These remind me of the Little Debbie cakes that are out this time of year….except they’re better. Heck, everything homemade is better, right? Especially snack cakes.

Now: Before you think you can’t do these, and they are too pretty, girly etc. Stop it. You can do it. The frosting is a quick poured fondant, you just spoon it on and it dries. And the cakes were baked in a heart shaped cupcake pan. What? You don’t have a fancy pan? Believe me, these will be just as pretty with square cakes. And easy, too. So there. No more excuses. You CAN make pretty little tea cakes. Now, if you happen to be a mama (or dad, grandma, grand-dad, uncle, aunt, etc…) of boys… I’m aware these won’t be that popular in your house full of testosterone.. My suggestion? Go for green square alien cakes. Keep the strawberry filling and call it alien ooze. Serve them with root beer instead of tea, and forget the fine china, napkins are the manliest way to go if you’re having a boys “tea party”.

See…. who says you have to be a girl to have a tea cake?

I had to level off the tops of the cakes, so that they didn’t have that awkward lump. The awkward lump works great with cupcakes, but not tea cakes.

I sliced them in half and added some Strawberry jam. You could add buttercream, but I honestly didn’t feel like making buttercream. I’m sure you have those days, too.

A warning, however, they do get a bit messy, so make sure you place some waxed paper under your drying rack…

They will be completely dry after about four hours, and to dislodge them from the rack, simply use a thin sharp knife or thin spatula.

Valentine tea cakes

Author cake recipe adapted from Fanni Farmer cookbook

Ingredients

For the cake:
2 1/4 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt, set aside.
In another bowl combine the butter, milk and eggs. Gently combine the wet and the dry ingredients. Add the extracts and mix well.
Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 18-22 minutes or, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Allow to cool completely before frosting with poured fondant icing.
Icing recipe can be found at Wilton.com
Makes 18 cupcakes or two 8' round cakes

For the icing recipe, please click here: quick poured fondant