Vanilla frosting

80g unsalted butter
250g icing sugar
25ml whole milk
1 and a half tsp vanilla essence

• Cream the butter and icing sugar in a free-standing mixer on a low speed it will initally look powdery before becoming a smooth mixture.
• Mix the vanilla essence with the milk in a separate glass or jug (I use a re-purposed Tommy Tippee cup as it has handy volumes on the side).
• With the mixture on a low speed slowly add the vanilla milk.
• Beat the mixture on a high speed for at least 5 minutes

There are lots of different ways to decorate with frosting. You can simply smooth with a palate knife or use piping bags and various nozzles to create lovely effects. The easiest are roses or swirls.

• Use a piping bag with a large closed star tip
• Place the frosting in the bag and twist the top ensuring there are no air pockets trapped. Use gentle pressure from the top of the bag.
• To make a swirl ice the cupcakes in a spiral starting from the outside and working inwards to form a peak.
• At the end of the spiral push down slightly and pull straight up to finish with a peak.
• To make a rose simply start from the centre of the cake and work outwards, pushing down and pulling away at the end instead of upwards.

Recipes that work well with this frosting can be found here and include Vanilla Cupcakes and a Rich Chocolate Cake.