Has anyone else noticed the sudden rise in popularity in cupcakes lately? I'm not sure about in the rest of the world but here in the UK it seems to the average person that what is now referred to as a cupcake just appears to be a large fairy cake. The original cupcakes from days gone by seemed to be stodgy with a thick layer of sugary mass produced icing on top. The cupcake of today seems to be a mismatch of a fairy cake and a muffin. But who cares what they look like as long as they taste good.

This recent rise of the cupcake got me curious and led me to research a bit more on what actually is the history of the cupcake, where did it come from and what ridiculous designs can you make. Here are some of the things I discovered.

1. Despite Roman and Greek history recording cake baking, it was the Egyptian who were actually the first bakers. Of course cake is not an Egyptian word at all, that came from 13th century Britain and is derived from the Norse word 'Kaka' - Glad they changed it!!
2. During the war in 1942 in Britain, food was rationed and so housewives had to be inventive with their cooking skills. Butter and Margarine were scarce and so women used liquid paraffin in their cakes instead - Mmm!
3. Also during the war in Britain, the government tried to convince housewives to use mashed potatoes instead of flour, as potatoes weren't rationed. The government also imported dried eggs from America, and although they tasted good scrambled, they certainly weren't good in cakes.
4. One of the ways to check a fruitcake is cooked is to listen to it - if it's whistling, then it's not ready to come out yet.
5. The first cakes were actually more like bread, the Romans added honey, nuts or fruit to sweeten it.
6. No other language has a word that means exactly the same as the English for 'Cake'.
7. Cake baking became much easier in the 1840's when Bicarbonate of Soda was introduced closely followed by Baking Powder, this replaced the yeast that was originally being used to help the cake rise
8. The Quote 'Let them eat cake' did not refer to the modern day version that we know and love. It was actually quite practical advice and referred to the flour and water that ended up 'caked' to the pans and ovens of the bakeries. At the end of the working day, the baker would scrap the mixture from the pans and leave them outside the door for beggars and scavengers. The quote merely suggests that if you cannot afford the bourgeois bread then you may eat the poor mans bread.
9. The term 'Cupcake' was first mentioned in 1828, they took their name from the cups they were baked in, and so nowadays the term 'cupcake' is given to any small cake that is about the size of a teacup. However when written as two words, 'Cup Cake' this referred to a cake that's ingredients were measured using a cup instead of by weight.
10. Cupcakes were once called 'number cakes' or '1234 cakes'. This was because it was an easy way of remembering the original recipe - one cup of butter, two cups of sugar, three cups of flour and four eggs - simple!!

There's no doubt about it, cupcakes are having a second wind, no longer are they the baking produce of the WI, but now of trendy young mums competing to see who has the best decorated, most lightest cupcake. There are all sorts of websites now promoting cupcake delivery and cupcake toppings, you can even get great big cupcake stands now to display your colourful cupcakes in their designer cases. Cupcakes are big business, but do you know what's more important, Cupcakes are yummy and I'm eating one right now - so go on, get your baking tray out, you know you want to!!