FOR THE CHOCOLATE SPONGE

1. Preheat oven the 180°C/ 160°C Fan/Gas Mark 4. Grease and line 4 x 7” round cake tins – if you only have 2 x 7″ cake tins, divide the ingredients in half and bake the sponges in 2 batches.
2. Place the flour, Baking Powder, Bicarbonate of Soda, Cocoa Powder and Sugar in a large bowl and mix together. Make a well in the centre.
3. In a separate bowl mix together the eggs, milk, oil and Vanilla Extract. Pour the wet mixture into the well in the centre of the dry ingredients and gently begin the fold together. Mix together until all combined and your mixture is smooth.
4. Divide the mixture evenly between the 4 cake tins and smooth the top. Bake the cakes for 20 -25 minutes until risen and when a skewer is inserted into the centre of the cake it comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tins for 10 minutes and then remove from the tins and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

FOR THE BUTTERCREAM

1. Place the butter in a free standing mixer and beat until smooth and glossy. Gradually add the icing sugar beating well between each addition, once all the icing sugar us mixed through add the malt powder, Vanilla Extract and milk. Continue to beat the buttercream until it is light and creamed together.
2. Gradually add the Blue Colour Gel and mix through the buttercream until it is a pale blue colour.

ASSEMBLING THE CAKE

1. Once the cake is cooled, using a serrated knife level the top of each cake layer.
2. Place a small blob of buttercream onto your serving plate or cake board. Place your first layer of sponge onto the cake board and smooth a layer of buttercream on top. Place another layer of sponge on top to sandwich together, repeat until all the layers of sponge are sandwiched together.
3. Coat the sides and top of the cake with buttercream and smooth to create a crumb coat. Place the crumb coated cake in the fridge and leave to set for 30 minutes.
4. Once the crumb coat has set remove from the fridge and apply another coat of buttercream around the sides and top of the cake. Use a palette knife dipped in hot water to create a smooth finish. Place the cake in the fridge to let the buttercream firm up. Put the remaining buttercream into a piping bag fitted with an open star nozzle.

TO DECORATE THE CAKE

1. In a small bowl add the Cocoa Powder, add the water a tsp at a time stirring after each addition until you have a smooth paste to create the splatters onto the cake.
2. Using a paint brush dip into the Cocoa Powder paste and splatter over the cake to cover the top and sides. – This a messy job, we suggest placing a baking tray behind the cake to catch any extra splatters and protect your walls!
3. Melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave. Heat in the microwave for 1 minute and stir, continue heating in 10 second bursts, stirring between each burst until the chocolate and butter has melted and mixed together. Leave to cool for 10 minutes.
4. Place the melted chocolate mixture into a piping bag and cut a small hole in the end of the piping bag. Pipe the chocolate in a ring around the top edge of the cake, nudging the chocolate over the edge of the cake to create a drip.
5. Pipe buttercream swirls on top of the cake and place a chocolate egg on top of each swirl.
6. Your cake is now ready to serve and enjoy!