A deliciously easy beginning…

Here is something simple, yet delicious, to get started. Cupcakes are so satisfying, because it is so easy to make them look beautiful!

This is a recipe I compiled out of different Victoria Sponge recipes, adapting it for the cupcake and adding a special ingredient…

Ingredients:
makes 15

•  225g caster sugar
• 225g unsalted butter, softened
• 205g plain white flour
• 25g custard powder
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 4 eggs
• 4 tbsp milk
• 3 drops of vanilla essence (or to taste, depending on the strength of the essence you use)

For the topping:

• 150ml whipping cream
• 1 tsp vanilla sugar
• jam of your choice

Tips before you start: (I sometimes find that by the time I get to the “make sure you don’t” bit, I’ve already done just that!)

• take the eggs and milk out of the fridge and let them come to room temperature before you start, as cold eggs and milk can make your mixture curdle.
• Don’t over-mix the batter! The less you mix it, the lighter your cupcakes will turn out!
• For this recipe, it really is worth sifting the dry ingredients. I never used to bother with it, but this particular cupcake’s best feature is it’s lightness and every little bit helps!
• If you don’t have custard powder, you can use corn flour. The custard powder is just my personal twist, it adds a different kind of vanilla flavour than you get form the extract – and I love it!

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cream the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Sift in the flour, custard powder and baking powder, add the eggs and the milk and mix until just combined. Fill the cupcake cases until they are a good three-quarters full – you need a bit of a rise on them for the decoration. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until they are golden and your skewer comes out clean. Put on a wire rack to cool. Whip the cream until stiff, adding a little vanilla sugar to it. Once the cupcakes have cooled, carefully slice off the top so that you have a flat surface on top of the cupcake. Pipe some cream onto that surface. Cut the sliced off top in two. Bury the cut sides in the cream with the rounded sides sticking up like the wings of a butterfly. Draw a line between the wings with the jam of your choice (personal favourites: strawberry or rose). Enjoy!