How to make an Owls and Birdhouse Tree Cake with Julie Rogerson

The very talented Julie from Julies Cake in a Box shared with us in easy to follow steps how to create this stunning Owls and Birdhouse Tree cake using Katy Sue Designs Moulds. 

You will need:

• 6” and 8” sponge cakes
• Buttercream
• Chocolate ganache
• Pale blue sugar paste
• Pale green sugar paste
• Various colours of sugar paste treated with tylose powder (or flower/modelling paste)
• Dark brown petal dust
• Tylose powder
• Edible glue
• Katy Sue Owls Sugar Buttons Mould
• Katy Sue Birdhouse Sugar Buttons Mould
• Katy Sue Barrels Mould
• Katy Sue Little Flowers Mould
• 8” and 6” cake cards
• Dowels
• 12” round cake drum
• 15mm green ribbon
• Small and large rolling pins
• Dresden tool

 
To make the Owl and Birdhouse Tree cake

1. Cover the 12” round cake drum with pale green sugar paste and set aside to dry.

2. Torte and fill the sponge cake with buttercream and then cover with ganache, leaving overnight to firm. 

3. Cover both cakes with pale blue sugar paste, then dowel and stack.

4. Attach cake to drum (I use leftover sugar paste mixed with a little water).

5. To make the tree trunk, roll out 2 strips of brown sugar paste to a thickness of approx. 5mm and then flatten/round the edges with your palm, making sure they are a little uneven.

6. Use a Dresden tool to score the paste deeply to give a bark effect. Attach to each tier of the cake, ensuring they line up and then dust inside the grooves with a darker brown petal dust to add dimension.

7. Make branches and leaves using the Katy Sue Owls and Bird House moulds and attach to cake, ensuring you position them to leave enough space to fit the owls and bird house on later.

8. Use various colours of treated sugar paste or flower/modelling paste to make a family of owls, a bird house and a few smaller birds. Attach the decorations to the cake with edible glue.

9. Use leftover pale blue and pale green sugar paste (treat with tylose powder) and the Katy Sue Barrels Mould, to make barrels for trimming the edge of the tiers. Stick to bottom edge of cakes with edible glue.

10. Make different coloured flowers with the Katy Sue Small Flowers Mould and attach randomly around the bottom tier of the cake.

11. Attach green ribbon to the edge of the cake drum to finish.