Classic cakes with a twist

Fairy cakes

MAKES 12 CAKES

220g (8oz) butter (or 50/50 butter and baking margarine), softened
220g (8oz) caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 medium free-range eggs
220g (8oz) self-raising flour
4-8 tbsp full-fat milk
100g (3½oz) raspberry purée, made by blitzing fresh raspberries
100g (3½oz) mango purée, unsweetened from a tin
100g (3½oz) blueberry purée, made by blitzing fresh blueberries fresh raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, grated lime zest, etc., to decorate

For the Italian meringue buttercream

360g (12½oz) caster sugar
100ml (3½fl oz) water
6 medium free-range egg whites
500g (1lb 1oz) unsalted butter, softened

For the cakes

1 Preheat the oven to 190°C/Gas Mark 5 and put paper cases in a 12-hole muffin or cupcake tin.

2 Cream together the butter and sugar in a stand mixer. Add the vanilla extract and then the eggs, one at a time, adding a couple of spoonfuls of the flour after the first egg to help prevent the mixture curdling. Mix between additions.

3 Fold in the rest of the flour. If, once it’s beaten, the sponge batter feels too thick, ‘let it down’ with the milk. Then spoon the mixture evenly into the 12 paper cases, trying to get it straight into the bottom of the case without leaving any residue on the sides.

4 Bake for 15 minutes until lightly golden and just set. Leave to cool in the tin.

For the buttercream

1 Put the sugar with the water in a large saucepan and stir to mix. Bring to the boil on a high heat. Use a probe or sugar thermometer and keep cooking until it reaches 120°C (this is also called the soft ball stage), then remove from the heat.

2 While the sugar syrup is heating, put the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer (check the bowl and whisk attachment are very clean – scald them with boiling water if necessary and make sure that no speck of egg yolk has got into the whites). Whisk to soft peaks.

3 Keep the mixer running and pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites in a slow, steady stream. Be careful not to hit the whisk or the side of the bowl, as the sugar will set on them. Continue whisking until the meringue has cooled slightly.

4 Add the butter, a third at a time, and whisk until fully incorporated. Divide it evenly between three bowls. Stir a fruit purée into each – add half the purée first so that you can check the taste and texture. If the purée is a bit runny it may start to make the icing go soft, in which case stop there. Otherwise, you can gradually add the rest of the purée if you’d like a stronger taste.

To decorate

1 Put each flavour of icing into a piping bag (or a plastic freezer bag with the corner snipped off) and pipe a swirl of icing onto the cakes. Top with fresh fruit and decorate with grated lime zest, or toppings of your choice, if you wish.

Chocolate cake

MAKES 1 LARGE CAKE

255g (9oz) plain flour
260g (9oz) caster sugar