Butterfly Chandelier as featured in Making Magazine

For this months gorgeous Making Magazine - Naturally Beautiful I made a butterfly chandelier. The idea came about when me and my little sister were discussing ideas for decorating her wedding venue. You will have to wait and see if we use it at her wedding later next month!

This months Making Magazine - Naturally Beautiful is full of wonderful makes inspired by nature. In this issue there is a Q&A with the gorgeous Hannah Read-Baldrey and she shows you how to make pretty bow knickers from her Girls' Night In book.

Pick up your copy of Making- Naturally Beautiful in WHsmith, M&S and selected newsagents now!



Butterfly Punch from Tonic Studios
Gingham ribbon from Jane Means

Have a sweet day!

Raspberry & Cream butterfly adorned cupcakes

Dr Oetker recently sent me some Wafer Butterflies, which enable bakers of all abilities to instantly make simple cupcakes and desserts more colourful and beautiful. With guests due round for afternoon tea on Saturday I decided on Saturday morning to quickly rustle up some raspberry and cream cupcakes in Jane Means pretty striped cupcake cups and adorn them with the pretty wafer butterflies.

Here's how...

Gluten-free Raspberry & Cream butterfly adorned cupcakes (makes 13 cake cup cupcakes)

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs
• 75g gluten-free self raising flour
• 75g gluten-free plain flour
• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 150g (2/3 cup)caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 60ml(1/4 cup) milk
• 13 frozen raspberries

Cooking instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160-180 deg C.
2. Place baking cups on a baking tray.
3. Beat flour, butter, milk and eggs in a bowl with an electric mixer until the mixture turns a pale colour.
4. Divide mixture between cases.
5. Push one frozen raspberry in to each batter filled case
6. Bake for between 25-30 minutes until cakes bounce back when lightly pressed
7. Place cakes on wire rack to cool.

To decorate (for 13 cake cup sized cakes) Ingredients

• 250ml double cream
• 2 tbsp icing sugar, sifted
• Wafer Butterflies

Instructions

1. Place the cream and icing sugar in a bowl and whisk till light and fluffy
2. Fill piping bag fitted with a star nozzle
3. Pipe a swirl of cream icing on top of the cakes
4. Adorn each cake with a wafer butterfly

Have a sweet day!

Butterfly cupcake toppers

To decorate my peachy white choc cupcakes I made some pretty pastel butterfly cupcake toppers.

Butterfly Cupcake Toppers

You will need:
Pink, blue, yellow, green paper
Butterfly multi-detail craft punch
Cocktail/bamboo sticks
Double sided tape

1. Punch out ten butterflies of each colour
2. Cut a 3mm slither of double sided sticky tape.
3. Stick to top of cocktail stick so there is an equal amount of tape on either side of stick
4. Remove backing paper
5. Press one pink butterfly into double sided tape on one side
6. Press another to the double sided tape on the other side
7. Gently fan wings out
8. Repeat until you have five of each colour

I baked my cakes in pastel coloured silicone cupcake cases.



Have a sweet day!

Butterfly packaging

Packaging

You will need:
White sweet bags
Tonic Studio Butterflies Accent Punch
Tonic Studio Edger Punch 3
Tonic Studio Border Punch System
Cavallini butterflies rubber stamp tin
VersaColor Small Stamp Pad - Pink
VersaColor Small Stamp Pad - Seafoam

1. Place the paper bag centrally onto the border system
2. Move the left and right markers to 3.5cm
3. Place butterfly punch into system
4. Make the first punch and then move the bag left so that the edge of the outer butterfly matches the centre line of the marker, and repeat all the way to the edge
5. Repeat the last step in the opposite direction
6. Place edger punch 3 into the system and do as steps 4 and 5
7. Stamp butterfly pattern onto bag and leave to dry

For the gift tags I used a pop up butterfly punch.

Have a sweet day!

Strawberry rose cupcakes

Strawberry rose cupcakes (makes 12 cup cakes)

Ingredients
125g (4 ounces) butter, softened
200g (7 ounces) caster sugar (superfine)
3 eggs
300g (10.5 ounces) Gluten free self-raising flour
140 ml milk
150g fresh strawberries, diced
1/2 teaspoon rose essence
pinch of salt

Cooking instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160-180 deg C (325-350 deg F)
2. Line baking tray with paper cases
3. Beat butter and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until the mixture turns a pale colour
4. Stir in the eggs and salt and mix thoroughly
5. Stir in half the flour
6. Stir in the strawberries, rose essence and milk
7. Stir in the remaining flour
8. Spoon mixture into cases
9. Bake for 12-15 minutes
10. Place cakes on a wire rack to cool

Cream cheese Frosting

Ingredients
250g (8.8 ounces) cream cheese
150g butter (5.2 ounces)
400g icing sugar (14.1 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Cooking instructions

1. Beat cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and vanilla essence for 30 seconds

Decorating the cakes

You will need:
Cream cheese frosting
Roll-on icing (sugar paste)
Pale pink food colouring paste
Rolling pin
Butterfly cutter
Small paintbrush
Piping bag and nozzle
Sieved icing sugar (confectioners sugar)

1. Fill piping bag with cream cheese frosting and pipe in peaks on top of the cakes
2. Dust work surface with icing sugar
3. Place roll-on icing onto surface and gradually add food colouring to roll-on icing with a cocktail stick (as it is very concentrated), and knead colour in. Keep adding food colouring until you get desired colour
4. Roll out icing so it is about 5mm thick, and cut out butterfly shape using cutter
5. Place on top of cake, and with a damp brush lightly paint the top to bring back the shine

As I have to have a gluten free diet, I substitute the self-raising flour for gluten and wheat free self raising flour.

Blush butterfly cupcake cases

Have a sweet day!

Blueberry & lemon cupcakes

Blueberry cupcakes (makes 12 muffin size cakes)

Ingredients
125g (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened (sweet butter)
125g (4 ounces) icing sugar, (powdered sugar)
4 egg whites
50g (5.2 ounces) Gluten free self-raising flour
100g (3.5 ounces) blueberries
150g (5 ounces) ground almonds
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
Zest of one lemon

Cooking instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160-180 deg C (325-350 deg F)
2. Line baking tray with paper cases
3. Whisk egg whites until stiff peaks form
4. Beat butter and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until the mixture turns a pale colour
5. Stir in the flour, vanilla essence, blueberries, lemon zest and almonds and mix thoroughly
6. Fold in the egg whites
7. Spoon mixture into cases
8. Bake for 12-15 minutes
9. Place cakes on a wire rack to cool

Decorating the cakes

You will need:
Vanilla butter frosting
Roll-on icing (sugar paste)
Pale blue food colouring paste
Rolling pin
Butterfly cutter
Small paintbrush
Piping bag and nozzle
Sieved icing sugar (confectioners sugar)

1. Fill piping bag with vanilla butter frosting and pipe in peaks on top of the cakes
2. Lightly dust work surface with icing sugar
3. Place roll-on icing onto surface and gradually add food colouring to roll-on icing with a cocktail stick (as it is very concentrated), and knead colour in. Keep adding food colouring until you get desired colour
4. Roll out icing so it is about 5mm thick, and cut out butterfly shape using cutter
5. Place on top of iced cake, and with a damp brush lightly paint the top to bring back the shine

As I have to have a gluten free diet, I substitute the self-raising flour for gluten and wheat free self raising flour.

Blue and white spot cupcake cases

Mini Butterfly cookie cutters from here.

Have a sweet day!

Butterfly blueberry cheesecake

Blueberry Cheesecake (makes 3 butterflies)

Chocolate butterfly case

Ingredients
600g white chocolate
Blue food colouring

Cooking instructions

1. Temper and colour white chocolate
2. Coat inside of silicone mold with chocolate
3. Leave to set in fridge overnight

Biscuit base

Ingredients
8 digestive biscuits or Graham Crackers
6 tbsp caster sugar, ("superfine" sugar in US)
100g unsalted butter ( Sweet butter )

Cooking instructions

1. Coarsely grind biscuits
2. Melt sugar in saucepan until it begins to caramelize
3. Add butter, stirring continuously
4. Add ground biscuits and stir
5. Tip out onto greaseproof paper and leave to cool

Blueberry sauce

Ingredients
300g blueberries
2 tbsp caster sugar ("superfine" sugar in US)
1 tbsp water

Cooking instructions

1. Place blueberries, water and sugar in a pan and heat on medium heat until blueberries begin to soften
2. Place in cup to cool

Cheesecake filling

Ingredients
400g cream cheese
600ml double cream ( heavy cream )
6 tbsp icing sugar ( powdered sugar)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 vanilla essence

Cooking instructions

1. Whip double cream until stiff peaks form
2. In a separate bowl whisk cream cheese, icing sugar, lemon juice and vanilla extract until smooth
3. Fold whipped cream into cream cheese mix
4. Fill chocolate lined mould with cream cheese mixture
5. Sprinkle over biscuit mix
6. Leave in fridge overnight
7. Turn cheesecake out onto plate, by placing mould upside down and carefully peeling it away
8. Spoon blueberry mix around edge of cheesecake
9. Dust lightly with icing sugar

As I have to have a gluten free diet, I use gluten free biscuits.

Silicone Butterfly cake mould

Have a sweet day!

Butterfly themed tea & cakes

I spent this Valentine's day at my adorable niece's Christening. My sister's wedding was butterfly themed so she asked me if I could make some butterfly cupcakes in pink and turquoise with which to decorate the Christening cake. Well, how could I refuse! I adore little Molly and wanted to make the day really special for her.






As is tradition in England, the bride keeps the top tier of her wedding cake for her first baby's Christening. To decorate the cake I removed the original organza ribbon and crystal trim and replaced it with a single row of polka dot ribbon and pink rik-rak. I then attached the pink and blue iced butterflies with a spot of royal icing. My Mum made a second square cake and iced it for the bottom level. On this level I used two rows of polka dot ribbon and pink rik-rak and attached butterflies as above.

I will soon be posting the recipes and how to make all the butterfly themed goodies!

Have a sweet day!