This recipe was probably inspired by the desperation when faced with the need/desire to produce something interesting from a few ingredients that would serve as a "party dish". These are fairly easy to make if a bit fiddly in the decorating stage, and have never yet failed to bring a smile to most kids' and adults' lips.
For the cake:
4 oz/125g soft margarine/butter
4 oz/125g sugar
4 oz self-raising flour
2 eggs
For the filling, fruit jam (traditionally strawberry) and butter-cream - for which:
4 oz/125g of butter or soft margarine
4 oz/125g icing sugar are needed.
Method
First of all make the cakes by beating the margarine with the sugar until a creamy mixture appears. Add the flour and eggs, and if the mixture is a bit stiff add some milk. Place the mixture in paper cases in small cake tins, and bake in a moderate oven (Gas Mark 3-4, around 350 d F or 180 d C). Cook for about 10-20 minutes (depending on the oven) or until the cakes are a golden brown, and feel firm and springy to touch. Remove from the oven, and set the cakes (in their paper cases) to cool on a wire rack. While you are waiting for them to cool you can make the butter-cream, by mixing together the icing sugar and the soft margarine/butter. If the icing sugar is lumpy, push it through a sieve.
When the cakes are cool to touch, slice off a thin top from each cake and cut each top in half. These will make the butterfly wings. Each small cake will appear to have a hollow now, which will be filled by a spoonful of jam and butter-cream. The two halves of the top slice of cake are then inserted at an angle, to look like wings!
Comment
The only flying these butterfly cakes are going to do is off the plate and into someone's mouth! However if you do need to keep them put them into an airtight container, and try to keep up-right. You can add variety by making a chocolate version, with the addition of a tspful of cocoa to the cake mixture and if liked add some to the butter-cream with the icing sugar.
Page Created: 16th November 2000