Sickly Sweet: Toffee Popcorn & Minstrels Vanilla Sponge Cake

Happy Sunday! Today I wanted to share a baking recipe with you for a cake I baked for my flatmate's birthday last week. She loves both minstrels and popcorn, so I decided to take that as my inspiration for her cake and bake a Toffee Popcorn & Minstrels Vanilla Sponge Cake with Vanilla Butter Cream Icing. MmMmMmMmMmmmm. It was so so good. The vanilla sponge cake recipe is actually a BBC recipe (RIP BBC RECIPES). It is my go to recipe for whipping up a vanilla sponge and they always come out perfect and super moist, which is absolutely what you want. I cheated with the icing on this cake and bought it from the supermarket because I was tired after work and couldn't be bothered to make my own. Hey - at least I am honest haha...

OMG it is just the dreamiest cake ever right? Ok, now for the recipe...

Ingredients

225g soft butter
225g caster sugar
4 medium eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
225g self raising flour
Splash of Milk

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°/350F/Gas 4.

2. Grease two cake tins with butter and line with baking parchment if you have it (I never bother haha).

3. Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until fluffy (if your butter is too hard, I always melt in the microwave a bit - makes life so much easier).

4. Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract.

5. Fold in the flour and add a splash of milk - whisk until the batter is nice and smooth.

6. Divide the mixture between the two cake tins and pop in the oven for 20-25 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven when ready and remove from the tins to cool.

8. When the cake is cool, add your icing to sandwich the cakes together and then cover the rest of the cake in it. You can of course make your own butter icing but as I said before I cheated and used the Betty Crocker Vanilla Butter Cream, which is absolutely devine.

9. DECORATE - The best part. Decorate the cake with whatever you fancy, I used chocolate fingers around the edges, a packet of minstrels to top and finished by covering the cake with half a bag of toffee popcorn.

What do you think of this cake? Do you think you would try this recipe out?

Until Next Time, LRB x

Pretty In Pink

London has hit a scorcher this weekend. It has been around 21-23 degrees and I am literally melting. I genuinely feel like I am on holiday. Coming from someone who has lived their entire life in Scotland, I am not used to having much of a summer ever. We normally get 1 nice week a year in Scotland (not even exaggerating), so I am very much enjoying this heat. Anyway's the lovely weather means we can finally start dressing like Spring/Summer. So I threw on a little slip dress on Saturday, didn't have to put tights on for once - HURRAY, found some pretty cherry tree's, took some outfit snaps and headed out for a day in the sunshine....

Slip Dress - Mango
Boots - Public Desire
Choker - Accessorize
Bag - Accessorize

My pretty floral slip is from Mango, which I actually picked up last month for £10 in the sale - such a good find! I feel like it is becoming a bit of a staple in my wardrobe, as it is so easy to wear and throw on in the mornings for work. I also love layering this dress over a high-neck top or a cutesy blouse at the moment too. I was originally a bit sceptical of the slip as outwear trend, I thought I would look like I was wearing my nightie out, but I think if you find the right slip, it can definitely work. I paired my dress with these nude/pinky boots from Public Desire, which I am obsessed with. I am living for this blush nude/pink colour at the moment. I then accessorised with this cute velvet pearl drop choker and this gorgeous floral bag from Accessorize.

Shout-out to my beautiful angel of a flatmate Maddie for always taking my outfit photo's for me, she is very much enjoying her role as my personal photographer - hahah LY babes x

Shop This Look

Are you loving blush pink as much as me at the moment? How would you style a slip dress?

Until Next Time, LRB x