Baking day...

My mum and I had no idea what we wanted to do this afternoon, until I suggested doing some baking! We made some fruity tea loaf, fairy cakes and I invented a recipe for some muesli bars. 
I only got pictures of the fairy cakes so I thought I'd post some piccies and also give a recipe for anyone who is thinking of making them.

So here they are before I iced them - all warm and fluffy and they smelled gorgeous; I just wanted to eat one there and then!

And here's them when they were finished! They look so colourful and delicious, we can barely stop ourselves from eating them all.

So here's the recipe... it's simple, quick and easy.

Ingredients:
4oz self raising flour
40z  caster sugar
4oz margarine or butter
2 medium eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
      For the icing:
Pack ready-to-roll icing
2oz icing sugar
1oz margarine
Water
Hundreds and thousands

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees (170 fan oven). 
2. Mix all the main ingredients together (an electric mixer is a lot quicker and easier!)
3. Line a baking tray with fairy cake paper cases and spoon about a dessert-spoon-ful in to each one. 
4. Put in the oven for about 15 minutes or until cooked through and golden brown.
5. Leave the cakes to cool. Roll the icing out to about 1/2cm thick and use a cutter the size of the top of your cakes. 
6. Mix the margarine and icing sugar together to form a butter icing and spread on to each cake. Then, take the cut out icing and place on top.
7. Use a pastry brush  to brush water over the top of each cake and then dip in to a plate of hundreds and thousands. Believe it or not, they will stick and stay there!

I love baking. I find it so therapeutic because you put all these random ingredients together, put it in the oven and it comes out as an amazing, new, tasty creation that you've done all on your  own or with friends. It's so fun and relaxing and all though because of my M.E. I have to get some help when I do it, I still find it fun and I love inventing new recipes.
Everyone should have a go at baking because homemade treats are always 100x nicer than bought. Also, this recipe is so simple that even the most amateur of bakers can make them successfully. 

Until next time, 
Ellie x x x x