Stand the 2 loaves up vertically and carve them into Francis’ body. Use the extra pieces of cake to create Francis’ head, ears and tail. Attach the body and head together with toothpicks.

Mix the vanilla buttercream with a few drops of black food colouring to create a grey colour. Coat the cake in a thin layer of buttercream, then attach the ears and tail, and coat those in a thin layer of buttercream as well.

Coat Francis’ snout in a thicker layer of buttercream, and use a knife to apply it smoothly to mimic short hair.

Place the remaining buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a star-shaped piping tip. Pipe small star shapes onto Francis’ legs, arms and body. Add a few extra drops of black food colouring to the buttercream and pipe the buttercream onto the head, ears and tails in a swirly pattern. The swirly pattern will mimic the curly fur that poodles have.

Stick the chocolate chips onto the cake for Francis’ eyes, and make a nose out of the melted dark chocolate using this technique (recipe here). Stick the nose onto the cake and enjoy!