[adapted from recipe that my 4½ old daughter brought from school]

INGREDIENTS

for the muffins

• 2 large or 3 smaller eggs
• ½ cup golden caster sugar
• ½ bar unsalted butter – 125g (melted and cooled down)
• 1½ cup self rising flour

for vanilla butter cream

• ¼ bar unsalted butter – about 70g
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 2 pinches of fine sea salt
• ¼ cup full fat milk
• ½ tsp vanilla extract or 1 tbs vanilla sugar
• few drops of food colouring – optional (I used natural pink food colouring made of beetroot juice)
• sprinkles – optional

EQUIPMENT

• baking tray for 12 muffins
• 12 paper muffin cases
• electric whisk
• piping syringe or just a knife

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (356°F).
2. Whisk eggs and sugar until fluffy, slowly fold in flour and melted butter and mix well.
3. Scoop out mixture into muffin cases and bake in the oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.
4. Remove from the muffin tray and leave to cool down.
5. When muffins are completely cooled down cream together all ingredients for vanilla butter cream except food colouring and sprinkles.
6. Once butter cream is smooth add colouring gradually to achieve desired colour.
7. Top each cake with generous portion of the cream, spread it nicely with a knife or piping syringe, decorate with some sprinkles and and place in the fridge for couple of hours.

This recipe make 12 cupcakes.

NOTES

When making muffins add few drops of milk if dough is too thick to scoop out easily.
Fairy cakes can be easily stored overnight in air tight container in the fridge.
Replace spotty sprinkles with heart ones for Valentine’s Day cupcakes.