Ingredients

Serves 10 to 12

For the cake

  • 200g softened butter
  • 220g caster sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 5 large eggs
  • 300g plain flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 70g cocoa powder
  • 2 tbsp natural yoghurt
  • 130ml milk

For the buttercream

  • 330g softened butter
  • 650g sifted icing sugar
  • 1 tsp honey
  • 3 tbsp milk
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • A few drops of yellow food colouring

For the filling

  • 100g lemon buttercream (vanilla flavour frosting)
  • 3 tbsp vanilla bean patisserie lemon curd

To decorate

  • Mini chocolate eggs
  • 3 tbsp fine coconut flakes
  • 1 metre pale pink ribbon
  • Plate or cake stand

Method

For the cake

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/ Fan 160°C / gas 4.
  2. Line the bases of 2 x 20cm sandwich cake tins with baking parchment and brush the sides with melted butter.
  3. To prepare the cake, whisk the cream butter, sugar, and vanilla together until soft and fluffy.
  4. Add the eggs, one at a time.
  5. Sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa together into the egg mixture.
  6. Add the vanilla extract, yoghurt and ¾ of the milk and fold in to form a soft cake batter. If the mix is too thick, add in more of the milk until you have a medium batter.
  7. Divide between both the prepared tins, place into the preheated oven and bake for about 20 to 23 minutes or until well risen and firm on top. Make sure the skewer comes out clean.
  8. Leave in the tin to cool for 10 minutes.
  9. Slide a thin spatula or knife around the tins and turn out onto cooling rack to cool completely before decorating.

For the buttercream

  1. Place the butter, icing sugar, honey, milk, and lemon juice into the bowl of a mixer and beat until fluffy and light.
  2. Add a few drops of yellow colouring – this should be a pale yellow.
  3. This will take about 5 minutes.

For the filling

  1. Place 100g of buttercream into a bowl and add the lemon curd, mix well.
  2. Place one layer of the cake onto a stand or plate.
  3. Spread the lemon curd buttercream over the cake layer.
  4. Place the other cake layer on top.
  5. Spread the rest of the buttercream around the sides of the cake, smoothing it all the way around and spread on the top.

To decorate

  1. Tie a ribbon around the cake.
  2. Form a "nest" with the coconut flakes on top and arrange a pile of mini eggs inside the nest on top of the cake.
  3. Display more mini eggs around the base of the cake and its ready to serve!

Recipe courtesy of Aldi and Catherine Fulvio.