Melt the chocolate for the cake. Cream the butter and sugar, stir in the egg yolks and melted chocolate. Sift all the dry ingredients together and fold them into the mixture, followed by the peel and milk, mixing well. Whisk the egg whites until stiff and fold them in before turning the mixture into the prepared tin, levelling it carefully. Bake in a warm oven (160 °C / 325°F / Gas Mark 3) for 1-11/4 hours until well risen and cooked. Turn out and cool on a wire tray.

Make the cats in advance. Melt 100g chocolate carefully in a small bowl over hot water (or in a microwave oven). Draw or trace one or several cat outlines about 6cm (21/4 inches) high onto a piece of white paper. Place waxed paper on top of the drawing, waxed side upwards.

Fill the piping bag with melted chocolate, cut off the tip then pipe the cat outlines and fill in the centres. Press two red sugar ball eyes in position and cut up small pieces of cherry for noses, adding liquorice for whiskers and tails. Leave the cats to harden for between 1-2 hours, then carefully peel them off the paper.

To complete, slice the cake horizontally through the middle and sandwich it back together with half the lemon curd. Beat the remaining curd into the plain butter icing with the mixed spice and enough yellow colouring to make a rich colour. Spread this icing all over the cake, making it as smooth as possible.

Trace a suitable witch's outline, first on to a piece of paper and then carefully mark the outline on the icing at the centre of the cake. Melt the chocolate, fill the piping bag with it and cut off the tip. Follow the marked outline with chocolate, filling in the hair, feet and other suitable features. Pipe star and moon shapes on to the waxed paper, shiny side up, and fill them in with more chocolate. Leave the chocolate to dry completely before peeling the shapes off the paper and placing them on the cake. Make a broomstick of Flakes and arrange a thin piece on top as the hat brim. Fill in the witch with crumbled Flake.

Lift the cake on to a brightly coloured plate before standing the chocolate cats around the edge. The ones at the back can be made to peep over the top, depending on where the cake is placed on the table.

Cook's tip: If the chocolate hardens in the bag while you make up the cats or completing the decoration, put the bag in a warm place to melt the chocolate again.

decorations. Trace an outline then prick it on to the cake or pipe it straight on to waxed paper. Serves 10.