Fairy Cakes
125g fresh fruit, such as strawberries, peaches, apples, pears or bananas
125g soft margarine
125g caster sugar
125g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
1 tsp natural vanilla extract or cinnamon or ground mixed spice
Icing:
250g icing sugar
3 tbsp fruit juice or water
edible food colouring
sweets or tubes of writing icing, to decorate
assorted sweets
1. Ask an adult to preheat the oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5 and chop the fruit into small pieces with a knife on the chopping board. Wash your hands, then put the paper cases in the bun trays.
2. Put the margarine and sugar in a large bowl. Sift in the flour and baking powder. Break in the eggs and add the vanilla extract, cinnamon or ground mixed spice.
3. Beat with a wooden spoon until evenly mixed – the mixture should fall easily off the spoon when lightly tapped against the side of the bowl.
4. Stir the fruit into the cake mixture, and spoon into the cake cases, using a teaspoon. Ask an adult to cook them towards the centre of the oven for 18-20 minutes until risen, golden and springy to the touch.
5. Ask an adult to remove trays from the oven. Cool slightly, then lift out with a palette knife. Transfer to a cooling rack until cold.
6. To decorate, sift the icing sugar into a bowl and add the fruit juice or water a little at a time. Mix to a thick icing. Add food colouring, or leave half of the icing white and colour the remaining half.
7. Spoon a little icing on to each cake and spread with a knife. Leave to set. Decorate by sticking on sweets or drawing funny faces with writing icing.