It is the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who today, and as an ardent admirer of the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant), I could not let the day pass un-noticed.
I wanted to make something edible as my way of celebrating the occasion, and I was initially attracted by the ideas in Dining with The Doctor by Chris Rachael Oseland. However, being a baker, when the time came, I of course wanted to make baked goods. A quick Google search led me to this recipe on the BBC America website for Mini Chocolate Dalek Cakes.
While I made the whole batch of cake, I only made one Dalek - that is all I wanted, and when you start putting the little sod together, it becomes rather time-consuming.
Instead of using a marshmallow head (which looked a little odd because it was smaller than the body), I had two different shaped dariole moulds (one which was tapered at the top for a head) in which I baked the cakes. I trimmed one of each type of cake up to make a dalek head and body, and joined them together with some of the ganache.
I couldn't find pocky or FADS at the supermarket (my first choices for Dalek accessories), so I bought a can of yan yan biscuits and dipped them in chocolate for the plunger and eye stalk, joining on a chocolate dipped smartie (I'd used all the brown ones) and a blue smartie to the end of the sticks for a plunger and an eye respectively. I left the gun plain.
The cake itself is really rather delicious - although it contains cocoa rather than chocolate, it is deep and rich and chocolatey in flavour.
The backdrop for my Dalek is a first day cover of the complete set of Royal Mail Doctor Who stamps. Don't you think they are fabulous?
Are you planning to watch The Day of The Doctor, being the 50th anniversary episode of Dr Who? And are you celebrating the occasion, and if so, how?
