Ann Reardon

Gravity Defying Popcorn Cake

gravity defying popcorn cake ann reardon
 

The countdown to Christmas is on, half of the advent lollies have been eaten and school holidays are upon us. Movies are something we do most holidays. Here is a fun gravity defying popcorn cake to turn any movie gathering in to a party. Seriously, when I served this up the guests thought it was a pot exploding with popcorn. They were delighted to eat the chocolate lid, devoured the caramel popcorn and were amazed that it was actually a cake.

The competition to win one of 6 Kitchen Aid Artisan mixers is now closed. The winners were: Amber Williamson, Yasshna Asriani, Anthea Ashleigh, Mia Plumridge, Minna Wong and Ailis Relihan.

To make this gravity defying popcorn cake you will need:

One and a half times my rich chocolate cake recipe baked in three 8″ round cake tins, baked, cooled and leveled.
600mL (20.29 fluid ounces) Cream
Cake Support
800g (28.22 ounces) chocolate
150g (5.29 ounces) Black fondant
4 lollipop sticks
edible silver luster dust
acetate

Salted Caramel

2 cups or 500mL (16.91 fluid ounces) cream
2 tsp vanilla
300mL (10.14 fluid ounces) or 1 1/4 cups water
430g (15.17 ounces) or 2 cups caster sugar (superfine sugar)
1 tsp sea salt
40g (1.41 ounces) or 2 tablespoons glucose syrup
Place the water, sugar and glucose syrup into a pan. Give it a little stir to make sure all the sugar is wet. Wash the sides of the pan down with a wet pastry brush.

Leave it unstirred to boil, after a few minutes until it starts to turn golden. Let is get an even golden colour – then remove it from the heat. Add in your vanilla and the cream. Return to the heat and keep stirring it until the caramel is melted into the cream. Stir in the salt and continue to heat until the desired thickness is achieved (see the video for how to test what thickness you caramel will be).

Caramel Popcorn (make two separate batches of this recipe)

70g (2.47 ounces) popcorn kernels
210g (7.41 ounces) or 1 cup sugar
100mL (3.38 fluid ounces) water
15g (0.53 ounces) or 1 Tablespoon butter

Pop the corn kernels (I used an air popper but you can do it in a pan if you prefer)
Heat the sugar and water until it goes golden then stir in the butter.
Immediately pour that over the popcorn and stir it around.

Cut some acetate to the height you want your pot to be and wrap it around a round cake tin. Mark where it joins so you know where to spread the chocolate to. Remove the acetate. Wrap another piece of acetate around the tin to cover it so you can slide the chocolate off.

Temper the chocolate, if you don’t know how to do that see my chocolate secrets post. This is important or your chocolate won’t set at room temperature.
Spray a little oil on the underside of a pan lid and then gently rub it with some paper towel so that you leave a thin layer of oil. Pour on approximately 200g (7.05 ounces) of tempered chocolate and spread it around the lid. As it starts to thicken spread it out form the middle back to the edges so they are not too thin. Then place it in the fridge to set.

Spread the remaining chocolate onto the acetate to make the sides of the pot, once it is starting to set wrap it around the covered cake tin. Place over a bowl to set (see video for demonstration). Repeat with a smaller piece of acetate just smaller than your pan lid

Once the lid is set run your nail around the edge and then flip it over to remove the chocolate from the lid. Using a fondant extruder make a snake of black fondant. Rub a little water around the edge of the chocolate lid and wrap the fondant around the lid, gently pressing it onto the chocolate.

To make the handle roll a thick snake of black, then use your fingers to roll it thinner and fold the ends down. Check that it is the right width for your lid and leave the fondant to dry out.

Make the handles for the side of the pot in the same manner but adding a little ‘foot’ on each side. Use you cake tin to make sure it is on the right angle. Add a lollipop stick to each side of the handle so you can add it to the cake.

Slowly and gently pull and turn to wiggle the chocolate rings off the cake tins. Add the smaller one to the underside of the lid. Check the larger one for holes and patch any problem areas before removing the outside acetate.

Whip the cream.

Assemble the cake inside the large chocolate ring layering up cake, salted caramel and cream.

Brush the fondant handles, lid and sides of the pot with silver luster dust.

Make a batch of caramel popcorn and tip your popcorn out onto some baking paper then using thick silicone gloves shape the popcorn into a cylinder by just gently pushing it together. Once cooled add to the cake.
Add the lid into place. Then make another batch of popcorn and add it artistically exploding out of the pot.

gravity defying cake tutorial
Copyright © 2017 Reardon Media Pty Ltd. All rights reserved. How To Cook That

My Cookbook

ann reardon crazy sweet creations cookbook
Stores that sell my book listed by country: http://bit.ly/ARcookbook
All recipe quantities in the book are in grams, ounces and cups.

197 Comments View Comments

  1. Rating: 4.5

    Can i get one of the mixer please because i don’t have any mixer and i can’t make cakes for my children . Can you please give me that
    Thank you.

    • Enter the contest. Maybe you will get lucky. I don’t have a mixer either and my kids and grandchildren have never missed one of my birthday cakes.

  2. Rating: 5

    Caramel and Chocolate, awesome combination… in SouthAmerica we love dulce de leche and chocolate combination, it is a bit similar. Thanx for the video Ann. Gorgeous as always.

  3. Can you make a nerf gun cake

  4. Rating: 4.5

    Hey Ann i am an orphan and i have many family issues but i love cooking and honestly i do have a hand mixer but a stand mixer would be like a dream come true ❤. Love your videos Ann ❤

    • Hope you win one?❤❤❤

    • All the best for your future Faraya.

  5. Can You make a flower cake

  6. Rating: 5

    Hi Ann,
    Thanx a lot for this give away… This cake is amazing. ..?
    Lots of love from india, kerala?

  7. Rating: 5

    Ann I love your videos so much……plz Ann give me 1 of the Kitchen Aid Mixer because this mixer is not available in my country….??? lots of love from Bangladesh.

  8. Rating: 5

    Love you Ann, your video aways have clear intrustion and a wonderful recipe. The cake look fantastic, I’m realy one to make one but maybe I’m just make a regular cake. I love yours rich cholate cake recipe.
    Thanks for sharing all of that great recipe, love you.

  9. Rating: 5

    Ann pls give me one of your stand and mixer since I was 10 I always watch your videos Im waiting every Friday and I’m here 1000,000 subscribers pls. Give me one I don’t have mixer pls because we don’t have that much money pls ann give me one love your videos.. Love from Philippines <3

  10. That caramel looks so so yummy! Thanks for sharing this recipe. The whole cake looks delicious.

  11. Rating: 5

    Hi Ann I’m from Melbourne Victoria I’m only 10years old it I’ve been watching you since I was 6 my mum always told me that I would pretend to write down the ingredients as you would talk I just wanted to say what a inspiration you have been to me love you so much
    + Your dessert s are fantastic thank you for putting your effort into making a video for everyone

    • Hi Huda, Thanks for commenting.

  12. Rating: 5

    hi, I absolutely love your videos and I always wait for Friday’s so that I can see your videos. I really love this one

  13. Rating: 5

    Its awesome

  14. Rating: 5

    Hii… Ann i love ur videos… I haven’t tried many desserts u made but just 4… They were amazing since ur recipes are fabulous… They can never go wrong… I have taken part in this giveaway for the first time… Hope i win one…

  15. Rating: 5

    I absolutely love how much personality this cake has, especially how the popcor explodes out. Amazing

  16. Rating: 5

    The cake you made today looks real yummy. I hope I could win the mixer because I want to make sweet treats with my daughter for New Years Eve. You may be a little confused on why I said New years. That because in Mongolia we don’t celebrate christmas.

  17. Rating: 5

    I love you ANN

  18. Rating: 5

    I love u so much Ann

  19. Rating: 5

    I love it

  20. Rating: 5

    I hope i can win this giveaway becausei never win before ?????

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