Cake Faces

Have fun creating faces on these cakes! The cakes can be plain or flavoured and could be made for a younger brother or sister's party! they are based on an English recipe for Queen cakes. In the past, they were sometimes baked in heart-shaped tins. Ask an adult to help before starting to cook.

Cake faces Makes 10-12

Ingredients

* 100 g soft margarine or butter
* 100 g caster sugar
* 2 eggs
* 100 g self-raising flour

Ideas for flavourings

* grated rind of 1 lemon or orange
* 25 g desiccated coconut or chopped nuts
* 30 g choplped cherries chocolate chips, sultanas or dried fruit
* for chocolate cakes remove one tablespoon of flour and replace with one tablespoon of cocoa powder.

Glace icing flavourings

* 75 g icing sugar
* about 1/2 tablespoon warm water or orange or lemon juice

Equipment

* cake cases

* small bowl
* bun tin

* fork
* scales

* tablespoon
* knife

* sieve
* medium-size mixing bowl

* teaspoon
* electric mixer or mixing spoon

* Oven gloves

How to make?

1. Set the oven to Gas mark 4 or 180* C. Place 12 cake cases in a bun tin.

2. Put the margarine or butter into a medium-size mixing bowl with the caster sugar. Beat together using a mixing spoon or electric mixer until the mixture is pale and fluffy.

3. Break one egg into a small bowl and beat it with a fork. Add to the mixing bowl, together with one tablespoon of flour (after it has been weighed). Beat very well.

4. Do the same with the second egg, adding a second spoonful of flour. The flour stops the mixture curdling when the eggs are added).

5. Sieve the rest of the flour and gently fold into the mixture using a tablespoon.

6. Stir in any flavouring you have chosen, then place spoonfuls of the mixture into cake cases.

7. Wearing oven gloves, place the bun tin in the middle of the oven. Cook for 15-20 minutes. To test the cakes, lightly press a finger on top of cake. When cooked they should spring back.

8. Leave the cakes to cool, then decorate them.
To make glace icing Sieve the icing sugar into a medium-size bowl. Gradually add the water or juice until the icing is smooth but still fairly thick. Place a teaspoon of icing on each cake then create the face of your choice!.