World Book Day – Highway Rat Goodie Cake

It’s World Book Day this week and what better way to celebrate, than with a super easy, sweet as candy bake. Little Button absolutely ADORES Julia Donaldson, so we fashioned this cake around the very naughty Highway Rat who steals and collects up all the travellers’ goodies to eat for himself.

  “Give me your pastries and puddings! Give me your chocolate and cake! For I am the Rat of the Highway….. And whatever I want I take.” – Highway Rat by Julia Donaldson

It’s a fabulous rhyming picture book that we’ve read so many times over the years, that we all know the words off by heart! So, here’s our World Book Day – Highway Rat goodie cake! Have fun.

How to make Highway Rat Goodie Cake

You will need:

• 9oz self raising flour
• 6oz caster sugar 
• 1 good teaspoon of baking powder
• 2 tablespoons of milk
• 4oz butter (room temperature works well)
• 2 eggs
• 4 small ripe bananas 

For decoration:

• Icing sugar 
• 2 teaspoons of water
• Any sweets, chocolate (or both!) for decoration

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 180C/gas mark 4. We have a fan assisted oven and baking at just slightly over 160C worked at treat.

Line a standard cake tin with baking paper, or grease well.

Step 1

Measure out all the dry ingredients and pop into a large mixing bowl. 

Step 2

Add the butter and milk.

Step 3

Crack the eggs into a small bowl and whisk before adding them into your main mixing bowl. We do this to help prevent any stray bits of egg shell.

Step 4

Mash the bananas and add to your mixing bowl.

Step 5

Hand mix until smooth.

Step 6 

Pour mixture into your cake tin and pop into the oven for 1 hour, until golden. Then leave to cool.

Step 7

Mix icing sugar and a little water together to create a small amount of icing. We left ours white, but you can add colour if you wish.

Step 8

Next drizzle over the top of the cake.

Step 9

Stick all your Highway Rat goodies to the top and round the sides of your cake! This is going to be the best bit EVER for little ones so try not to rain on their parade by questioning the amount going on top. Remembering that you can always take off toppings to regulate servings.  

Ta-dah! A super easy World Book Day – Highway Rat goodie cake. Tuck in!

*This cake is very, VERY sweet, so we cut it into itty-bitty mini pieces to eat. 

Top-tip: If you’re not keen on banana cake, then this could be done with a normal sponge mixture too.

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