30 kilograms of chocolate. That’s how much of the dark stuff – along with hours and hours of work – went into crafting a giant chocolate cake bunny that’s going to be bringing cheer to a special group of kids this Easter.
It’s so well done it’s hard to believe every centimeter was crafted by hand, but the human-sized Easter bunny is indeed a giant chocolate cake. And if you are impressed by that, have a think about how you’d move a 1.5-metre bunny through the streets of a busy city: transporting it to its Easter home at a in Brisbane gave the team who made it some heart-stopping moments, with a swaying bunny threatening to break in two.
Baker Alison Harvey, a trainer with the (NBIA), was at the forefront of creating the bunny, now waiting to be unveiled at a special morning tea at the South Brisbane centre, which provides accommodation for seriously ill children undergoing treatment in Brisbane.
The NBIA has partnered with the Ronald McDonald House organisation’s South East Queensland arm this year to donate products baked by apprentices during training; for Easter, the NBIA’s training arm, Baking Industry Training Australia, decided to step things up. Way up.
Waiting for its big moment: the bunny after its perilous trip. Source: National Baking Industry Association
Alison Harvey spent hours planning and working on the bunny, baking six huge slabs of chocolate cake, shaping the bunny, covering it with icing and air-brushing the details. 
It’s not the first time she’s tackled a project this big – last year she and another bakery trainer, Shayne Greenman, created a life-size Dame Edna for the Queensland Cake Show.
Alison Harvey at work: after days of planning and preparing, it took four days to bake and create the bunny. Source: National Baking Industry Association
“I am excited to utilise my skills as a baker to create some Easter cheer to those who need it most. I would like to thank Australian Bakels for their continual support in providing the ingredients I need to put the bunny together. I hope it brings some extra joy to the Ronald McDonald House,” Harvey says.
While making it was challenging enough, imagine the logistics of transporting a 1.5m cake bunny.
The team charged with delivering it described the trip as “terrifying” – the bunny’s shape made it hard to strap down without damaging it, and Harvey had to do some end-of-trip redecorating, adding a stylish yellow sash to cover up a crack at the waist. But the bunny is now safely in its new home at Ronald McDonald House, and waiting to be unveiled at a celebration morning tea on Monday.
While the bunny is edible, because it was made with internal wooden supports, making it difficult to cut up safely, it will be for display only - but there will be plenty of baked goods for the children and their families at the Easter morning tea.
RMH SEQ communications and marketing Officer Preshni Pillay said Monday’s celebration was an opportunity to provide some fun and excitement to families staying at the House leading up to Easter.
“Each night we accommodate up to 70 families who are caring for their seriously ill or injured child; so we are thrilled to be able to treat them to a lovely Easter celebration filled with delicious food, activities and other special surprises,” Pillay told SBS.
“We are proud to partner with the NBIA who not only created an amazing life-size Easter bunny cake for the event, but will also be making scrumptious baked goods for the families.”
