The smaller, British version of the American cupcake and the newest felt food sculpture to be listed in my little shops!
Often the stuff of childhood tea and birthday parties the fairy cake also has a place in adult British foods...oftentimes richer and darker and usually (at least in my family's case) containing chocolate and a hint of liquor...so I had to start a new sculpture collection of more decadent adult British Cream Tea fairy cakes!
This cherry chocolate fairy cake is reminiscent of the trays of fairy cakes I baked for my Aunt's 60th this year...rich chocolate cake filled with big plain chocolate chunks and a creme de cassis centre, covered with thick glossy brown icing dribbing over the cases and topped with fresh dark red cherries complete with their long, curving stalks. The stuff of dreams!!
1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and line a fairy cake tin with 12 liners.
2. Mix the sugar, flour, cocoa and salt in a large bowl.
3. In a jug whisk the eggs, milk, oil, vanilla extract and creme de cassis until smooth then beat into the dry ingredients, a bit at a time, until all ingredients are combined.
4. Divide amoungst the liners and bake in the centre of the oven for 20-22 minutes. Transfer the fairy cakes to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. Put the chocolate, water and butter into a heat proof jug, place in a small saucepan, fill the saucepan with water until half the jug in submerged and heat gently until the chocolate is melted.
6. Put the icing sugar in a bowl and pour in the chocolate mixture, stirring until glossy and thick.
7. Drizzle the icing over the fairy cakes, smoothing with a warm palate knife and top each with a cherry (or a raspberry, blackberry or strawberry!)
British Cream Tea: Delicious British Felt Food Sculpture
