Panda Cupcakes

During National Cupcake Week I was contacted by a Gary who wanted some panda cupcakes, he sent me a picture of the exact ones he wanted from a website which were red velvet cupcakes with chocolate panda details. I was happy he did because I didn't have a clue where to start with making cakes look like pandas!

I decided to visit Ho-Panda! in Trocadero - a shop completely dedicated to pandas, to get some inspiration.

I thought it was best to make the panda eyes first as I hate working with chocolate and wanted to get this bit over with. The reason I don't like working with chocolate is because my hands are really warm and it just melts and becomes a nightmare, but I recently discovered that if you wear some surgical gloves it stops the chocolate melting as quickly.

It was a bit tricky finding giant dark chocolate buttons, but it's nothing Google couldn't figure out for me. So I popped down to Montezuma's chocolate shop in Liverpool Street one day after work and got two big bags of the giant buttons.

Stage 1. 
I then cut the round buttons into an oval shape with a surgical scalpel so that it was completely hygienic. This would form the large black area of the panda eyes.

Stage 2. 
I then piped some white icing onto the oval shaped chocolate and popped a chocolate chip dead in the middle to create the finished panda eyes.


C'est fini!

Oh and just to make the order a little more glamorous I had to drop them off at the Renaissance Hotel in the Gilbert Scott restaurant at St Pancras (thanks to the other half for getting me there!)