Queen cakes: classic sultana fairy cakes

Try these sweet and light queen cakes full of juicy dried fruit. They’re a quick, easy and delicious fairy cake to make.

Sultana fairy cakes
By Saga Magazine | Published - 15 Sep 2025
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This recipe is taken from the Berkshire WI Cookery Book (1958), a collection of ‘cherished recipes’, as described by Doris Cumming in the book’s foreword:

“It may be thought that, in the future, pre-packed and prepared food will replace the individuality of home cooking. Although these commodities may have to take their place in the running of a busy home and cannot be ignored, tradition and craft have too strong a hold on the memory to be lost easily; by fostering good standards of home cooking, one has some means of comparison and discrimination.”

Prep time
15 mins
Cooking Time
15 mins

Ingredients

  • 110g (4oz) soft margarine
  • 110g (4oz) caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 110g (4oz) self-raising flour, sieved
  • A little milk, if necessary
  • 60g (2oz) sultanas (or other dried fruit of choice such as raisins or currants)

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease a 12-hole bun or mini bundt tin.
  2. Cream the margarine and sugar together. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well.
  3. Fold the flour into the mixture with a little milk, if necessary, to give a soft dropping consistency. Add the sultanas and mix well.
  4. Place spoonfuls of the mixture into the prepared tin.
  5. Bake for 15-20 minutes until firm to the touch and golden brown. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool and sprinkle with a little extra caster sugar.

Variations

Use 60g (2oz) of washed, chopped glacé cherries instead of the sultanas, or replace 1 tablespoon of flour with 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder to make chocolate fairy cakes.

The Women’s Institute Vintage Teatime, compiled by Jessica Simmons (Simon & Schuster), RRP £9.99

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(Hero image credit: Shutterstock)

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