Week 9 - Butterfly Cakes

How are we all this week? Hope you were all nice to your Mummies on Sunday, did anyone bake a cake? I decided to create a Greek inspired feast from the April issue of Olive magazine for my Mum. It started with a halloumi & fennel salad, with roast lamb, spinach, potatoes & butter beans for main course. Dessert was a orangey doughnut type thing with Greek yogurt, slices of orange, honey & walnuts. It was a big success, although there was enough garlic in it to ward off a pack of vampires! I'd recommend checking it out, especially if you are entertaining over Easter? The same issue of Olive magazine also inspired me to start writing my manifesto for cake, but more about that next week!

So, I promised a retro treat this week & here they are, Butterfly cakes! They remind me of parties I used to go to when I was a kid in the 80's, so I have to say I felt a little nostalgic making these, I had a strange urge to create a cheese & pineapple hedgehog to go with them. These are dead simple to make but look so pretty & make the perfect treat for afternoon tea.

100g butter
100g caster sugar
2 eggs
Few drops vanilla essence
100g self raising flour

For the filling
85g icing sugar
35g butter
Dash of milk
Strawberry jam

1. Cream together the butter & sugar until fluffy, then beat in the egg & vanilla essence. Finally fold in the flour

2. Place 8 paper cases into a bun tin & divide the mixture evenly between them. Bake in the oven at 190c/GM5 for around 15-20 minutes until well risen & just turning golden brown

3. To make the butter cream filling cream together the butter & icing sugar, add a dash of milk to help it combine

4. When the cakes are cooled, take a sharp knife & cut a circle out of the top of the cake. Use the knife on an angle so you cut out a cone shape, cut this piece in half & place to one side.

5. Fill the hole with a small scoop of jam, then a dollop of butter cream. Finally arrange the pieces on top to make the wings. Finish them off with a dusting of icing sugar.

For the full 80's experience I think butterfly cakes are best enjoyed with some retro fizzy pop, cherryade is my particular favourite! Now I'm off to dig out my NOW tapes, 'I should be so lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky...' Till next week...Rebecca

p.s. Rebecca Bakes Cakes now has a Facebook fan page, just search Rebecca Bakes Cakes!