Line a 12 hole muffin tin with cupcake cases.

Whisk in the vanilla and almond extract.

Fold in the flour and ground almonds until combined into a thick batter.

Stir in the milk to loosen the batter.

Divide the batter equally between two bowls and use the food colouring to colour one bowl pink and the other bowl yellow.

Share the batter evenly between the 12 cupcake cases in alternating blobs.

Swirl each cupcake lightly with a skewer.

Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the top springs back if a finger is pressed gently on top, and a skewer pushed into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Slice the tops off the cupcakes as needed to give a flat surface.

Roll out the marzipan to about 2mm thick.

Cut out 12 rounds about the same width as the tops of your cupcakes.

Brush the tops of the cakes with jam.

Place a marzipan round on top of each cake.

Place the softened butter in a bowl and beat until creamy.

Sift in the icing sugar, then add the vanilla and milk. Whisk starting slowly until just combined.

Add the hot water and whisk again, building up to full speed and beating for several minutes until pale, fluffy and considerably increased in volume.

Divide the buttercream equally between two bowls and use the food colouring to colour one half pink and the other half yellow.

Lay a large square of cling film on the counter and spoon the yellow buttercream in a lines along it, then fold over and twist the ends to form a sausage. Repeat with the pink buttercream.

Drop the two sausages into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. Pull the twisted cling film ends of both through the nozzle then snip the excess clingfilm away.

To finish, pop a slice of mini battenberg on top of each cake.