Always use oven gloves when handling hot cake tins.
An adult may need to help when cutting off the tops, as a sharp knife is needed.
Butterfly cakes were extremely popular at children's parties - they look attractive and the buttercream icing makes them sweet to eat. They are also quite easy to make.
By the 1970's, many kitchens had acquired food processors which helped a lot with mixing. Before then, you had to be very careful to mix everything in the correct order
and a lot of beating was required to make the mixture light - very time consuming. In this podcast, everything goes into the food mixer and it is quickly ready to put into the cake cases - a lot less work.
You will notice that they are decorated with shop bought coloured sugar strands - another convenience for the modern cupboard.
It is thought that butterfly cakes came about from fairy cakes that had risen too much - so the tops were cut off so they could be iced more easily - and soon someone thought of turning them into 'wings'.
Nowadays, it is useful to add a little baking powder to the self raising flour, if you want to make butterfly cakes, to ensure that they do rise enough.
For images of the cooking process see our Butterfly Cakes Images
With thanks to Caroline Cuerden, The Hair Company for their help with this podcast.