Mrs Simkins: Royal Wedding Lemon & Elderflower Butterfly Cakes!

Photo by Mrs Simkins: Royal Wedding Lemon & Elderflower Butterfly Cakes!

​Miss Windsor and I send our very best wishes to newly married royals Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. And what a fabulous wedding they had, so very moving and full of wonderful and lovely surprises. 

​Their wedding cake looked absolutely glorious: simple at heart, yet gorgeous, lemon and elderflower sponge decorated with Swiss meringue buttercream frosting and 150 fresh flowers, including white peonies (Meghan’s favourite) and roses.
 
These delicate little butterflies are our tribute to them and their lovely cake and perfect for summer garden parties. You can bake these yourself at home and waft around your garden party carrying them on a romantically decorated tiered cake stand.
 
Toodles,
 
Mrs Simkins

Photo by Mrs Simkins: Royal Wedding Lemon & Elderflower Butterfly Cakes!

Makes 15-18 cakes
 
Ingredients

• 175g salted butter, softened
• 175g caster sugar (golden works well)
• Finely grated zest of 2 large lemons
• 175g plain flour
• 1 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 2 level teaspoons cream of tartar
• 3 medium eggs
• 2 tablespoons elderflower cordial

 
Equipage
 
A food processor makes light work of the cake mix but use an electric mixer or whisk by hand if you prefer.
 
Method
 

• Preheat oven to 160C (fan ovens) gas mark 4 or equivalent
• You will need up to 18 paper cupcake set out in 2 x 12cup muffin tins (cupcake cases can vary in size slightly depending on brand.
• Whiz butter and sugar together in the processor until creamed and fluffy. Add lemon zest just before the end and whiz in briefly.
• Add raising agents to weighed flour.

Photo by Mrs Simkins: Royal Wedding Lemon & Elderflower Butterfly Cakes!

• Sieve some flour over the mix, add eggs then sieve remaining flour on top.
• Whiz to combine. Add cordial and whiz until smooth and glossy.
• (You will need to scrape the mixture down from the sides a couple of times with a flexible spatula.)
• Divide mixture equally between paper cases: around a dessertspoonful for each case.
• Bake for around 15-20 minutes until risen and golden and springy to touch: a skewer inserted should come out clean. 
• Leave to settle for a few moments then remove from tins and cool on a wire rack.
• Once cakes are cool slice a circle from the top of each.
• Spoon a little dollop of buttercream onto each cake. Cut each cut-off top in half to make wings and arrange on top of the buttercream. 

Photo by Mrs Simkins: Royal Wedding Lemon & Elderflower Butterfly Cakes!

Dust with icing sugar just before serving.
 
Tip: if you prefer to make a sponge sandwich cake, divide the mix between 2 18cm (7inch) loose-bottomed sandwich tins and bake for 18-20 minutes at 160C as before.
 
Lemon Buttercream

• 110g salted butter, softened
• 225g sieved icing sugar
• 2½ -3 tablespoons lemon juice

 
Beat the butter until creamy in a roomy bowl. Add the icing sugar, a little at a time and stir vigorously to combine. Finally, stir in the lemon juice to loosen the mixture to spreadable consistency.
​
Alternatively, for even faster easier icing, whiz the butter and icing sugar together in the clean dry processor bowl. Add lemon juice through spout and whiz until smooth and glossy.