The Teepee Cake Challenge: COMPLETED

So - last week I posted here about the impending Teepee cake challenge - and it all came to fruition this weekend.

I was concerned that it was my first time making a cake in a Dolly Varden tin so I made the cake the evening before hand so I'd have ample time to rectify any cake disasters.

Out came the KitchenAid to beat the orange and poppyseed batter into submission.

And I was somewhat concerned that I still didn't have enough - it barely filled the cake tin to the halfway mark.

But it rose incredibly in the oven - and thankfully didn't deflate into itself like I'd read about.

The next morning I whipped up a batch of Buttercream Icing using this recipe. (hmm I may sound casual now but I was fretting by that point - icing is not my friend - especially after the icing on my last Martha Stewart Lemon Cake didn't do so well in the heat.) 

On my first attempt at the icing it was so soft - almost the texture of raw cake batter - so I popped the bowl in the fridge to chill and hopefully firm up. But on my return the icing had stiffened up to a hard ice-cream like consistency which gave me a good fright - but after another go in the KitchenAid it was good to go.

I covered a chopping board in green wrapping paper and used grissini bread sticks for the wooden posts.

You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find cowboys and indians figurines. I couldn't find them anywhere on the weekend and was kicking myself for not being more organised and ordering some online. Mr Tchotchke saved the day and found a pack of farmyard figurines that did the job just fine.

The crowd of kids at the party swarmed around it as if that miniature horse was real.

I think it was a hit.