Gravity-Defying Ramen Cake

I'm not sure if you can find crazy cakes like this one at your local bakery, but I can show you how I make mine at home with a few techniques. Plus, it won't break the bank! This cake here is designed to be a yummy bowl of Japanese ramen with chopsticks that appear to be suspended in the air. You could follow this design to make similar cakes of chips pouring out bags, drinks cascading out of bottles. The possibilities are endless!

• your favourite cake mix and all its fixin's (eggs, milk, etc.)
• parchment paper
• hemisphere baking pan
• offset spatula or knife
• 1 pound frosting or ganache
• 2 drinking straws
• tape
• scissors
• pair of chopsticks
• food colouring (red, yellow, green, brown)
• 2 pounds white fondant
• fondant extruder with string tip
• knife or scissors
• rolling pin and board/mat
• new paintbrush

1. Preheat your oven and make your cake batter using your favourite recipe. I used my own recipe for fresh lemon cake multiplied by two because I wanted the bowl of ramen to be huge in the end.
2. Line your hemisphere baking pan with a criss-cross of parchment paper. This is so you can easily pull the cake out when baked.
3. Pour in the batter. Bake to recipe directions. Because I used a double recipe, it took a while to bake. At the last 30 minutes, I loosely tented it with foil and lowered the temperature from 350 to 315. This ensures even baking for this particular shape and size.

1. Do a toothpick test, then remove from oven when ready. Allow cake to rest until it cools a bit, then flip onto a large plate, board, or tray.

1. Now flip the cake over onto a platter so it looks like a big bowl. Cover the sides and top of cake with icing or ganache.

1. To make some noodles, take 2/3 of the white fondant and add a couple drops of yellow food colouring. Roll around on a board or mat until the colour is uniform.
2. Take a small amount of the noodle-coloured fondant and roll it around until pliable. You can also pop it in the microwave for 7-10 seconds to help soften it. This should be done in tiny batches. Push through the fondant extruder to make some noodles. Place noodle strands on top of cake in the center.

1. Tape two straws together side by side. Punch little holes on only one side of the straws, then push the chopsticks in from the top, diagonally going down through the holes. They will stand by themselves.
2. Push straws into the center of the cake to stand them up. Mark how much you will need to cover in noodle-coloured fondant.

1. Roll out a bit of the noodle-coloured fondant quite thin. You will only need to cut off enough to wrap around the exposed straws once.
2. Wrap the fondant around the straws tightly, then squeeze fondant end into itself to seal.
3. Stand the fondant-covered straws back into the center of the cake, then pierce the chopsticks back into the holes, through the fondant.

1. Push out more noodles with the extruder and drape them over the chopsticks, wrapping them down the covered straw.
2. Continue wrapping with noodles until you can no longer see the flat fondant stand. Make more noodles for the rest of the cake.

1. Squeeze out a bit of brown food colouring into a small dish. This will be to paint on your ramen soup broth.
2. Use your paintbrush to dab on the brown food colouring around the top, almost to the lip of the bowl.

1. To make the hardboiled egg halves, you will need to make some yellow fondant. Add a few drops of yellow in a small amount of white fondant and squish until the colour is consistent.
2. Form an egg shape with some white fondant, then slice in half. Roll the yellow fondant into a ball, slice in half, then press into the white egg oval half. Repeat.
3. Place the egg halves on the noodles in the bowl.

1. To make the fishcake slice, make another oval slice from the white fondant. Take a bit of white fondant and add some red food colouring to it. Squish until uniform in colour, then roll into a thin rope.
2. Add the roll of pink fondant in a swirl shape to the center of the white oval. Press in to flatten.

1. To make cooked carrots, add a drop of red and a drop of pink to white fondant and squish until uniform. Cut into elongated triangles.
2. Place carrots onto noodles, then use a knife to score little lines on top of them.
3. Add a bit of brown food colouring on the scores to imitate them being cooked.

1. To make the meat slices, mix the smallest amount of brown food colouring into the white fondant. Squish together but only to marble it. (Who doesn't love fatty marbled meat?!) Roll out flat.
2. Cut into crescent shapes, then paint the sides brown with the food colouring.
3. Place meat slices onto the noodles.

1. To make the scallions, add a couple drops of green food colouring to the fondant and squish until almost uniform, a bit marbled. Flatten.
2. Cut out tiny strips, then roll them into rings. Rolling them around a toothpick or dowel could be helpful. Place scallions on top.

1. Add a couple more noodles on the broth as a finishing touch. Get ready to wow your friends and family!

Huddle around and stare at it for several minutes because it might be emotional to cut into this!

The toughest part about these work-of-art cakes is finally cutting into them after the bond you've created with them. But it's a good thing your mobile phone can hold a bajillion photos, right?! Bon appetit!