My Favourite Cupcakes..

I got this recipe from the Sainsbury’s magazine years ago, when cupcakes were at their most popular.

I’ve used it ever since, not that I make these light-as-air cupcakes very often – they are strictly  a special occasion bake!

I tend towards the lemony flavours for the icing, to cut the sweetness, I suppose. There are variations in the NOTES section at the end of the recipe. The cinnamon one is very good too..

EQUIPMENT:

• An electric beater
• cupcake paper cases (medium muffin size)

• 12-muffin or tart trays.
• Weighing scales
• Small saucepan
• Sieve

INGREDIENTS: For the Cupcakes:

• 200g butter
• 200g sugar
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 200g self-raising Flour
• Capful of vanilla extract
• +/- the grated rind and juice of a lemon.

For the Sugar Syrup:

• 75g caster sugar
• 5 tablespoons of water

For the Frosting:

• 200g cream cheese
• 100g unsalted butter
• 600g icing sugar (sifted)

 

METHOD: This usually gets me about 12-15 cupcakes

• Put your muffin cases into the muffin trays (I always do this first so that I’m ready to go once the cake mixture is ready)
• Pre-heat your oven to 170 degrees Fan
• Put the sugar and butter into the mixer bowl and beat together until light and airy
• Add, a little at a time, the beaten  eggs. Don’t panic if it starts to curdle – just add a teaspoon of the flour
• Remove from the mixer, and start to sift in the flour in batches, folding in gently but thoroughly,between additions.
• Add the vanilla extract, and lemon juice and rind, and fold in.
• Add 1-2 dessertspoons of the mixture to each paper case, and level off.
• Cook at 170 for 15-18 minutes until they’re a pale golden colour and bounce back when gently pressed with your finger.

• Let them cool for a few minutes in the trays, then remove them to a cooling rack
• If you’re adding the syrup ( see NOTES) now’s the time to do this.

• Can I recommend that you put some newspaper or an old tea towel underneath the cupcakes to absorb the spills? This will save you a load of sticky cleaning up.
• Make up the syrup, and spoon it gently over each cake, then let them sit for a while, then you’re ready to make the icing.

The Icing:

• Weigh the cream cheese and butter into a bowl and using either a wooden spoon, or an electric beater, combine them together until completely mixed.
• At this stage, add your flavourings ( see NOTES)
• Weigh out the Icing sugar separately, then add it to the cheese/butter mixture, and mix until light and fluffy.
• It’s really important that you sift the icing sugar – otherwise you’re making a lot of work for yourself..
• Then either fill a piping bag, and go all artistic on me, or just spread it on with a knife (see notes below).
• Decorate with sprinkles and seasonal decorations ( it’s obviously Easter for these ones, but a little food colouring and festive sprinkles can make them Christmassy, and individual candles suitable for birthdays.

• I always find the icing quite soft, no matter how much icing sugar I put in, so I tend to keep these in the fridge before serving.

NOTES:

Flavourings:

1. a teaspoon of ground Cinnamon, or to taste
2. A capful of vanilla extract, or a teaspoon of vanilla paste, which has the seeds in it.
3. Grated zest and some of the juice of an orange or lemon.

• Cupcakes are supposed to be flat on top, but mine often aren’t! Don’t panic, the frosting covers a multitude, and they taste so good that I don’t believe you’ll hear many complaints!
• I sometimes don’t bother with the syrup, if I’m trying to reduce the over-all sugar content. However, I tend to (again!) add some lemon juice to cut the sugar. If these were for adults only, a drop of home-made Limoncello wouldn’t go amiss 😉
• I have to confess that I’m the world’s worst at dealing with icing – I get into a complete tizzy when I’m confronted with piping bags. So these days I just slap it on with a flat-bladed knife ,give it a bit of an artistic swirl, and hope that sprinkles and chocolate eggs will distract the punters!