0:00:03 > 0:00:04- Dave.- Aye, Si?
0:00:04 > 0:00:08Are you ready for our toughest challenge yet?
0:00:08 > 0:00:12- What, the dark art of cake decoration, you mean?- Oh, yes!
0:00:12 > 0:00:16We'll be criss-crossing the country in search of inspiration.
0:00:19 > 0:00:24We find ourselves on a hillside reading Cake Decorating.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27It all started when this dropped through the letterbox...
0:00:27 > 0:00:29a wedding invitation.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32Oh, er, there was something ominous at the bottom...
0:00:35 > 0:00:38- I'm Helen... - and I'm Johnny, and we're getting married in a weeks time,
0:00:38 > 0:00:42and we'd really like The Hairy Bikers to bake us a cake, if they possibly could.
0:00:42 > 0:00:49Now, we're never ones to turn down a challenge, so here we find ourselves, bereft of inspiration,
0:00:49 > 0:00:53with a pile of cake decorating books. It's a funny old world.
0:00:53 > 0:00:58Well, it is. Cos the thing is the world of cakes is not as simple as it sounds.
0:00:58 > 0:01:02You know, what sort of cake does she want, dude, that's the thing.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06- Does she want croque en bouche, normal, does she want chocolate... - Look at that one!
0:01:06 > 0:01:09It's not a cake, it's a hat, and it's black! It's morbid.
0:01:09 > 0:01:13Let's fill up our icing bags and hit the frosted trail!
0:01:26 > 0:01:30- Hello, Helen, I'm Dave.- Helen, I'm Si, how are you?- Hi, Si.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33- Nice to see you, Johnny, I'm Si. - How are you, Si?
0:01:33 > 0:01:37'Helen's got an appointment to pick up her wedding dress
0:01:37 > 0:01:39'so I'm going along to get a sneak preview'
0:01:39 > 0:01:41'While I get down to business with Johnny.'
0:01:41 > 0:01:44- Do you know what?- Go on. - I love these vans.
0:01:44 > 0:01:47All my family think I'm mad spending all my money on them,
0:01:47 > 0:01:49- but they're well worth it. - Now look, Johnny,
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Got to come straight with you. We are virgins
0:01:52 > 0:01:56when it comes to making wedding cakes. Thing is, we're working hard.
0:01:56 > 0:02:00She'll let you know if she doesn't like it, she's fussy about her cakes.
0:02:00 > 0:02:05Oh, dear! If Dave doesn't get to the bottom of Helen's cakely desires, we're done for.
0:02:07 > 0:02:08Wahey!
0:02:08 > 0:02:12You've got a proper wedding dress, but again it's not conventional,
0:02:12 > 0:02:14so what sort of cake do you like?
0:02:14 > 0:02:19I really fancy Baked Alaska, actually, with some strawberry sauce on it.
0:02:19 > 0:02:21Baked Alaska?
0:02:21 > 0:02:23I've just got you!
0:02:23 > 0:02:26LAUGHTER
0:02:26 > 0:02:28You went, "uh?"
0:02:31 > 0:02:37Although you say quite traditional, I get the impression that you've got quite a sense of humour.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Oh, definitely, yes. Definitely got a sense of humour.
0:02:40 > 0:02:44We'd like traditional looking cake with characters, things like that.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48- So traditional, but with a Hairy Bakers twist.- Exactly.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50It was good to meet Helen and Johnny.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54Yeah, and we've finally got a vision for the cake.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58So we headed back to my house on Roa Island to begin work
0:02:58 > 0:03:01on our five tiers of wedding magic!
0:03:02 > 0:03:08This is the perfect opportunity to use my brand new cake barrow and tool kit.
0:03:08 > 0:03:14Oh, man, I feel more like Bob The Builder than a master baker.
0:03:14 > 0:03:19Into this 15 kilogram mix goes very little flour, two kilos.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23And this is is ordinary baking flour, it's not strong flour.
0:03:23 > 0:03:30Sultanas, raisins, dates, bicarb of soda, salt, and 15 grams of mixed spice.
0:03:30 > 0:03:35Now the sticky's...barley malt extra, three of,
0:03:35 > 0:03:39and three of Japanese brown rice malt syrup.
0:03:41 > 0:03:42Smells lovely!
0:03:45 > 0:03:47Right, mate! Let's get cracking!
0:03:47 > 0:03:51- 30 eggs...ooh!- You've been looking forward to this bit.
0:03:51 > 0:03:5630 eggs may sound extreme, but we're making a lot of cake.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00We're adding a litre of sunflower oil to keep it fresh and moist.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02The magic now starts to build...
0:04:02 > 0:04:05DRAMATIC MUSIC
0:04:05 > 0:04:09The zest of three oranges and four lemons,
0:04:09 > 0:04:11and half a dozen grated carrots.
0:04:13 > 0:04:15Me end's come off me zester!
0:04:15 > 0:04:20Next, reconstituted pineapple and some cardamom seeds as well.
0:04:20 > 0:04:25# She's getting married in the morning. #
0:04:25 > 0:04:31- Five days.- Five days. - From this to perfection.
0:04:31 > 0:04:37MUSIC: "A Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin
0:04:37 > 0:04:40We're only filling the tins half full
0:04:40 > 0:04:47because we don't want our cakes to be monsters once the marzipan and icing layers have been added.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Next bit, with a fruit cake of this quality and calibre,
0:04:51 > 0:04:54we need to wrap it up, cos it's going to be baked for a long time
0:04:54 > 0:04:56maybe about three hours, three to four hours.
0:04:56 > 0:05:01So put your brown paper there... this is just going to keep that direct heat off your tin.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04And then put a sheet of brown paper over the top.
0:05:07 > 0:05:09We're putting them in at 140 degrees.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16After the cakes have cooked, they have to be left to mature.
0:05:16 > 0:05:20You can leave them for months to develop their flavour
0:05:20 > 0:05:23but we've only got two days.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33The marzipan will not stick to a bald cake,
0:05:33 > 0:05:39so what I need to do is to paint it with hot apricot jam or
0:05:39 > 0:05:43warmed marmalade, preferably rindless.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49The marzipan makes a perfect base for the decorative icing to come.
0:05:49 > 0:05:54So it's worth using a cake smoother to get it really smooth.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58Our cakes are beginning to look the business.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01Now, joking apart, the proper baker will use a spirit level.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04This top has to be perfectly level.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09One, two, three...
0:06:15 > 0:06:17We're off to Slattery's, in Manchester,
0:06:17 > 0:06:20one of the finest cake decorating schools in the North.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25Slattery's is a family run business crafting top quality wedding and celebration cakes.
0:06:25 > 0:06:30- Wayne and Coleen Rooney had their cake made here. - Good enough for us!
0:06:30 > 0:06:34We're having a sugar craft lesson with Karen Bowden, who's going
0:06:34 > 0:06:39to initiate us into her wicked world of wedding cake decoration.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45- Got you some sugar paste.- Right.
0:06:45 > 0:06:50As you can see, it's quite firm and hard, so you've got to work this,
0:06:50 > 0:06:53work the sugar paste, nice and smooth,
0:06:53 > 0:06:56you'll know when it's finished cos it will feel almost like plasticine.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59Working warms it up, making it soft enough to roll.
0:07:03 > 0:07:04- That's it!- Oh, yes!
0:07:04 > 0:07:07Looks like an Eskimo's roof!
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Right, you can put your brew down.
0:07:12 > 0:07:17This is Mexican paste, basically what we use to make sugar flowers.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20- Right.- You can roll it out a lot thinner than sugar paste
0:07:20 > 0:07:24and it dries a lot quicker, perfect, like porcelain when it dries,
0:07:24 > 0:07:27- Thank you.- This is what you're going to make your daisies out of...
0:07:27 > 0:07:29Daisies! Ha-ha!
0:07:29 > 0:07:33You need to get that really thin, then we can cut out the daisies.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37Can you say that a bit more butch?
0:07:37 > 0:07:39IN A DEEP VOICE: Daisies!
0:07:39 > 0:07:41You're my girl! You're my girl!
0:07:46 > 0:07:49What you're going to do is... on each petal
0:07:49 > 0:07:53you're going to just gently roll all the way around, OK?
0:07:53 > 0:07:56Now when you've done that, get a knife,
0:07:56 > 0:08:00and you're going to make a slit in each petal.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06This should keep them quiet for a while.
0:08:10 > 0:08:14We're not actually decorating the cakes until the day before the wedding.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17This is just another stage in their construction.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20Looks like we'll be having lunch without you.
0:08:22 > 0:08:23Daisy-boy!
0:08:24 > 0:08:28Now we've got nearly everything we need for Helen and Johnny's cake.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32But ever since I sat in Johnny's camper van, I've had an idea for the centrepiece.
0:08:32 > 0:08:37But we thought it might be a bit much for our newly acquired icing skills.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41So we've asked novelty cake specialist, Karen Davis, to help us out
0:08:41 > 0:08:44And we've come to the Wirral to collect her masterpiece.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52- Hello, Karen.- Hi, Dave. Hi, Si.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55- Hi, Karen, how are you? - Fine, thanks.- How's it going?
0:08:55 > 0:08:58- Fine.- Fantastic! - All finished for you.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01- Is that OK?- That is perfect!
0:09:01 > 0:09:05Oh, it's so lifelike! Fabulous!
0:09:05 > 0:09:10With our camper van cake safely stowed, it's on to our last stop.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14Cheadle golf club, venue for Helen and Johnny's wedding reception.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16And there's no putting off the moment of truth.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22Find the lights...
0:09:22 > 0:09:26At the moment the wedding cake is nothing more than five pretty
0:09:26 > 0:09:29white fruit cakes and lots of fancy bits of sugar.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32But by tomorrow afternoon it's got to be gorgeous.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35Five tiers high, and ready to wow Helen and Johnny.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38We've never built anything like this before, so to be safe
0:09:38 > 0:09:41we've given ourselves a day to do it.
0:09:41 > 0:09:46- It's a very stressful occasion, isn't it?- I didn't think I'd ever be as stressed as I am.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50What we hadn't reckoned with was that the snooker lights would be on economy.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53- Light.- Oh, you're joking, man?
0:09:53 > 0:09:55- Got any 20s?- Haven't got them!
0:09:57 > 0:10:00- Another 50 in the meter!- Wahey!
0:10:00 > 0:10:05Being blacked out every 20 minutes makes you realise how long these layers are taking.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07With the daisies done, it's on to layer two.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13I think she's going to love this layer because it's right up her quirky street.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18- He-he, that's one for the divorce cake, isn't it?- What's that?
0:10:18 > 0:10:19Bye bye.
0:10:19 > 0:10:21Ha-ha! Oh, handy!
0:10:23 > 0:10:24Whoa! Two down, three still to go.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Dude, this is taking longer than we thought.
0:10:27 > 0:10:32Tell you what, I wasn't even as nervous as this at my own wedding.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36You're joking!
0:10:38 > 0:10:40This is my baby! We got these images
0:10:40 > 0:10:43specially printed on a thin strip of icing.
0:10:43 > 0:10:44- Yep!- Spot on!
0:10:49 > 0:10:51- Oh, no!- Let's call it a night, mate.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00MUSIC: "Here Come The Bride"
0:11:03 > 0:11:08You know what, dude, it's only now sinking in how important what we're doing actually is!
0:11:08 > 0:11:13Dowling and balancing aren't something you can do in a hurry.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15Dude, we're in a hurry!
0:11:15 > 0:11:20These foundations have to be just right, cos this cake weighs a ton!
0:11:26 > 0:11:30- How long have we got?- Not very long now, they're on their way.
0:11:30 > 0:11:35Ten minutes? Right, I've got the weight, needs to come further towards you.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38Hurry up, the guests are here!
0:11:38 > 0:11:41This is way out, here.
0:11:44 > 0:11:46- Perfect!- Right, let's hide it, quick!
0:11:51 > 0:11:56- I feel sick.- So do I. I've never been so nervous in my life.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03'Ladies and gentlemen, will you please be upstanding for the bride and groom.'
0:12:03 > 0:12:06CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:12:06 > 0:12:09If you want the truth, this has been a tough one.
0:12:09 > 0:12:10It has. A difficult birth.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:12:24 > 0:12:26- Step this way.- Step this way.
0:12:26 > 0:12:27You liked a Baked Alaska?
0:12:27 > 0:12:29LAUGHTER
0:12:30 > 0:12:35- Ready?- Yeah.- Close your eyes!
0:12:36 > 0:12:38CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:12:43 > 0:12:47- Can't believe it!- Perfect!- Yes.
0:12:56 > 0:13:01- Very nice!- Ten out of ten! - Very rich.- But moist.- Yes.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03- Beautiful.- Absolutely beautiful!
0:13:03 > 0:13:05Ten out of ten!
0:13:07 > 0:13:11Very rich, tasty, lovely, you did good.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14- I think it's absolutely gorgeous. - Beautiful.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19It's really, really moist and really tasty, really nice, thank you!
0:13:19 > 0:13:21Thank you, boys! Thank you!
0:13:21 > 0:13:24I feel quite emotional, that was lovely.
0:13:24 > 0:13:25- Wasn't it?- Yeah!
0:13:25 > 0:13:28As far as baking's concerned, we've done it, that was
0:13:28 > 0:13:31the creme de la menthe of baking, the icing on the cake!
0:13:31 > 0:13:35- You're not wrong, dude, we've peaked!- We've done it!
0:13:35 > 0:13:36We peaked with that cake, aye!
0:13:36 > 0:13:41It's different to what we've been doing, baking, isn't it? Much more alchemy, more organised.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44- Well, there's celebration in a cake! - There's passion in a pie!
0:13:44 > 0:13:47There's dough in bread. There's a tart at teatime!
0:13:47 > 0:13:49I've always liked that, my favourite!
0:13:52 > 0:13:55Subtitling by Red Bee Media Ltd