on it.
Put the cake in the fridge for an hour to let the icing harden. Then cut
the cake into jigsaw shapes and spread them about on a tray. See who can
remake the picture fastest.
Yields
1 servings