Creme Egg Frosted Brownies

Presumably if you're reading this post then you've found this post  via a chocolatey hashtag, meaning you're in search of tasty, calorific inspiration, so welcome, friend. Please come on in.

Each weekend I try to have a bake off, something that is impressive visually, or tasty or that makes my house smell heavenly - if I reach all three, then I've had a truly successful day. Today was that successful day. A day where Cadbury's Creme Eggs and Hummingbird Bakery's Frosted Brownies came together in a beautiful, unspeakable-amount-of-calories-but-such-great-fun, unison.

I'm about to share my recipe with you, which differs a little from Hummingbirds original recipe and, from what I can see, is far simpler than recipes I found online which insist you used the dreaded bain-marie and sift all ingredients. Show me a modern woman who still believes that a microwave doesn't do the same job as a bain-marie in half the time and that things actually need sifting and I'll show you my resting bitch face. A face which shows my disbelief and disinterest.

There is one bit of advice I will give you for these brownies, a thought which crossed my mind in this exact way while stood in the supermarket earlier on, (while shovelling enough Creme Eggs into my basket to begin to wonder whether I should have chosen a trolley instead and loudly exclaiming that I have a lot of cousins to think about for Easter, so people wouldn't believe each one was for my own purposes), you're baking Creme Egg brownies, CREME EGG ONES. One, two or even four Creme Eggs simply won't do, we don't want to hint at Creme Eggs, we want to explode Creme Eggs all over whichever unlucky, clean plate we have chosen to eat it off. We want Easter all up in and around our mouths and we don't want to explain, worry or doubt it.

Please use no less than ten Creme Eggs for this fondanty, chocolately dream, blame whatever happens to the middle of your body on me. I'm alright with that.

So, the recipe. Firstly, you will need:

For the brownie:

10 CREME EGGS (incase not already noted)
5 normal boring eggs
120g plain flour
100g cacao powder (I used raw, organic cacao powder because I had to give a nod to my health somewhere in there.)
250g salted butter (the unsalted butter thing is also a myth. Next time you crack open a recipe book, have a look at the ingredients, you'll often find unsalted butter and salt listed as two of the ingredients.)
30g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

For the frosting:

200g icing sugar
75g salted butter
30g cacao powder
150g cream cheese

Here comes my slap dash, Jamie Oliver (minus the lisp) method, which saves you a bunch of time and gets you a whopping slice on your plate an awful lot quicker.

Head your oven to 170 degrees (based on a fan oven) and line a baking tray (33 x 23 x 5cm) with greaseproof paper. If it doesn't fit, which it never does, and you don't want ugly corners, then just cut a square into each corner and you'll find that the paper sits perfectly.

Beat ALL ingredients, aside from the Creme Eggs, together in a bowl until there are no unsightly lumpy bits, it takes a good three minutes for this to happen, don't be put off.

Once this is done, spoon all your mixture into the baking tray and flatten off, ensuring the majority is even. Don't stress too much about this, as it warms up it flattens off anyway.

Bake for 15 minutes and take this opportunity to have some fun cutting up Creme Eggs, ready for brownie sacrifice.

Once your 15 minutes are up, take the brownie out and push your Creme Egg halves into the top of it. Bake for a further 15 minutes.

Once done, leave to cool completely before beating all your frosting ingredients together and spreading over the top of your brownie, like the ultimate chocolate spread on the ultimate chocolatey toast.

Cut up and impress everyone. You will make new friends with a slice of this brownie. Cake makes you popular.

Enjoy!

99p Cornet Cupcakes

Tomorrow afternoon I am meeting someone for the first time, who I need to leave a particularly good impression with. I need to ooze confidence, radiate maturity and remain likeable on all accounts; instead I'm hiding behind cupcakes, which look like 99p cornets, in the desperate hope that I at least manage the likeable part. People can't help but like those who supply them with free cake.
     I found out that Cadbury's, Flake is this ladies favourite chocolate bar of choice, so I ad-libbed a little by introducing the chocolate sponge and vanilla buttercream in order to create cakey versions of everyone's old fashioned favourite, the well-established 99er.
     I placed these gorgeous little cakes in white and brown cupcake cases so as not to detract from the Mr Whippy visual effect! You can, of course, decorate them as you wish - I'm sure a few hundreds-and-thousands would only enhance your gorgeous cakey cornets!
     So, wish me as much luck as you can spare, and lets hope she enjoys these quirky little cakes which are, undeniably, the crumbliest, flakiest, most-beautifulist little cakes in the whole world. 

Ingredients (Makes 12)

For the Sponge:

100g plain flour
20g cocoa powder
140g caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
40g butter
120ml whole milk
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract 

For the Icing

250g icing sugar
80g butter
25ml semi skimmed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

• Simply combine your sponge mixture together in a large mixing bowl and preheat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3).

• Once thoroughly mixed, divide your mixture between twelve preprepared cupcake cases in a muffin tray. (Ensure you only fill your cupcake cases half full, otherwise your mixture will spill over the top of your cases when baking.)

• Place in the oven and cook for 25 minutes. 

• Remove and leave to cool completely. 

• Once cool, combine all your icing ingredients together in a bowl. Beat until fluffy. 

• Frost and decorate your cakes as you wish.

So, with a sprinkle of hope, a teaspoon of excitement and an evening full of outfit planning and general unnecessary fuss, I will say goodbye. I hope you all have a fun time creating these summery, nostalgic little cakes, they're a small taste of everyone's childhood.
     As you pass yourself one of these charming cakes, don't be embarrassed to go as far as to say "99er is it, my love?" in a gentle, lilting grandfatherly West Country accent. It adds to the general ice-cream van ambience, I promise. 

Enjoy, K x

Valentine's Raspberry Confetti Cake

I am one of the few women you will ever meet who is deadly serious when they say they don't like Valentine's Day. 
     I've never appreciated the obvious tackiness of it all: heart balloons that deflate too quickly, boxes of chocolate I won't eat for fear of them never leaving my hips and being given bouquets of luridly coloured flowers, by misinformed men, that clash with the monochrome décor in my bedroom.  
    Despite being in relationships, I choose to spend Valentine's Day with my best friend every year, getting horribly drunk, without a love heart or neon pink flower petal in sight. 


     However, now I'm taking my cake making quite seriously, I decided I should probably bake something for Valentine's Day, seeing as lots of people do seem to rather enjoy it.
     I'm more than slightly ashamed to say that I surprised myself with how horribly glittery, heart-filled and smushy I became. Apparently the one thing that can melt my icy exterior and stony heart, and in turn, make me a sickening 'hearts-and-flowers' kind of girl, is cake. I'm not quite sure why I'm so surprised...
     This cake is a raspberry sponge with cream cheese frosting, which you can decorate however you please. I planned on topping it solely with raspberries, however, as you can see, this plan soon changed and became just a few raspberries and far more heart sprinkles than I care to admit. So decorate as you wish, I won't judge you now mine looks like romantic carnage.

For the Sponge: 

350g butter
350g caster sugar
6 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract 
450g plain flour
2 tbsp + 2 tsp baking powder
300ml soured cream
250g fresh raspberries
(One 25cm ring mould, greased.)

• Preheat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3)
• After you have whisked together the butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, flour, baking powder and soured cream, spoon in your raspberries and mix well using a wooden spoon. 
• After this, pour the mixture into your preprepared ring mould and place in the oven for 40 minutes. 
• Once your cake has been baking for the full 40 minutes, test with a cake skewer. If your skewer comes out clean, leave to cool completely. If it doesn't place back in the oven for 5 minute instalments, testing after each one. 
• Leave to cool completely on a cooling rack, do not remove the cake from the tin until it is completely cool. 

For the Frosting:

600g icing sugar
100g butter
250g cream cheese 

• Simply whisk all your ingredients together for around 5 minutes, or until your mixture is light and fluffy.
• Once your cake is completely cool, spoon on your frosting and smooth over the cake. (Preferably using a standard palette knife.) 
• Once your cake is evenly covered in frosting, decorate it as you wish. Having raspberries on the outside looks beautiful and slightly rustic, but feel free to add whatever else you like.

     You'll be surprised how allowing your creativity to run free, also allows the hidden romantic in you to run far freer than you would usually allow it to. So have some fun with this loved-up little cake because; as the English proverb goes: "If you can't beat them, join them."

Best of luck with your amorous baking,

Enjoy, K x

Merry Cakemas!

I would like to wish you all a very merry, cupcakey Christmas! Thank you for all your support this year!

Enjoy, K x

An Electrician Frosts a Cupcake

My younger brother, Max, began an electrical apprenticeship last year, and has since become a lot more 'blokey.' This has manifested in daily pub trips, calling lots of people (girls and boys alike) "mate", and eating more red meat than is healthy for normal humans. 

Recently, one evening, | somehow managed to prize him out of the aforementioned 'pub trip', and got him frosting and decorating chocolate orange cupcakes - here is the rather amusing outcome.

I proudly introduce the first video upload for Kate's Cakes and Cupcakes, proving that making a pretty little cake is within anyone's reach, 'An Electrician Frosts a Cupcake'. 

Enjoy, K x :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6PCQ_HvqxM

Bonfire Night Cupcakes

Bonfire Night isn't usually associated with celebratory cakes and I firmly believe it should be, so here they are. Little pops, bursts and flashes of chocolate and vanilla, firework themed miniature cakes - you can't say fairer than that!

     I decided to use some rainbow cases that had a slightly retro feel, as I always relate Bonfire Night to being a child. The mixture of these cases and the firework display decorations has left me feeling extremely nostalgic...and full (I am after all, my own taster and critic, along with my other dutiful, family assistants!) 

     I decorated each cake differently, with their own 5th of November themed scenes! Each cake has at least one "Magic Star" chocolate and then as many gold/silver stars as I could squeeze on. I did, of course, leave just enough room for some of my inevitable, but more than necessary, cupcake glamour - edible glitter. 

This left each cake chocolaty, sparkly and with a faint galactic swirl of gold and silver. What more could any one cupcake consumer ask for?

     I decided to spread my icing on with a palette knife instead of my usual piping nozzle and bag, to give myself a flat canvas for all my miniature scenes. The cases I used are made by my beloved Kitchen Craft 'Sweetly Does It' range, and the sprinkles I used are, naturally, from "The Happy Cupcake Company" - Bath.

So, here's my recipe:

(For the Sponge)

120g plain flour

140g caster sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

40g salted butter

120ml semi skimmed milk

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

(For the Frosting)

300g icing sugar

100 salted butter

40g cocoa powder

40ml semi skimmed milk

(For the Decorating Icing)

If you don't wish to make your own decorating icing, you can simply buy white writing icing from any supermarket! If you're feeling particularly creative, follow this recipe and then use a thin icing nozzle to decorate each cake, as you wish!)

60g icing sugar

20g butter

6ml semi-skimmed milk

1 drop of vanilla extract

• When cooking your sponge, simply heat the oven to 170ºC (Gask Mark 3) and cook for 20 minutes. Then remove and leave to cool completely before frosting your cakes!

Have as much fun as you like with your cakes - the more innovate your designs are, the better.

      hope you all have a lovely Bonfire Night!

Enjoy, K x

Cupcakes Under Construction!

For the last few weeks, my house has looked like the a scene from Pearl Harbour, due to our sitting room, kitchen and dining room being entirely reconstructed.

On multiple mornings I have been woken up by deafeningly loud drilling, or walls being knocked down instead of the soothing sounds of my iPod. Trading waking up soothed and well-rested, for blistering headaches at times that feel like the middle of the night, has not been my idea of a good time.

This has also meant that my twice-weekly bake off's have been forced to happen at night, after the various workmen leave, which adds a general feeling of espionage to my baking. The various builders, carpenters, carpet layers, electricians and plumbers that have traipsed through my house, have all become rather accustomed to the daily sweet fixes that follow the morning after. 

The image of burly builders, sooty electricians and plumbers with pencils behind their ears, eating tiny sparkly cakes has started to become a regular source of amusement for me and I thought it would share it with you all.

I am consequently now on a one woman mission to  make the construction trade swap burgers and coke for pretty cupcakes and civilised cups of tea! So far it appears to be a great success - what an adaptable bunch!

Enjoy, K x

Galaxy 'Minstrel' Cupcakes

My very best friend was coming home from uni today for her reading week and, being the dutiful friend that I am, I decided to make her some cupcakes using her favourite chocolate - Galaxy!
     Emily is a fellow university student, so naturally the combination of these cakes being both free AND her favourite chocolate meant they brought her untold amounts of happiness!
     I decided to use a simple chocolate sponge, then infuse the buttercream frosting with a gluttonous amount of Galaxy chocolate...
     To decorate, I used some Kitchen Craft - Sweetly Does It cupcake cases and I then simply decorated each cake with one 'Minstrel' and some of my compulsory edible glitter. For girls and boys alike, glitter is a wonderful thing, so don't be afraid to glitz up your cakey creations!


Now, for the recipe :)

(For the Sponge - Makes 18)


200g plain flour
40g cocoa powder
280g caster sugar
3 tsp baking powder
80g butter
240ml semi skimmed milk
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract



(For the Frosting)

250g butter 
150g icing sugar
250g Galaxy
2 tbsp vanilla essence

• Simply preheat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and bake your cakes for 20-25 minutes.
• Once your cakes are cool, begin melting your chocolate in a bain-marie before adding it to the rest of your buttercream ingredients. 
• Frost, decorate and eat!

Ensure you devour these with a bigger cup of tea than you would usually opt for - I insist you treat yourself to some quality time alone with these sinfully chocolatey cakes!

Enjoy, K x

Triple Chocolate & Strawberry Temptation

This tower of chocolatey temptation consists of two light, chocolate sponges sandwiched together by a generous layer of chocolate buttercream and strawberry jam. I then gave it a layer of buttercream all over the cake and decorated it with homemade chocolate strawberries. 
     So as not to lie to my readers I will admit, it is highly calorific...however, it is also hellishly gooey, subtly fruity and simply gorgeous. 
     Although chocolate strawberries are a super easy thing to do, I have one tiny tip to simplify it even further! When making your chocolate strawberries, ensure you add a tsp of sunflower oil to your melted chocolate before dipping your strawberries in as this helps the mixture not to become too solid once refrigerated.
     Once you have done this, refrigerate them on a baking tray covered in greaseproof paper as this makes the process of removing your strawberries easier later!

So, here's how you make your very own 'Triple Chocolate & Strawberry Temptation' cake!

(For the Chocolate Strawberries) 

Roughly 400g of strawberries (use more/less depending on how heavily decorate you want your cake to be.)

Roughly 300g of milk chocolate (again, use more/less depending on how many strawberries you use.)

1 tsp sunflower oil

• Simply melt your chocolate in a bain-marie, until it is completely melted. 
• Once melted, add the sunflower oil.
• Dip each strawberry into the chocolate until completely covered and place on a baking tray, lined with greaseproof paper.
• Place in the fridge until it's time to decorate.

(For the Sponge)

300g plain flour
60g cocoa powder
320g caster sugar
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
120g butter
360ml semi skimmed milk 
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

(For the Chocolate Frosting)

600g icing sugar
200g butter
80g cocoa powder
80ml semi skimmed milk

• For this recipe I used two 20cm cake tins which I greased and lined - this is essential for even cooking and makes them so much easier to remove once cooked and cooled.
• Simply mix all your ingredients together and cook at 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) for 35-40 minutes.
• Once cooked, remove and leave to cool completely (this should take around 1 - 1 1/2 hours!) Then spread your chocolate frosting on one half of the cake. On the other half, spread the strawberry jam, then sandwich together. 
• Then frost the entire cake before decorating with your pre-made chocolate strawberries! 

Super simple and gluttonously perfect!

Enjoy, K x

My Cupcake Toolbox

This is just a quick post about the cupcake "stationary" I use! I read a blog post similar to this one when I started making my cakes and it made everything seem a lot simpler!

First of all: the icing nozzles I use. I use the three bigger plastic ones (left) more often and save the small silver ones (right) for more delicate decoration. I got the big plastic ones from The Happy Cupcake Company (as we all know...it's the best baking place in the whole world, so why go anywhere else?)  The silver ones I bought from Amazon. They can all be bought relatively cheaply but, as a general rule of thumb, the plastic nozzles work better with disposable piping bags!

Next, the piping bags. I buy and use disposable plastic piping bags off Amazon in bulk where a pack of 20 cost £1.15! ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/Classikool-Branded-Savoy-Disposable-Piping/dp/B004QYHF86/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1350340012&sr=8-1 )

     This is largely because 1.) I can't be bothered with washing out a re-usable material piping bag...lazy cupcake chef that I am and 2.) because it seems more sanitary - being also the OCD cupcake chef that I am!

I hope you have enjoyed this sneaky peak into my cupcake toolbox - it's among my most treasured possessions! It's always jam packed full of gorgeous cake cases, intricate decorations, nozzles and lots of other fun little things.

     I love to give all my cakes little personalities, so I think to think of this box as a wardrobe, packed full of fun outfits!

I hope you have all found this blog entry useful and not sinfully boring!

Happy Baking,

Enjoy, K x

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Tomorrow I have to give a presentation to the rest of my third year class, naturally - to get them all on side - I decided to make them some cupcakes, and who doesn't like a simple red velvet? The thinking twenteenagers cake choice!

     I decided to simply use some red polka dot cases (which are made by "Sweetly Does It" - http://www.kitchencraft.co.uk/catalogue/range.aspx?gid=41675&pg=SZji0DjTvs1arL8U3%2bYCFw%3d%3d ) and some edible silver glitter to decorate. I have no doubt that the boys in my class will just LOVE them...

     I decided to frost half the cakes with a star formation (a little like giant iced gems) and the other half, I frosted with my signature swirl. This makes half the batch positively slimming for those who are weight conscious...I promise!

     The recipe I used is a simple variation on Hummingbird's classic recipe, so it's undeniably gorgeous!

(For the Sponge) Makes 24:

120g butter

300g caster sugar

2 eggs

40g cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

80ml red food colouring

240ml semi skimmed milk

300g plain flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

3 tsp white vinegar

(For the Frosting)

600g icing sugar

100g butter

250g cream cheese (e.g Philadelphia)

• Simply heat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and bake for 20-25 minutes.
• Once cool, mix all your frosting ingredients together and decorate as you wish (glitter is preferable, always.) 

Enjoy, K x

"I Love London" Themed Chocolate Sponge Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting

This week I decided to go back to basics and make some super simple little cakes and 'go to town' on the decoration side of things! So, I opted for a chocolate sponge (who doesn't like that?) and some super sweet, vanilla buttercream frosting!
     I bought my decorations from 'The Happy Cupcake Company' (http://www.thehappycupcakecompany.co.uk) in Bath which, as we all know by now, is my favourite shop in Bath and does make me a happy cupcake baker! I used some London themed cases which each had red London buses round the outside and a Beefeater guard on the bottom (and yes, I shamelessly used and enjoyed the stereotypes...) I then sprinkled gold stars on the top and placed an edible, sparkly red heart on each - being the glitter loving lady that I am, happiness was then achieved.
     This was the recipe I used for these gorgeous cakes which were a vision in red, white and blue (with a touch of gold...)

(For The Sponge - Makes 18)

100g plain flour
20g cocoa powder
140g caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
40g butter
120ml semi skimmed milk
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

(For The Frosting)

250g icing sugar
80g butter
25ml semi skimmed milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

• Simply preheat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and cook your cakes for 20-25 minutes.
• Once cool , mix all your vanilla frosting ingredients together and then frost and decorate to your heart's content!

Enjoy, K x

Macmillan Coffee Morning

On Friday 28th of September I held a Macmillan Coffee Morning at my house, in memory of my Granddad, who I lost to cancer in September 2011. 

I spent the whole of Thursday covered in cake mix (including a slither of cream cheese frosting on the end of my nose that I only got pointed out to me at the very end of the day.) Alas, six hours of baking, one ring cake, a batch of sugar cookies, dozens of marshmallow twizzlers and two tiers of Terry's Chocolate Orange and marshmallow cupcakes later, I was prepared for a cake-filled Friday morning. 

The overall showstopper of the morning was the blueberry ring cake, with everyone having more than one helping. It is a recipe based on one from the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook, however I tend to use a lot more blueberries than suggested, both in the sponge and for decoration. This is because I think they enhance everything and, due to their antioxidant properties, they also make a huge slice of cake seem a little healthier. However, If you don't want to use as many, you don't have to.

Here's the recipe:

(For the Sponge)

350g butter

350g caster sugar

6 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

450g plain flour

2 tbsp + 2 tsp baking powder

280ml soured cream

250g fresh blueberries

(25cm ring mould, greased.)

(For the Frosting)

600g icing sugar

100g butter

250g cream cheese (Such as 

Philadelphia)

Around 250-300g of blueberries, to 

decorate.

• Heat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and ensure you have a well greased ring mould (works beautifully for this cake). 
• Beat all your sponge ingredients together, until light and fluffy.
• Bake for 40 minutes. Skewer your cake at it’s deepest point, if the skewer comes out clean (with no cake mixture on it) then leave to cool. If not, place back into the oven for five minute intervals, until cooked through.
• Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely, before removing from the mould.
• Once totally cool, beat all frosting ingredients together and use a palette knife or spatula to ensure that your cake is completely iced.
• Once frosted, spread the blueberries evenly over the top of the cake to decorate.

Enjoy, K x

P.S - The morning was a great success and it was lovely to see so many familiar faces, all from different walks of life, come together to support my chosen charity. Despite the current economic climate, between only twenty people we managed to raise a truly overwhelming £144.28, over the course of two hours. 

It was a truly heartwarming morning and one my Granddad would certainly loved to have been a part of - he was a fellow cake lover after all.

Cupcake Based on "The Purple One" (Quality Street)

This recipe is relatively complicated, simply because for such a tiny cake, there's a lot of aspects that go in to getting it  perfectly caramelly/chocolatey and to the Quality Street ideal!   If you are creating this cupcake for a nut allergy sufferer, leave off the hazelnut on the top, as there is no other nut products involved in the making!
     I decided to simply encase my cakes in purple foil cases to give the look of "The Purple One" from the beloved Quality Street tin! I then garnished with a drizzle of caramel and one hazelnut, as is found in the centre of the chocolate.

Recipe - Makes 24:

(For The Chocolate Sponge) 

100g plain flour

20g cocoa powder

140g caster sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

40g butter

120ml semi skimmed milk

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

• Preheat oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and cook for 20-25 minutes. Remove and leave to cool.

(For The Caramel Sauce)

For this you will need a large, heavy bottomed pan.

200g light brown sugar

200g butter

180ml thick cream

• Melt the sugar and butter together in a pan until they are both dissolved. Stir regularly to avoid burning. 
• Once they are both melted take off the heat and stir in your cream until you have a gorgeous, thick caramel cream. 
• Set aside as this will be used for both your frosting and a final caramel drizzle.

(For The Caramel Frosting)

225g butter

125g icing sugar

2 tbsp vanilla essence

225ml preprepared caramel sauce

• Whisk these all together, you may need slightly more icing sugar depending on the density of the cream you used, so just add until your consistency is correct :)
• Once you have done this, use your remaining caramel sauce to drizzle over each cake before placing a hazelnut on the top. 

They're gorgeous,

Enjoy, K x

Classic Victoria Sponge

What better way to end our most patriotic summer to date, than with a traditional yummy slice of British, "Victoria Sponge" cake? (Clue: there is no better way.)
     This is a super simple recipe and how you present it is totally up to you. I simply added a piped buttercream heart to the top which encased a small, chocolate silver dragée and a simple dusting with icing sugar.
     If you prefer a Victoria Sandwich instead (minus the buttercream and simply use the jam!)


Recipe (For The Sponge)

• 200g caster sugar
• 200g softened butter
• 4 eggs
• 200g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder 
• 2 tbsp semi skimmed milk

(For the vanilla buttercream - if required)

250g icing sugar

80g butter

25ml semi skimmed milk

A couple of drops of vanilla extract.

• Ensure you have properly prepared your cake tins (x2 20cm sandwich tins) with butter and greaseproof paper. Then heat your oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and cook for 20 minutes, before removing and leaving to cool.
• Add whichever jam you like to one of your sponge (I favour raspberry and the tanginess it brings to the cake, but strawberry is gorgeous too!) Then spread your buttercream onto the opposing sponge base and sandwich together.

Super easy and super delicious!

Enjoy, K x

Baileys Cupcakes

Sometimes something is created in the kitchen that there's just no bettering and I’m fairly certain that it's these. They're super boozy, irresistibly smooth and packed full of what I now believe to be the true, unfaltering Irish charm.

To decorate, I used ten green paper cases and ten gold foil cases, each decorated simply with just one edible gold star. This made the cakes look rich in Irish colours with the simple glint of the gold star on the very top to add something quirky and special.

Feel free to keep adding Baileys to the frosting mix until your happy it's the right amount for your tastes, but be aware that as you add more liquid you will have to add more icing sugar, so make sure you have lots of both. 

Here's how I made them...

(For The Sponge - Makes 20) 

130g self raising flour

130g caster sugar

130g butter

10g cocoa powder

3 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp Baileys  

(For The Frosting)

375g icing sugar

10g cocoa powder

125g butter

60ml Baileys  

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

• These are super simple, just heat your 

oven to 170ºC (Gas Mark 3) and cook

 for 15-18 minutes!

• Once cool, simply mix all your frosting 

ingredients together and decorate as 

you please!

Enjoy, K x