Santa Cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160° fan) 350°F gas 4. Place paper cases in a 12 hole muffin tin.

Mix together the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in a bowl.

Whisk the eggs lightly in a mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar, oil and soured cream and mix well.

Stir in the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

Spoon into the paper cases and bake for about 25 minutes until golden and risen. Cool in the tins for 5 minutes then place on a wire rack to cool completely.

To decorate: roll out the chocolate sugarpaste on a surface dusted with sifted cocoa powder. Cut out rounds the same diameter as the cakes.

Brush the cakes with jam and press the sugarpaste rounds onto the cakes.

Roll the remaining chocolate sugarpaste into 12 balls. Make a hollow in the centre with a wooden spoon handle and mould the balls to form a chimney shape. Attach to the cakes with a little warmed jam.

Mark the sugarpaste with a knife to give a brick effect.

Roll half the red sugarpaste in 12 balls and the remainder into a long thick sausage. Cut 24 legs from the sausage. Attach to the balls with a dab of water.

Roll out about 1/3 of the white sugarpaste on a surface dusted with icing sugar and cut out strips for the belts, as in the photo. Mark a pattern with a teaspoon handle.

Brush the red sugarpaste balls with a little water and attach the strips. Carefully place the Father Christmases on the chimneys.

Attach 2 black sweets to the legs for the boots, with a dab of jam and a smaller sweet to the white sugarpaste belt.

Knead about 3/4 of the remaining white sugarpaste until soft. Divide into 2 and knead lilac and green colouring into each portion.

Take a walnut sized piece from a portion and using thumbs and forefingers, mould into a small square shape. You will need 2 parcels for each cake.

Knead a little more lilac colouring into the lilac portion and blue colouring into a small piece of the remaining white sugarpaste.

Roll out thinly and cut out thin strips for the parcel ribbons. Attach to the parcels with a dab of water. Place the parcels on the cakes.