Fiona Cairns' tiny rose and violet creams recipe

Fancy making something sweet, small and tasty? You should make these tiny rose and violet creams by celebrity baker, Fiona Cairns. They're full of delicious cream and coated in a mouth-watering chocolate that is sure to go down a treat with the family

Ingredients

For the cakes:

• 100g unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the tin
• 60g self-raising flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• 100g 70% cocoa solids chocolate, finely chopped
• 80ml whole milk
• 120g dark muscovado sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 40g ground almonds

For the filling and decoration:

• 500g bag fondant powder
• Pink food colour paste
• 4–5tsp rose water
• White icing sugar, if necessary
• 4–5tsp violet liqueur
• Grape violet food colour paste
• 400g 70% cocoa solids chocolate, roughly chopped
• 30 crystallised rose petals, optional
• 30 crystallised violet petals, optional

You will also need:

• 3cm round cutter

Method

1. For the cakes:
   1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/340°F/Gas Mark 3½.  Butter a 20cm square cake tin and line the base with baking parchment.
   2. Sift the flour and baking powder together.
   3. Place the chocolate in a bowl. Bring the milk to a boil and pour it over. Stir until the chocolate has melted, then cool to blood temperature.
   4. Cream the butter and sugar together for a couple of minutes, then slowly beat in the eggs and vanilla extract, adding 1 tbsp flour to prevent curdling. Slowly add the cooled chocolate mixture, then fold in the sifted flour mixture and ground almonds.
   5. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for about 25 mins, or until a skewer emerges clean.
   6. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then turn out on to a wire rack until cold. Place in the freezer for 30 mins to firm up, so it will be easier to cut.
   7. Divide the fondant between two bowls. To one, add a pinprick of pink food colour, and rose water to taste, to form a stiff dough. If it is too runny, knead in a little white icing sugar. The fondants need to be quite strong in flavour.
   8. Repeat with the other bowl, adding the violet liqueur and food colour until you have a stiff dough.
   For the filling and decoration:
   1. Split the cake in half horizontally and, using the cutter, cut 30 rounds from one layer of cake and 30 rounds from the other.
   2. Lay the little circles of cake out on to a tray and divide the fondant equally between them: 30 balls of rose and 30 balls of violet. Chill in the fridge for one hour until the fondant has hardened. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate by placing it in a bowl over gently simmering water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water.
   3. Lay out all the cakes on two wire racks (one flavour on each tray) with a sheet of baking parchment under each to catch the drips. Spoon over the chocolate, re-using any that drips through the racks. Decorate each cake with a crystallised rose or violet, as appropriate. They will keep for several days.