There is something fun, and perhaps a bit devious, in serving a dish that deceives. Food illusion has a long history. The medieval dish “yrchouns”—a meatloaf with almond “spines”—was made to resemble a hedgehog, an animal widely eaten at the time. Some faux foods were produced as substitutes, as in the Civil War-era practice of grinding acorns to make “coffee.” And sometimes food illusion was done for mere whimsy, as in the crafting of fruits from marzipan.
• craft knife
• scrub brush
• large paintbrush or basting brush
• paper towel, moistened with vodka
• small plastic freezer bag
• ribs template
• thin cake board
• baking parchment
• serrated knife
• large piping bag and quick-ice tip
• small spatula
• rolling pin
• airbrush
• crème brûlée torch
• 14 in. (35 cm) oval platter
• bowl or jug
• wavy knife
• 1 tbsp. CMC powder
• 1 lb. (450 g) ivory fondant
• airbrush colors: warm brown, ivory, chocolate brown, black, red
• 2–3 tbsp. flaked coconut
• green gel color
• 1 recipe vanilla cake batter, baked in 1/4 sheet pan
• 3 cups (700 ml) decorator’s buttercream icing
• 2 lb. (900 g) white fondant
• 1 cup (235 ml) light corn syrup
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch
• black and white sanding sugars
Mix CMC powder into 4 oz. (110 g) ivory fondant. Roll into 7-8 snakes, each about 3 in. (7.5 cm) long, narrowing gradually at the ends, to form the bones. With craft knife, etch vertical lines into bones for cracks. Press scrub brush into large ends to create marrow effect. Let dry for at least 24 hours.
Once bones have fully dried, brush a coat of warm brown color over entire surface. Using the paper towel, moistened with vodka, remove most of the color, allowing any color that has settled in the cracks and marrow to remain. Set bones aside to dry.
Place the flaked coconut into the plastic freezer bag. Add a few drops of green gel color to the bag. Seal and shake until all the coconut is fully colored.
Use the template to cut out a ribs-shaped piece of thin cake board and a ribs-shaped piece of baking parchment. Place the parchment shape onto chilled or nearly frozen cake, fixing in place with dabs of buttercream icing.
With serrated knife, cut cake around parchment template. Place cut cake on ribs-shaped cake board, attaching with dabs of buttercream. Slice through entire length of cake, at an angle, from left to right. With a rounded motion, cut notches in top of cake, to form 7 or 8 ribs.
Fill large piping bag, fitted with quick-ice tip, with buttercream icing. Pipe icing over surface of cake, covering completely. Smooth over icing with small spatula, taking care to maintain the rib indentations.
Roll out the white fondant onto a dusted surface and drape it over the iced cake. Smooth the fondant carefully over the cake, emphasizing the rib sections.
Airbrush on color in light coats, building tones for added realism. Start with a light coat of ivory, tracing over the rib sections. Next, airbrush even coats of warm brown, followed by chocolate brown and ending with touches of black.
Place airbrushed cake on a nonflammable surface and use crème brûlée torch to “sear” random areas of the ribs to indicate scorch marks. Insert the dried bones. Place cake onto the oval platter.
In a bowl or jug, mix the corn syrup with the cornstarch, until blended. Add a few drops of red and warm brown airbrush color until desired sauce color is achieved. Brush mixture over ribs, allowing sauce to drip onto the bones.
Roll out rest of ivory fondant on a dusted surface, to about 1/2 in. (1 cm) thick. Cut out fries with wavy knife. Trim all four sides of each fry to achieve the crinkled effect. Use crème brûlée torch on ends of the fries to give a crispy look.
Place torched fries around ribs on platter. Sprinkle a mixture of black and white sanding sugars over ribs to resemble salt and pepper. Add pinches of the green-tinted coconut spices to season fries.
