1 Preheat the oven to180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4. Take three 12-hole tins (pans) and line with 32 mini paper cupcake cases.

      2 Using an electric mixer with a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Then beat in the eggs and vanilla extract.

      3 Fold in the flour one-third at a time until just combined. Fold in the milk but do not over mix.

      4 Evenly spoon the batter into the cases, filling them two-thirds full.

      5 Bake in the oven for 12 minutes or until a cocktail stick (toothpick) inserted comes out clean.

      6 Leave in the tins (pans) for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

       play it cool…

      Mini cupcakes are fragile when warm – allow them to cool completely before peeling away their cases.

       fade to grey…

      Some paper cases fade when baked so slip an extra one on after baking.

       Baking times

      If using this recipe to make larger cupcakes or a single cake, adjust the baking times to:

      • 18 standard cupcakes – 16–18 minutes

      • 12 muffin-sized cupcakes – 18–20 minutes

      • 20cm (8in) square cake – 18–20 minutes

Flavour variations

      To change the flavour of your sponge, try the following alternatives:

      • Chocolate: replace 25g (⁷⁄₈oz) flour with 25g (⁷⁄₈oz) cocoa powder (unsweetened cocoa) and replace the vanilla extract with chocolate extract.

      • Irish cream: as for chocolate but replace the milk with Irish cream liqueur.

      • Lemon: replace the vanilla extract with lemon extract and add the finely grated zest of one lemon to the flour.

       French macarons