Butterfly Cakes
Little nostalgic cupcakes, with a soft sponge, sweet buttercream and two little "wings" on top.
PRINT RECIPE
Servings: 12 cakes
INGREDIENTS
- 115 g Soft Margarine (or Butter) (at room temperature)
- 115 g Caster Sugar
- 2 Free-range Eggs (at room temperature; see Egg Size note below)
- 115 g Self-raising Flour (see Self-raising Flour note below)
- ½ tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Lemon Extract (optional)
For the Buttercream
- 100 g Block Margarine or Butter (at room temperature)
- 200 g Icing Sugar
- ½ tsp Lemon Extract (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C for fan-assisted ovens, Gas Mark 4 or 350°F) and line a 12-hole muffin tray with fairy cake cases. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and
caster sugar until light and fluffy in colour and texture. Add the lemon extract (if using) and mix through. - Add the eggs one at a time, making sure each is mixed through before adding the next. If the mixture begins to curdle, add a spoonful of your measured flour to help it bind.
- Sift in the flour and baking powder, then gently fold together to create a batter.
- Spoon the batter into your prepared fairy cake cases - about a tablespoon into each - filling them about half-full.
- Bake your cakes in your preheated oven for about 10-15 minutes, until they are risen, golden in colour, and a skewer inserted comes out clean.
- Once cool enough to touch, transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Meanwhile, prepare your buttercream.
For the Buttercream
- In a large bowl, cream together the margarine/butter and
icing sugar , and lemon extract (if using). If the buttercream is too stiff, you can add a splash of milk. - Using a knife, cut a small circle from the top of your cakes at a slight angle, so you end up with a little domed disk of cake. Cut this in half down the middle, giving you two little semi-circles.
- Pipe or spread the buttercream into the circle cavity before placing your semi-circles on top of the buttercream to resemble little wings.
- Dust with
icing sugar to finish.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
All my recipes are developed using a digital scale and the metric system (grams and millilitres). Cup measurements are available as a conversion but these, unfortunately, won't always be as accurate. For best results, I always recommend baking with a digital scale.
RECIPE NOTES:
Egg Size: When it comes to eggs, I always buy mixed-weight free-range eggs. Generally, egg size doesn't make a huge difference in most baking, unless you are using sizes that lean towards the extremes. If you're unsure which eggs to use, I recommend medium eggs in the UK, which are roughly equivalent to large eggs in the US. That's what this recipe has been tested with.
Self-raising Flour: Don't have self-raising flour? For this recipe, simply whisk together 115g (¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon) plain flour and 1½ teaspoons baking powder instead. If you bake regularly, you can also make a larger batch to keep in your baking cupboard. For full instructions, cup conversions and answers to common questions, see my Self-raising Flour Ingredient Guide.
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