Easter Egg Cascade Cake

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4. Grease a medium hemisphere cake pan with a little butter.
2. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs then gently fold in the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder.
3. Spoon the cake mixture into the hemisphere pan and level with the back of the spoon, then place on a baking sheet - we recommend resting the pan on a cooking ring to hold it steady. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until well risen, firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
4. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then trim off any excess. Turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
5. Meanwhile, secure one of the supporting rods from the Anti-Gravity Pouring Cake Kit onto the base plate with the locking nut. Lower the cooled cake gently down over the rod, curved side down, until it rests on the base.
6. Place Flake bars round the base of the cake. Cover the rest of the cake in chocolate flavoured frosting, using a palette knife to smooth the top and sides. Build up layers of bars around the cake, cutting them to size to fit and pressing each gently into the frosting to hold it in place. Add enough layers to overlap the top of the cake to help hold the mini eggs in place.
7. Add the corner piece from the kit to the top of the second rod, then connect the second rod to the top of the first rod.
8. Cover the top of the cake with a couple of layers of chocolate mini eggs.
9. Thickly coat the upright structure with chocolate frosting and build up the mini egg cascade from the bottom of the rod upwards, using the frosting to hold the eggs in place.
10. Place the plain chocolate in a heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of simmering water, without allowing the base of the bowl to touch the water.
11. Meanwhile, carefully cut the thinner ends of both halves of a large chocolate Easter egg in a zigzag pattern to give it a cracked’ appearance, creating a large enough opening to fit over the end of the angled rod.
12. Add a layer of melted chocolate to the inside of the egg to help attach it to the top of the angled rod, then paint a little melted chocolate onto the edges of the egg halves and stick them together.
13. Lower the large egg over the top of the angled rod, placing it carefully so it looks as though the mini eggs are pouring out of it. Decorate the edge of the base plate with ribbon to finish.