Recipe of The Week!

I really love baking and cooking - especially baking! It's a real passion of mine. I've decided that I'll try and have a 'Recipe of The Week' to share with you all, be it a pudding, cake or savory dish.

So this week I have chosen fairy cakes which I found in Negella Lawsons : Nigella Express

They are really quick, easy and can look great with a bit of decorating!

So here is the recipe :

Ingredients:

125g soft butter

125g sugar

2 eggs

125g plain flour

1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1 teaspoon of almond or vanilla extract

Icing sugar

food colouring of your choice

Method:

Oven 200 C/gas mark 6 . Line a 12 cake tray with cupcake holders

Cream the butter and sugar either in a bowl by hand or with an electric mixture.

Once light and fluffy, add the eggs one at a time with a bit of the flour (to prevent curdling) mixing as you go.

Mix in the rest of the flour, adding the bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and then the vanilla or almond extract. Mix well

Spoon the batter into the cupcake holders

Put them in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cupcakes are cooked and golden on the top. A good way to check is getting a wooden or metal skewer and dipping it in to the cakes - if it comes out clean then they are ready (this technique can be used when baking most cakes)

Once they are all cooled :

If you want to make butterfly cakes : cut out the mounded peak - or dig out a disk, cut it in half. Fill the holes with butter cream (butter and sugar mixed together into a creamy texture) then fill the holes placing the 'wings' on top.

Cupcakes : make a thick icing sugar mixture with any food colouring of your choice. Decorate with edible decorations of your choice!

ENJOY!