Description
Create a spooky Halloween bone cake perfect for a festive party centerpiece using meringue bones and rich red velvet cake layers. This recipe combines delicate homemade meringue shaped like bones and classic red velvet cakes stacked and decorated to impress your guests.
Ingredients
Scale
Meringue Bones
- 1 large egg white
- 70g caster sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Icing
- 50g icing sugar, sifted
- ½-1 tsp cold water
Cake
- 1 Tesco Finest red velvet cake (serves 6)
- 1 Tesco Finest red velvet cake (serves 14)
Instructions
- Whisk to stiff peaks: Preheat the oven to gas mark ½, 130°C, fan 110°C. Line two large baking trays with nonstick baking paper. In a large, clean, non-plastic bowl, whisk 1 large egg white using an electric whisk starting at low speed and gradually increasing to high. Whisk for about 3 minutes or until stiff peaks form.
- Mix in the sugar slowly: Gradually add 70g caster sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking well after each addition. Continue until all sugar is incorporated and the meringue is smooth and glossy. Whisk in ½ tsp vanilla extract. Transfer the meringue into a piping bag fitted with a round 3mm nozzle.
- Pipe meringue bones: Pipe bone shapes onto the baking trays: about 6cm long and 5mm thick bones on one tray, and smaller 4cm bones on the other. To shape a bone, pipe a heart shape, then extend the tip into a line ending in a second heart. You should have about 50 meringue bones total. Bake for 45 minutes, then remove and cool completely.
- Make the icing: Place the smaller 6-serving red velvet cake on top of the larger 14-serving cake to create tiers. Mix 50g sifted icing sugar with ½ to 1 tsp cold water until you achieve a thick but slightly runny icing suitable for piping. Spoon the icing into a piping bag fitted with a 3mm nozzle.
- Decorate the cake: Once the meringue bones have cooled, pipe a little icing onto the back of a long bone and gently stick it to the side of the larger bottom cake tier. Attach a short bone next to it, and continue alternating large and small bones to cover the lower tier fully.
- Fill in the gaps: Repeat the decorating process on the top tier by alternating large and small bones. Tuck in smaller bones and any broken meringue pieces to cover any gaps and complete the decoration.
- Finish with crossed bones on top: Finish the cake decoration by placing crossed meringue bones on top to enhance the spooky bone effect.
Notes
- Use a clean, grease-free non-plastic bowl to whip egg whites effectively.
- Add caster sugar slowly to prevent the egg white from collapsing.
- Ensure meringue bones are fully cooled before handling to avoid breakage.
- The icing should be thick enough to hold decorations but runny enough to pipe smoothly.
- Use two different sizes of meringue bones to fill gaps and create visual interest.
- Store the finished cake in a cool, dry place to keep meringue bones crisp.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/20th of cake)
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 28g
- Sodium: 210mg
- Fat: 14g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 40mg
