Irish Coffee Butterfly Cakes

Irish Coffee Butterfly Cakes 

I love coffee and as it St Patricks Day today a little Baileys added to the mix makes everything extra tasty and a little special :)

 

Preheat the oven 180 C / 350 F / Gas mark 4 

Prepare a 12-hole bun tray with paper cases

For the Butterfly Cakes

• 100g/4oz Softened butter
• 100g/4oz Caster sugar
• 2 Small eggs (room temperature)
• 100g/4oz Self raising flour (with a pinch of salt added)
• 25g/1oz Ground almonds
• 1 tsp Coffee extract (1 used 2 tsp coffee granules mixed with a tsp of boiling water)
• 1 tbsp Baileys Original Irish Cream

For the buttercream

• 125g/4½oz Softened butter
• 200g/8oz Icing sugar (sifted)
• 1 tsp Coffee extract (1 used 2 tsp coffee granules mixed with a tsp of boiling water)
• 1 tbsp Baileys Original Irish Cream

To make the Butterfly Cakes
Place the  butter and sugar into a large bowl then beat with spoon or electric mixer until pale and fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time (beat the first egg into the mixture totally before adding the second) to the butter/ sugar mixture, beating until smooth.  
Add the flour, ground almonds and salt fold them into the mixture until combined.
Stir in the coffee and bailey's.
Divide the mixture into the prepared 12 bun tray filling each papercase so they are just over half full.
Bake the cakes for 12 - 15 minutes until golden-brown. Leave to cool.

To make Buttercream
Put the butter, icing sugar, coffee extract and baileys into a large bowl. Beat with a spoon or electric mixer until smooth and creamy. 

To assemble butterfly cakes
Using a sharp knife hold it at an angle and cut a round out of the top of the cake. 
Using the round, cut it in half to make your wings.
Add a heaped teaspoon of buttercream into the hollow of the cake.
Place the wings into the buttercream
Dust lightly with a little icing sugar.  

Apple and Blueberry Pies

It was my birthday recently and I popped into TK Max for a scarf as a present/ treat for myself, but I went to the household section first and found a baking tray with apple shapes and a matching set of apple cutters and they were half price :) so I bought them instead of the scarf.



One problem with the matching cutters was only one cutter (there are 5 in the pack) fit the tray.  This matching cutter cut the bottom pastry shape for the pie, I had to adjust a smaller shaped cutter for the lids to fit.





Apple and Blueberry Pies

• 1 Sheet puff pastry (made or bought)
• 1 Large cooking apple
•  A few handfuls of blueberries 
•  Sugar to taste (1 used about 1 heaped teaspoon as the blueberries were very sweet)
•  1 teaspoon cinnamon
•  1 heaped teaspoon cornflour

Preheat oven at 200C / 400F / Gas Mark 6
Prepare baking tray (You can use a normal baking tray with rounds, I just wanted to try my new tray)

Peel and dice the apple and put in a bowl with the blueberries, sugar and cinnamon, mix to together.








Cut out pastry shapes and put into baking tray, divide up the apple mixture and add.

Cut pie lids (you may need to re-roll your pastry)
Wet the edges and place onto the baking tray pressing to edges to seal. Using a fork stab each pie lid (to let the steam out  as the pies cook)
Cook until golden brown.

Serve hot or cold with custard, ice-cream or cream