Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Apple & Cider Wigwam Cake

If you love camping but would like to try something different or alternatively if camping really isn't your thing and you prefer your home comforts then why not try 'Glamping'. Glamping is 'Glamorous Camping' and it's really taken off in the last few years!

Whether you want to stay in a tipi or cruise around Cornwall in a classic VW camper, glamping offers something for everyone. Kids will see it as a great adventure and for adults it's the ultimate in cool camping. If you're heading to a festival this year, you can also glamp it up with an array of festival accommodation on offer.
To celebrate the great British tradition of camping I made this Apple and Cider Wigwam Cake. It's so cute and perfect for summer. The cake is a lovely moist apple and sultana cake with some tasty cinnamon spice. The apples and cider are both British. The cider was incorporated into the buttercream between the cake layers inside and it was also used as a coating for the cake for the sugarpaste to adhere to. The cake even comes complete with a Matchmaker chocolate campfire and welly boots!

This is yet another bake from 'The Birthday Cake Book' by Fiona Cairns. It would appear I'm working my way through the book as I've already made Alice's Teapot, the Butterscotch Wisp Cake and the Lime and Vodka Russian Doll Cakes
Inside the tipi there are actually 3 x 15cm apple cakes stacked on top of each other and sandwiched with buttercream. These were then carved into a cone shape with a large serrated knife. A top tip to give the green sugarpaste on the board a grassy effect is to use a scourer. Once the paste is in place on the board use a scourer and press down on the soft paste and it gives it a great mottled effect which is reminiscent of grass! You can just about see the effect in the picture below.
So if all this talk of 'Glamping' has whet your appetite here are a few suggestions:
  1. Vintage Vacations on the Isle of Wight - stay in a classic Airstream trailer/caravan
  2. Jolly Days in the North Yorkshire Moors - Tented lodges with four-poster beds!
  3. 4 Winds Lakeland Tipis - Hire a tipi in the Lake District
  4. Yurt Village Holidays - Stay in a yurt in Dorset. I've stayed here and it was great fun! Why not try llama treking too! :-)
  5. Devon Classic Camper Hire - Strap your surfboard to the roof and visit Devon in a VW camper
  6. Free Spirit Spheres - For the more adventurous, sleep in the trees on Vancouver Island, Canada. I'm hoping to head here next year. If you go at the right time of year, you can even Kayak with Killer Whales!
As camping in the summertime is a British institution I am entering into this month's Calendar Cakes with the theme being 'British Summertime'. The challenge is alternately hosted by Rachel from Dolly Bakes, who is hosting this month, and myself. If you'd like to join us you can find more details here.
* Please note - I have not been asked to advertise any of the above 'Glamping' destinations they are simply places I have seen on the internet which I would like to visit. In addition, I cannot vouch for any of the companies or the quality of service they offer as I have only previously visited Yurt Village Holidays in Dorset.

14 comments:

  1. STUNNING cake Laura!... it is so adorable... I have a little nephew who would love this... excellent stuff!

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  2. This is fantastic, it's so well done - I'd love to make cakes like this one day! I have The Birthday Cake Book, I must actually bake something from it rather than just looking at all the lovely things. Will check out calendar cakes too :)

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  3. That is JUST stunning, what a GREAT cake Laura - I LOVE it! I can think of loads of people who would LOVE that cake, and it looks so professional too! Karen

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  4. Speechless! I live in fear each time I pick my random recipe book that it will be the birthday book as I don't think I can re-create any of her masterpieces. You've done a brilliant job. How can you bear to cut into it? :)

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  5. Wow this is brill and thanks for the tip about the tree camping on Victoria Island, we'll defo try and do that!

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  6. Lovely cake!!! Very different too. The birthday cake book looks like something that I need to add to my collection :)). You are so clever. X

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  7. You're truly an artist! What a gorgeous cake, Laura!

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  8. That cake looks stunning my friend, you are amazing!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

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  9. That is genius - brilliant use of matchmakers too!

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  10. Like all your cakes, this cake is made with perfection. Wow!!!

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  11. I love this cake! As you know I have the same Fiona Cairns book but I'm not quite as competent as you yet at producing such stunning cakes! You make it look so perfect - lovely!

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