Additional Ingredients

150 grams	Golden Caster Sugar (Billington's)
3	Happy Eggs whites only
250 grams	Butter unsalted, softened
1 tsp	Pure Lemon Extract (Nielsen-Massey)
1 tsp	Yellow Food Colour (Silver Spoon Create)

How to make Easter Lemon Cup Cakes

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1. For the cakes: preheat the oven to 180°C/fan oven 160°C, 350°F, gas 4. Line 2 cupcake trays with 24 cupcake cases.
2. Put the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until well combined. Add in the flour, baking powder and lemon extract and fold into the mixture. The mixture should be of a dropping consistency, if not add a little milk.
3. Divide the mixture between the cases and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Tip: For a real Easter treat – find ovenproof egg cups and fill up to three quarter full with the cake batter and bake for about 20 minutes or until cooked. Leave to cool and decorate with Easter treats
4. To make the buttercream:- Pour 50ml water into a saucepan and add 125g caster sugar. Place the pan on the hob and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring the mixture to the boil. Wash down any sugar crystals on the side of the pan with a damp brush. Boil the mixture rapidly, without stirring it, until it reaches 121°C. Have a large bowl of cold water ready.
5. When the syrup reaches over 100°C, whisk the egg whites until stiff. If possible use a table top mixer. Gradually whisk in the remaining caster sugar
6. As soon as the syrup reaches 121°C, remove the pan from the heat and sit the pan into the bowl of cold water, to prevent the syrup from getting any hotter. Only leave the pan in the water for a few seconds - if it's left too long, it will be too thick to pour.
7. Switch the mixer on to full speed and gradually pour in the syrup in a thin stream, taking care to pour it straight into the whisked eggs, avoiding the sides of the bowl and the whisk itself. Continue whisking the mixture for about 8-10 minutes until the bowl feels just lukewarm. If the syrup starts to become too thick to pour, return the pan to the hob very briefly, for the heat to thin is slightly.
8. Gradually whisk in the butter. Then add the salt and vanilla extract. The meringue will collapse a little, and the mixture may look like it's curdled, but keep whisking it until it forms a smooth fluffy buttercream. Add the yellow food colouring and stir until an even colour
9. Either pipe or spoon the icing over the cup cakes and decorate with little Easter Treats Decorating Ideas: • Colour Silver Spoon Cakecraft White Ready to Roll icing in pastel colours – pink, green or pale blue. Cut out Easter themed shapes – rabbits, eggs or flowers and decorate using the Silver Spoon Cakecraft Writing Icing. Place gently onto the icing cup cakes. • Sprinkle iced cup cakes with the pastel Silver Spoon Cakecraft Sprinkles. • Rough ice the cupcakes and place a few mini eggs onto the iced cakes. • Slice the tops off the cakes and fill the cavities with a little buttercream and or lemon curd. Cut each sliced top in half and arrange on top of the filling to resemble butterfly wings. Dust lightly with icing sugar

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