Today my son Shayaan turn 10..He has a passion for cricket , so we decided to make a cricket themed cake... 🙂

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cup all purpose flour/ plain flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup (225 gm) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/2 sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup milk, room temperature

For Vanilla buttercream frosting:

1 cup butter, at room temperature

4 cups powdered sugar/ icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2-3 tbsp milk

green fondant

red fondant

yellow fondant

brown fondant

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degree celcius. Butter or spray a rectangular cake pan and line the bottom with baking paper or parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, sift together plain flour, baking powder and salt and keep it aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat the butter using an electric mixer until soft and creamy ( about 1-2 minutes).
4. Add the sugar and vanilla essence and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy for about 3-5 minutes.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Then alternatively add the flour mixture ( in three additions) and milk (in two additions) , beginning and ending with the flour.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in center.
8. Place the cake on wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes and then remove the baking paper. Cool completely before frosting…. 

For Buttercream frosting:

1. In a bowl or in the bowl of an electric mixer, add butter and beat on medium speed until completely smooth.
2. One cup at time, add 2 cups of icing sugar , beating after each addition.
3. Add vanilla extract and beat to combine. Add about 1 tbsp of milk and continue beating.
4. Add the remaining 2 cups of icing sugar, one at a time and beat. Add 1-2 tbsp milk and beat until the desired consistency is reached.

For assembling the cake:

1. Place the cooled cake on serving plate/ cake board and frost the entire cake with vanilla buttercream frosting.
2. Roll out green fondant and place it all over the cake and smoothen it with a fondant smoother.
3. Pipe the cake border with buttercream frosting and mark the lines on the ground .
4. Roll out different coloured fondant to make cricket toppers like cricket bat, ball, stumps etc and place them on the top of the cake.