The Perfect cupcake for a wedding

October the 24th -was a major day in our lives.  Our Son Alistair and Lisa were tying the knot and after a lot of chit chat decided to have cupcakes/fairy cakes instead of the tiered fantasy. We could of course spend hours on when is a cupcake a fairy cake, but as Mary Berry said in the Sports Relief British Bake Off - a Fairy Cake being smaller is her favourite with a cup of tea.

Lisa and I started testing recipes - I baking, Lisa and Alistair tasting in early summer and I had a chance to try out favourite recipes on the Buns and Bubbly do for my local WI.  The main recipe used just had  to be the wonderful Peggy Porschen's Lemon Cupcake with a cream cheese and butter icing.  Keeps well, handles like a dream and you cannot stop eating the end results.  These are a selection of the WI cupcakes.

The ones with the raspberries on top are another family favourite from the Salisbury's magazine of several years ago.
Redcurrant and Blackcurrant muffins - I use frozen raspberries instead as its one fruit I manage to grow in abundance.

The other cake recipe we used was the Basic Vanilla Cupcake from the Primrose Bakery cook book.  I found this kept moist, tasted great and though the mix is for 24 cupcakes at a time it holds well before cooking - I like to cook only one tray at a time as my gas oven is not the most reliable.

Then it was on to decorating and displaying - some of our first attempts.

My lovely niece Charlotte came and helped me bake 150 standard size cakes and 50 mini ones - I felt that the mini ones would help with the display.  The bride and groom were to cut an 8inch round sponge cake.

The day before the wedding my willing band of cake finishers arrived - Gill and her two lovely girls -  Kiri and Jo.  I had finalised on 5 designs for the cakes and produced samples to be followed.  All the icings and flowers had been made over the past few weeks so three hours later we were finished.

And the next day we set up at the wedding venue.  I was very pleased and felt that the mix of sizes had been a success.

Okay so three new cookbooks later - one that gave ideas but no recipe I got there.