Ingredients

To make each sponge base (you will need to make two sponges, so double these ingredients)

175 grammes (6oz) of butter

175 grammes (6oz) of caster sugar

3 large eggs

175 grammes (6oz) of sieved self-raising flour

To ice and decorate your dinosaur birthday cake

225 grammes (8oz) of icing sugar

225 grammes (8oz) of butter

Few drops of green food colouring

One small pack of mini-marshmallows (to make the teeth)

One small piece of liquorice (to make the mouth)

One jelly button (to make the eye)

One liquorice cartwheel cut into quarters (to make the claws and toes)

Small pack of chocolate mint squares (each one cut in half to make the spines down the back)

Method

1. Grease two large 20 cm x 30cm (8 inch x 12 inch), baking trays. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and caster sugar together until pale and creamy. Beat eggs in a jug then add them to mixture (a little at a time, beating as you go).

2. Add a quarter of the flour to the mixture, dropping it through the sieve again from a height above the bowl (helps make the sponges light and airy). Gently fold in the flour using a metal spoon. Repeat this process until all the flour is folded in. You should have a mixture that will drop off a spoon easily when the spoon is tapped against the side of the bowl, if the consistency is not right add a tablespoon of hot water.

3. Divide the mixture between the two tins, then place them on the middle shelf of a pre-warmed oven at 170°C / 325°F (Gas mark 3) for 25-30 minutes or until they are pale golden in colour. Remove from the oven and wait a minute then loosen them round the edges with a palette knife turn them out onto a wire cooling tray. Let the sponges cool completely before cutting and decorating.

4. Once sponges have been cooled, place the sponges together and use the dinosaur head, body, feet and tail templates (downloaded from www.everythingdinosaur.com) to cut out the dinosaur shape.

5. Beat the butter and icing sugar together to make the light and fluffy buttercream, add a few drops of green food colouring whilst beating.

6. Position the cake pieces together on a prepared, presentation board, join the pieces together in the dinosaur shape using a little of the butter cream to stick the shapes together. Spread the remaining buttercream evenly over the cake.

7. Using a knife, mark in scales then decorate the dinosaur birthday cake using the remaining ingredients. Cut the mint chocolate squares in half and then place these down the back to make spines. Place the liquorice piece to make the mouth and add the mini-marshmallows to make the teeth. Quarter the liquorice cartwheel and place on the bottom of the feet to make the claws and toes. Finally, place the jelly button to make the dinosaur’s eye.

8. This is a fun cake to make and once you have the sponges and the templates you really can use your imagine to decorate the dinosaur birthday cake in any way you want, even changing the food colouring to make your dinosaur cake a different colour.

Birthday Party Supplies