Football Cake

Perfect for a football-themed birthday party. I found this idea here and adapted it for my son's birthday party. It’s a lot of fun to make and the kids loved it. Get into the world cup mood, find yourself a 2.5 litre bowl and have fun!

Tried & Tasted Recipe:

For the white cake :

• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 pinch of salt
• 115 g / 4 oz sugar
• 115 g / 4 oz flour
• 1 tsp baking powder

For the chocolate cake:

• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 pinch of salt
• 115 g / 4 oz sugar
• 100 g / 3 ½ oz flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp cocoa powder

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F.
Line two 38x25 cm (15x10 inches) baking trays with parchment paper.
Line the inside of a 2.5 litre bowl with cling film.
Start making the cakes.
For the white cake, beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and creamy.
Add the flour and baking powder.
Beat the egg whites and pinch of salt to stiff peaks and fold into the batter.
Pour the batter into the baking tray and bake for 10 minutes.

Repeat for the chocolate cake, not forgetting to add the cocoa powder with the flour.

Take the cakes out of the oven and leave aside to cool slightly. Lift the cakes (using the parchment paper) out of the tin and start cutting.
Out of the chocolate cake, cut a circle of a diameter slightly smaller than the top of the bowl you will use to mount the cake. This circle will be used like a lid to top the cake after it's been filled; but once turned onto a plate, it will form the base of the football cake.
Then, using the models below cut six 5-sided pieces (pentagones) out of the leftover chocolate cake, each side measuring exactly 4.5 cm.

and ten 6-sided pieces (hexagones) out of the white cake (also 4.5 cm on each side).

Now, assemble your cake. Start with a dark piece in the center of the bowl and continue with the white pieces, making a football pattern, like so:

Once the football shell is done, you simply need to fill your cake with your favourite ingredients (berries, meringue, softened fruit, anything you fancy...).

I filled this one with a dark chocolate mousse and leftover pieces of white and chocolate cake.

Top your cake with the chocolate cake circle. Wrap with cling film and reserve in your fridge for at least 24 hours.
Turn over onto a plate/dish and serve biiiiig pieces – that’s what my birthday boy and guests requested when they saw the cake.

 And those champions almost ate the whole thing!

Chocolate mousse recipe:

• 200g dark chocolate
• 6 egg yolks
• 6 egg whites, whisked to stiff peaks

To make the chocolate mousse, melt the chocolate in a double boiler, whisk in the egg yolks, one at a time. Finally, fold in the egg white. Reserve for a few hours or overnight in the fridge before using.