Preheat the oven to 180 deg fan. Place 9 paper muffin cases into a muffin tin. Use more if you want to make smaller buns.
Using an electric mixer or wooden spoon, beat the baking block/butter with the sugar until soft, fluffy, and lighter in colour.
170 g baking block or softened butter, 170 g soft light brown sugar
Gradually add the eggs, one at a time, adding a little flour between each one to help prevent curdling.
3 medium eggs
Add the remaining flour and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
170 g self raising flour, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Fill each muffin case with the cake batter, taking care not to overfill them. Using an ice cream scoop makes the job a little easier.
Bake in the oven for 15 - 20 or until baked, testing the centre of each cake with a skewer until it comes out clean. Remove them from the oven and leave to cool completely.
Make the Buttercream
Beat together the sieved icing sugar, butter, and vanilla extract until soft, fluffy, and almost white. If needed, add a little milk or cream to make the buttercream softer.
200 g icing sugar sieved., 100 g butter softened., ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Scoop out the centre of each bun and slice it in half.
Fill each hollow with buttercream. TIP: To make it easier to fill each fairy cake, place the buttercream in a piping bag with a large nozzle at the end.
Place the two cut pieces of sponge on top of the buttercream, creating the butterfly effect. Then, place a fresh strawberry between the two pieces of sponge on top of the buttercream.
9 large fresh strawberries
Tip. To eat the strawberries, grab hold of the little green leaves and pop them into your mouth, savouring every bite.
Notes
StorageAlthough you can keep them for a few days in an airtight container, I kept mine in the fridge because of the fresh fruit. Bring them back to room temperature before serving.Any leftover buttercream can be saved in the fridge or frozen for later use on other buns or cakes. To make it softer for piping, bring the buttercream back to room temperature and give it a good mix.