Fairy cakes for strapping lads.

Fairy cakes for strapping lads.

Now, why would you need such a recipe? Because it's a prompt to action and the pleasures of simple baking. This is a regular in our house with my young boys -- and, of course, everyone likes the licking best. Although I am supposed to be telling you that we shouldn't be imbibing raw eggs, by and large.

I use large muffin cases for these -- because the little cakes look more voluptuous in them. I just cooked two hundred of them for Mothering Sunday service at a local church. All golden and slightly cripsy around the frill of the case and topped with pastel-coloured icing and sweeties they looked, I might, say a picture.

To make 12-14.

Cream 250 grams of unsalted butter with 200 of caster sugar.
Add 250 of self raising flour, mix well, then add four free range medium eggs and a half teaspoon of natural vanilla essence. I use my trusty electric hand-held beater to work this in for a couple of minutes. This recipe makes a nice rich mixture and the cakes are buttery tasting.

Cook for about ten minutes in a medium hot oven. If you're not sure of yourself, remove on and poke a knife in. It should come out clean.When they are cool, just sieve a little icing sugar over them.

BUT I'm not after restraint here....so...

For the toppings, just put a teacup of icing sugar in a bowl and, very slowly, add water to make a paste. You don't want it to be too thin Add a little colour to taste -- I like the combination of very pale yellow, pink and green. Not all in one bolw: make a separate mix for each colour! Now, you can get 'natural' colours, but I cannot promise.

Before the icing dries, add little smarties or jelly tots. If you were to make a huge tableful of these, in their pastel-hued prettiness, it would make a great treat for a group of people, I think. Or even, if you just put one lovely cake --get some crystallised violets if you want to bring tears to my eyes-- into a small box and trim it up a bit, you're providing a fine treat for someone. It's along the lines of one of my favourite presents ever one Christmas: a large clear glass bauble on gold thread, packed in white tissue paper in a little gold box. But I would also have liked the cake.