The Purse Cake

One of the most sought-after elements in a birthday celebration is the birthday cake. A birthday will not be as memorable as it can be without a birthday cake.

There was no specific theme for Saee's 8th birthday party, the gal only had one request- Make-Up Kit cake. I decided to throw in a purse also, as I really wanted to make this cake special for her and also I was itching to try out this fab purse cake I saw on the Cake Central site :D. I can't think of one girl, of any age, that wouldn't adore this fabulous edible fashion accessory for her party. I want one for my bday too!

In the mad rush of Saee's party I didn't get time to click individual snaps of the purse only. But I'll try to explain the procedure as clearly and in detail as possible.

Let's start with the cake. For this specific purse I used a Chocolate Mud Cake recipe which I found on Inspired by Michelle and which gives a deliciously rich, dark and super moist cake plus it's eggless.

Chocolate Mud Cake
Adapted from Inspired by Michelle
Ingredients:
250g butter, chopped
1 1/2 cup (375ml) water
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
1/3 cup (35g) cocoa powder
2/3 cup (100g) dark chocolate, chopped
1 2/3 cups (250g) plain flour, sifted
1 teaspoon bi-carbonate of soda (bi-carb soda)

Method:
The oven should be preheated to 160oC. Butter and line an 8 inch round cake pan.
Combine the butter, water, sugar, cocoa powder and chocolate together in a medium sized saucepan. Place over gentle heat. Bring to the boil whilst stirring. You need to stir until everything has dissolved to stop the mix from burning. Be careful that the mix does not boil over. Simmer gently for 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Cover with a lid and leave to cool to room temperature.
Whisk in gently the flour and bi-carb soda into the cooled liquid. Whisk until all lumps are removed. Do not over whisk; you are not trying to add air into the batter just remove any flour lumps.
Pour batter into the prepared baking pan. Remember the baking pan must be lined with non-stick baking paper. The batter will be quite liquid and will level naturally. Tap the tin on the kitchen bench three times to remove any large air bubbles.
Bake in a preheated oven set at 160oC (325oF) for 80 mins. The top of the cake will crack. Dont worry the cracks will settle and be hidden when you turn the cake out of the tin.
Remove from the oven. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 mins. Gently turn out onto a cake plate or a cake board lined with non stick baking paper and leave to cool. This cake is quite soft whilst still warm which is why I suggest you do not turn out onto a cake wire to cool.

Chocolate Butter Cream
Ingredients:
250g unsalted butter at room temperature, chopped
1 1/2 cups (240g) icing sugar, sifted
1/4 cup (25g) cocoa powder, sifted
2 tablespoons (40ml) milk 
Method:
Place all ingredients into a small bowl of an electric mixer. Turn on slow speed until just combined. Beat on high speed for 5mins. Stop and scrape down the beaters and bowl twice during this stage. Just to let you know the cream will darken in colour on standing.

Chocolate Ganache
Ingredients:
500g dark chocolate, finely chopped
250ml pure cream
Method:
Add the finely chopped chocolate to a heat proof bowl. Heat the cream in a saucepan until it is just about to boil - do not boil. Pour over the chocolate and let stand for 4 minutes. This allows time for the chocolate to melt. Then stir until smooth. The ganache is now ready to use, although it is usually advised to make it one day ahead of time before decorating a cake.

After the cake cooled down, I sliced it in two and filled it with Chocolate Butter cream. Then off it went into the fridge until it firmed up for carving.
                 
                   Chocolate Mud Cake frosted with Chocolate butter cream ready to be carved

Cut off the bottom edge as straight as possible. Cut off a top edge as straight as possible. The top edge should be slightly smaller than the bottom. Stand it up on it's bottom and check for straightness. Check the side as well as the front. Continue to trim to make sure it stands nice and straight. Start trimming to taper down the front and back to give a closed purse look. Make sure both sides are the same.

Begin carving the sides in to create the gap of fabric when the purse would be closed. Create a little "V" shape on the sides of the purse with a small knife.

Add a crumb coat of ganache. Get it nice and smooth. Then put it in the fridge to firm up over night or a few hours.

After this I don't have clicks for showing how to cover it in fondant. But I'll try to write down very specific instructions so that you guys will have a general idea :D.
Prep the ganache covered cake for covering in fondant by spritzing it with water or water mixed with a little corn syrup. Roll out your fondant 1/8" - 3/8" thick. Drape over your cake and start smoothing. Gather the excess fondant on each corner and pinch it.
Use a pair of small sharp scissors to trim off the excess fondant as close to the cake as possible without cutting into the cake. With warm fingers massage those seams together to make sure they are closed and smooth. 
Use a piece of butter paper around 4cm x 6 cm and round the edge off on one side to create a template for the flap. Roll out some fondant and put the photo paper on it, then cut around it. Spritz the back of the fondant with the water/corn syrup solution and lay over your cake making sure it's nice and centered.
I added the piping using Modelling Chocolate (will post the recipe and technique later). I hand rolled the ropes and brushed the corners of cake with a little water and applied the chocolate ropes along all the edges to create a piping effect.
For the handle, I rolled a rope out and wrapped it around a glass to make it nice and round. I cut the bottom off so it would be square and let it dry over night. I then added just a smidgen of melted chocolate to the bottom of the handle and set it on the cake. I also made a modelling chocolate bow for the front of this cake.

That's it! my purse is ready!

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial and will be inspired to make your own! Remember making a purse shaped cake is not totally difficult. All it takes is your imagination and artistic thinking to make it look unique and realistic enough.