Cupcake Craziness

This week has been a week of meetings, cupcakes, work, cupcakes, fete, AND cupcakes! I simply adore cupcakes but this has been a little much and I will be happy not to make another late-night or early-morning cupcake for a few weeks.  My little ladybug has also taken to skipping around the house singing the word "cake" so you can see how much cake has featured in our lives, this week!

Thursday afternoon marked our annual school fete.  As is now 'tradition' (or my personal tradition, at least),  my class was responsible for the cake stall.  Even though I knew this was going to be THE craziest week at work, I just couldn't help but get excited about planning my baking.  So I used A moment on the lips... as my recipe book and here's what happened...

Whole Orange Cupcakes with Zesty Cream Cheese Frosting

I used my Orange Cake recipe and baked the cupcakes for 20 minutes.  They turned out perfectly.  Take care not to overcook, however, as they'll get dry very quickly.  The sharpness of the frosting cuts through the sweet orange beautifully.

Sticky Date Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream and a Salted Caramel Drizzle

Sticky Date is my all time favourite dessert and these cupcakes completely did it justice.  Again, I used my Sticky Date Cake recipe and baked for 20 minutes.  They were light and spongy like a steamed pudding - beyond amazing! This is the buttercream recipe and I used the caramel sauce that I drizzle over the top of my Salted Caramel Cheesecake.

Chocolate Sponge with Chocolate Whipped Cream and Sprinkles

The only Chocolate Cake recipe I ever use is my Mum's because it's the best.  The batter is ridiculous and you have to make sure that you employ some self control so that you manage to get some cake into the oven!  These were topped with chocolate whipped cream and sprinkle because they make me smile.  

White Chocolate Mud Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

This is such a lovely recipe that works every time and is absolute heaven for white chocolate lovers....mmmm.  The cupcakes take a lot longer to bake than the others (45 minutes) but would still be worth it if they took 45 hours!  Cupcakes like this make people happy.

They looked amazing all packaged up and the rush was on to get in quickly enough to purchase a box of loveliness!

I urge you to try at least one of these wonderful recipes and let me know all about your beautiful baking adventures!

F. x

In a whizz...tizz

This week marked the first week back at school after holidays.  Please don't take my lack of postings during the week as I didn't have time to cook.  Oh no, lovelies.  I just didn't have time to post!  And now you reap the benefits of this as you are about to be in absolute sweetness overload.  I begin with Sunday night... 

During the working week, dessert in the evening is not a regular occurrence - despite what my lovely husband would prefer.  However, weekends mean baking time, cookbook reading time and....dessert time!  Sunday night mean soft, sweet Sticky Date Pudding.  While the dish itself oozes effort and time, in reality, it was whizzed up in the blender in about five minutes and cooked in the oven while we were eating dinner.  This is the easiest Sticky Date Pudding recipe you will ever come across.  You can just cook these in your muffin pans for perfect individual serves or in a dariol mould, as I did, for presentation. What you end up with is a delightfully moreish sponge pudding which becomes dense and sickly sweet with the addition of the warm butterscotch sauce - oooohhhh yes!!!

Sticky Date Pudding

200g dried dates, roughly chopped

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/4 cups boiling water

60g unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup S R Flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees and grease your chosen moulds.  Put the chopped dates, bicarb and boiling water into the blender jug and leave to soak.  After around 5 minutes, add the butter and sugar before pulsing 2 - 3 times.  Any more and your dates will be mush.  Tip in the flour and eggs and pulse again until just combined.

Use an icecream scoop to divide the mixture between the moulds.  This will ensure even distribution.  Bake for 25-30 minutes, depending on your oven.  You want a few crumbs on the skewer when tested.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes before turning out.  While they are resting, you can get on with your butterscotch sauce.

Butterscotch Sauce

1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar

300mL single (pure) cream

125g unsalted butter

Put all of your ingredients into a saucepan over a low heat.  Stir continuously as all ingredients melt in together.  Put into a pouring jug to serve with your puddings.

Don't forget the Vanilla Bean Icecream!

F. x