Lemon Cupcakes
Yesterday was a good day. I needed to relax, unwind and just talk bullshit for a while and A&L were there to help, which was even better. Thay stayed for lunch, and the afternoon passed so quickly I'm still wondering where the hours went. I've been missing them.
Anyway, the point of this post is not to be maudling and all sing Auld Lang Syne togheter, but to share a great recipe I discovered :)
Yesterday I made a batch of the infamous chocolate-cherry muffins, and a batch of lemon fairy cakes, a modified version of Nigella's recipe. They were a hit, quick to make and when all is done you're left with just a couple of things to wash, which is even better.
Give it a try!
LEMON FAIRY CAKES
.125g unsalted butter, softened
.125g caster sugar
.2 large eggs
.125g self-raising flour
.half teaspoon vanilla extract
(better yet, acqua di fiori d'arancio)
.2 tablespoons milk
.2 lemons, zest.
.1 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice
For frosting
.1 third of softened butter
.2 thirds of cream cheese,(philadelphia or similar)
.caster sugar
.lemon juice
.candied orange peels for decoration
.12-bun muffin tin lined with 12 muffin papers
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 6.
Put all the ingredients except for the milk and lemon joice in the processor and then blitz till smooth. Add first the lemon and then the milk, pulsing to make for a soft, dropping consistency.
I know it looks as if you'll never make this scant mixture fit 12 bun cases, but you will, so just spoon and scrape the stuff in, trying to fill each case equally.
Put in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the fairy cakes are cooked and golden on top.
Let them cool.
Stir the chees and butter with a wooden spoon till soft and smooth, add abut a teaspoon of lemon juice and the sugar, not too much since the cakes are pretty sweet on their own. The frosting should be a bit more sour than sweet. Spread on the cakes, top with orange peels.
NB:
The original recipe used royal icing, which looks much better but it's far too sweet and hard to work well with these spongy, already quite sweet cakes. I wanted a softer icing, with a slightly sour taste to balance out the sweetness. It worked quite well ^_^
Makes 12
Original Recipe from Nigella.com.
Anyway, the point of this post is not to be maudling and all sing Auld Lang Syne togheter, but to share a great recipe I discovered :)
Yesterday I made a batch of the infamous chocolate-cherry muffins, and a batch of lemon fairy cakes, a modified version of Nigella's recipe. They were a hit, quick to make and when all is done you're left with just a couple of things to wash, which is even better.
Give it a try!
LEMON FAIRY CAKES
.125g unsalted butter, softened
.125g caster sugar
.2 large eggs
.125g self-raising flour
.half teaspoon vanilla extract
(better yet, acqua di fiori d'arancio)
.2 tablespoons milk
.2 lemons, zest.
.1 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice
For frosting
.1 third of softened butter
.2 thirds of cream cheese,(philadelphia or similar)
.caster sugar
.lemon juice
.candied orange peels for decoration
.12-bun muffin tin lined with 12 muffin papers
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 6.
Put all the ingredients except for the milk and lemon joice in the processor and then blitz till smooth. Add first the lemon and then the milk, pulsing to make for a soft, dropping consistency.
I know it looks as if you'll never make this scant mixture fit 12 bun cases, but you will, so just spoon and scrape the stuff in, trying to fill each case equally.
Put in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the fairy cakes are cooked and golden on top.
Let them cool.
Stir the chees and butter with a wooden spoon till soft and smooth, add abut a teaspoon of lemon juice and the sugar, not too much since the cakes are pretty sweet on their own. The frosting should be a bit more sour than sweet. Spread on the cakes, top with orange peels.
NB:
The original recipe used royal icing, which looks much better but it's far too sweet and hard to work well with these spongy, already quite sweet cakes. I wanted a softer icing, with a slightly sour taste to balance out the sweetness. It worked quite well ^_^
Makes 12
Original Recipe from Nigella.com.