cupcakes – Sweet Tooth Experiments

Jam Doughnut Cupcakes

Posted on December 15, 2018 Posted in Cupcakes .

Jam Doughnut Cupcakes

I have made jam doughnuts before, both fried and baked, and though they have turned out delicious they are quite a bit of work…proving…pushing back…rising…hours of waiting…

I wanted to make something that was easy quick and tastiest as close to a jam doughnut as possible.

My solution to this? Hello jam doughnut cupcake. This sweet treat is a mix between doughnut batter and cupcake batter with the traditional jam in the center.

Yes these are baked therefore the texture is different to a usual doughnut but I have kept the butter and sugar cinnamon element alive.

Lastly, true to a cupcake mandatory I have made a jam frosting for extra creaminess and jam emphasis.

Ingredients:

Cupcake:

310g self raising flour
70g plain flour
180g sugar, plus 2 tbsn extra
110ml cooking oil
2 eggs
240ml milk
1 tsn vanilla essence
150g raspberry jam

Icing:

60g butter, plus 40g extra
70g raspberry jam
120g icing sugar
1 tsn cinnamon

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 200c degrees and line 18 medium cupcake patties into a medium sized cupcake tin.
Sift the flours and sugar into a bowl and make a well in the center.
In a separate bowl place the oil, eggs, milk and vanilla. Whisk with a hand whisk until well combined.
Pour the oil mix into the flour mix and beat with the hand whisk until well combined.
Spoon half the batter into the 18 cupcake patty cases.
Spoon the 70g of jam evenly into the middle of the cupcake patties on top of the batter.
Spoon the remaining batter on top of the jam, covering the jam completely.
Bake the cupcakes in the oven for 15-18 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean (being mindful of the jam in which should still be of jam consistency).
Place cupcakes onto a cooling rack until cold.
Use a pastry brush to brush the cupcake tops with the 50g of melted butter.
Sprinkle the 2 tbsn of sugar and the 1 tsn of cinnamon into a bowl and stir.
Place the cupcake top side down onto the cinnamon sugar bowl and push to coat the top of the cupcake well.
Place the icing ingredients into a bowl and using electric beaters beat until light and fluffy.
Using a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle pipe the icing onto the cupcakes.
Enjoy!

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Melon Lime and Prosciutto Cupcakes

Posted on February 16, 2018 Posted in Cupcakes .

Melon Lime and Prosciutto Cupcakes

I noticed the other day that my local shopping plaza has a new, fruit/veg store that also has a lot of Asian and Italian imported groceries (bazaar mix I know) that you can’t get at Coles or Woolworths.

After walking around the aisles I stopped and had to suss out the massive range of normal as well as quite unusual flavours of essence/extracts. Some of them I had no idea at all what they were and some I had no idea would exist as an essence.

So when I saw the melon flavour and the pear flavour essence I had to buy them to make up unusual recipes.

Melon was the one that I most wanted to bake with, as the usual method of melon flavour in baking tends to be very light in flavour if using the flesh of the fruit.

As my favourite melon is by far watermelon I decided to use this fruit with the essence and teamed them up with lime (in which goes quite well with majority of melon varieties).

In addition to the lime for an unusual spin I researched what else could go with the melon lime flavour, where a recipe of melon and prosciutto skewers caught my eye. I figured I’ve made chocolate bacon cake with maple frosting in the past which worked like a dream so this could also potentially be a winning combo in a cake.

Using my never fail vanilla cupcake recipe as my base I played around with the ingredients to get the texture, consistency, bake outcome and of course flavour that I was pleased with.

So if your a melon fan keep an eye out when in grocery specialty stores as you will LOVE this recipe!

Ingredients:

Cake:

55g prosciutto
120ml watermelon reduction (900g watermelon flesh required for recipe inc. icing)
140g brown sugar
160g cake flour
1 + ¼ tsn baking powder
½ tsn bicarbonate of soda
½ tsn salt
2 eggs
2 tsn melon essence
½ tsn lime zest
120g butter

Icing:

10ml watermelon reduction
5ml milk
160g icing sugar
180g butter
1 tsn lime zest
1 + 1/2 tsn melon essence

Method:

Place the prosciutto slices in a frying pan with a little oil and allow to crisp up. Turn the slices over and fry until brown and crispy, set aside to cool.
Once cooled finely dice the meat into small pieces.
Cut the watermelon and place 900g of the flesh into a food processor. Blitz until liquefied.
Pass through a sieve and use the back of a spoon to push all the liquid out, disregard the leftover flesh.
Pour the liquid into a large saucepan with 40g of the sugar and simmer, stirring occasionally, on medium until the liquid reduces down to 140ml.
Once you have the required 140ml of reduction set the liquid aside to cool (the reduction process will take about 20 minutes).
Meanwhile pre-heat the oven to 175c degrees and line a 16-space cupcake tin with patty cases.
Spray the cases slightly with oil spray.
In a small bowl sieve the flour, powder, soda and salt. Repeat 2 more times.
In another bowl beat the eggs until light and fluffy with electric beaters.
Add the remaining 100g sugar, essence, and zest to the egg mix and beat until pale and fluffy, this will take around 5 minutes.
Add the butter and 40g of the chopped prosciutto, beat until combine.
Pour half the watermelon reduction (60ml) into the egg cake batter and fold until just combine. Add half the flour mix and fold until just combine. Repeat with remaining reduction (60ml) and flour mix until just combine.
Beat the mix on low for 30 seconds with the electric beaters to remove any flour lumps.
Pour the batter into each patty cases until ¾ full and place the pan in the oven for 15 minutes of until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Meanwhile, make the icing by placing all the icing ingredients in a bowl and whisk with electric beaters for 5 minutes.
Once the cupcakes are cooked leave on a cooling rack until cold.
When the cupcakes are cold place the icing in a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe the icing as you wish.
Top icing with scatters of the remaining 15g of prosciutto and enjoy!

Note:

I have deliberately ensured an extra 10ml of reduction for the ‘just in case factor’.
For a cheat and to cut down the recipe prep time you can use store brought melon nectar instead of the watermelon reduction.


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Low Fat Dark Chocolate Balsamic and Almond Cupcakes

Posted on February 25, 2017 Posted in Cupcakes .

Low Fat Dark Chocolate Balsamic and Almond Cupcakes

Low fat, sound too good to be true? I’d say less than 6g of butter per cupcake is pretty damn good! How does this treat still tastes amazing with such little butter content? A little trick, replacing 60% of the butter with apple puree as I promise no one will even notice!

How chocolate, balsamic and almonds was invented? So balsamic vinegar works brilliantly with strawberries as it brings out the sweetness and intensifies the flavor profile. So I figured if I used the balsamic with the dark chocolate it would have a similar effect and I was right

Additionally, the almond provides a lovely complementary texture and satisfying crunch to the recipe.

This recipe is a lovely twist on the usual chocolate cupcake and you can eat with a clear conscious!

Ingredients:

200g flour
50g cocoa powder
4 tsn baking powder
80g sugar
160g 70% dark chocolate
80g roasted almonds
70g butter
100g apple puree
2 eggs
140ml milk
2 + 1/2 tbsn Balsamic vinegar

Icing:

300g icing sugar
25g cocoa powder
70g balsamic vinegar

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 200c degrees and line a 12 hole cupcake tin with patty cases.
Sieve the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder and sugar in a bowl and stir to combine.
Chop the chocolate and almonds into really small pieces and place into the flour mix, stir.
Melt the butter in a bowl in the microwave and add the milk, puree, vinegar and eggs. Whisk with a hand whisk until well combined.
Pour the milk mix into the flour mix and using a hand whisk beat until just combine.
Pour the batter into the patty cases and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until and skewer in the center comes out clean.
Place the cupcakes onto a cooling rack until cool.
Meanwhile to make the icing beat the ingredients until well combined.
Using a spatula spread the icing over the cupcake evenly.
Grate extra chocolate and dice almonds over the icing.


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Watermelon Rose and Strawberry Cupcakes

Posted on February 11, 2017 Posted in Cupcakes .

Watermelon Rose and Strawberry Cupcakes

Watermelon would have to be one of my favorite fruits, just ahead of cherries and strawberries. To compliment the watermelon flavour I opted for a pairing with strawberries and to top off the floral delicate flavours the addition of rosewater.

As I have made a cake with watermelon previously (see my Couscous Strawberry and Watermelon Cake) I decided to make cupcakes this time with my never fail amazing cupcake recipe as a base.

Outcome, a rich, moist, melt in your mouth cupcake that is packed with flavour in every bite!

Ingredients:

Cake:

220g cake flour
1 tsn baking powder
½ tsn soda
1/8 tsn salt
2 eggs
200g sugar
1 tsn strawberry essence
1 tsn rosewater essence
120ml butter
160g strawberry jam
80ml buttermilk
120ml watermelon reduction (1.2kg watermelon flesh required for recipe inc. icing)

Icing:

60g watermelon reduction
60g butter
½ tsn strawberry essence
200g icing sugar

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 175c degrees and line a 16-space cupcake tin with patty cases.
Spray the cases slightly with oil spray.
Cut watermelon and place 1.2kg of flesh into a food processor. Blitz until liquefied.
Pour the mix into a large saucepan and simmer on medium until the liquid reduces down to 200ml.
Pass the reduction through a sieve to catch the seeds and unwanted flesh, set aside.
In a small bowl sieve the flour, powder, soda and salt. Repeat 2 more times.
In another bowl beat the eggs until light and fluffy with electric beaters for 2 minutes.
Slowly add the sugar while beating.
Add the essence and beat to combine.
Add the butter slightly melted as well as the jam and beat.
Place 120ml of the watermelon reduction and the buttermilk in a bowl and stir to combine.
Add half the reduction buttermilk mix to the batter and beat until combine. Add half the flour mix and beat. Repeat with remaining buttermilk mix and flour mix until well combine.
Pour the batter into the patty cases to ¾ full and place in the oven for 15 minutes of until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Meanwhile make the icing by placing 50g of the remaining watermelon reduction, butter, strawberry essence and icing in a bowl and beat with electric beaters until light and fluffy.
Once the cupcakes have cooked leave on a cooling rack.
When the cupcakes are at room temperature place the icing in a piping bag with a star nozzle, pipe and enjoy.

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Miso Chocolate Cupcakes

Posted on November 27, 2016 Posted in Cupcakes .

Tamarin Chocolate Cupcake recipe

This recipe is not the first time I have baked with Miso paste (see my Miso Doughnuts), so it’s safe to say I have previously identified that Miso can actually work quite well on the sweet side of eating.

However, what I haven’t done is paired the miso flavor with another taste that it can work in balance with. After a few pairing combo trials, it was the sturdy and always reliable dark chocolate that came up trumps.

What the miso did was took the chocolate to the next level, placing a beautiful twist on the flavor and turning it into a completely unique palate.

Ingredients:

Cupcake:

160g self-rising flour
½ tsn salt
150g brown sugar
50g cacao powder
2 eggs
1 tsn vanilla essence
½ cup oil
135ml buttermilk
2 tsn miso paste

Icing:

60g cacao powder
240g butter, at room temperature
80g brown sugar
1 tsn miso paste

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180c degrees and line a 12 cupcake patty tin with patty cases.
Sieve the flour, salt, sugar and cacao powder into a bowl and stir to combine.
Place the eggs, vanilla, oil, buttermilk and miso into a bowl and using a hand whisk beat until combine.
Pour the wet mix into the dry bowl and stir until well combined.
Pour the mix evenly into the patty cases.
Bake in the oven for 14 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Place the cupcakes onto a cooling rack until cooled.
Make the icing by placing all ingredients into a bowl and beating with electric beaters for 5 minutes or until light and creamy. Place in the fridge to harden.
To ice the cupcakes place the icing into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe evenly on all cupcakes.
Enjoy!

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Mandarin Cupcakes

Posted on November 13, 2016 Posted in Cupcakes .

I’m not really a big fan of mandarins, they are ok but I’d much prefer an orange over mandarins any day. However as this fruit is not common in baking I of course had to create a recipe that not only included this fruit as an ingredient but “heroed” the fruit and had to tasted bloody delicious. For this reason this recipe makes it to my blog – I was super surprised at how amazingly tasty these cupcakes are.

Ingredients:

180g butter
1 cup white sugar
1 tsn vanilla essence
2 mandarins (2 zest and juice)
3 eggs
2 cups self raising four
¾ cup yoghurt

Icing:

250g cream cheese
2 + 1/3 cups icing sugar
1 mandarin (zest for icing and segments for decoration)

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 180c degrees and line a 16 hole cupcake pan with patty cases.
Beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla and zest until pale and smooth.
Add the eggs one at a time.
Squeeze the 2 mandarins with a juicer for the juice.
Fold through the flour, yoghurt and juice until the batter is well combined.
Spoon batter into cupcake patties until 2/3 full.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool on cooling tray.
To make the icing beat together ingredients for 5 minutes until smooth and creamy .
Pipe icing on top of the cupcakes and top with half a mandarin segment.

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Bourbon Cola Chocolate Cupcakes

Posted on July 10, 2016 Posted in Cupcakes .

Bourbon Cola Chocolate Cupcakes

If you’re a frequent visitor to this blog you will be well aware that I have a habit of baking with liquors or alcoholic beverages. Additionally, I have baked with soft drinks, even used melted ice-cream as the wet element in the cake batters. Cola has featured in my recipes before on this blog and bourbon in a few recipes. However, I have never used these ingredients in a recipe together. So after having a bourbon and cola mixed drink left over from pre-drinks I decided to use the pre-mixed can in a recipe. To add an extra layer to this I opted for an ingredient that I knew worked amazingly with both of these flavours, being, dark chocolate.

From here the bourbon cola chocolate cupcakes were born.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

210g plain flour
60g cocoa powder
1 + ½ tsn bicarbonate of soda
1 tsn baking powder
180g brown sugar
2 eggs
2oog buttermilk
210ml bourbon and cola drink
90g butter, melted
1 tsn vanilla essence

Icing:

255g icing sugar
40g butter
60ml bourbon and cola drink
½ tsn salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 180c degrees and line a 12-capacity cupcake tin with cupcake patties.
Add all the wet ingredients into a bowl and beat with electric beater on medium for 1 minute.
Then add all the dry ingredients via a sieve and beat with an electric beater on medium for 2 minutes until the batter is smooth.
Pour batter into the patties and bake for 20 minutes or until the skewer comes out clean.
Transfer cupcakes onto a wire cooling rack.
To make the icing place the ingredients into a bowl and beat from 2 minutes with electric beaters or until light and fluffy.
Place the icing into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe onto each cupcake.

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Low Fat White Chocolate Lemongrass Salted Macadamia Cupcakes

Posted on May 30, 2016 Posted in Cupcakes .

Low Fat White Chocolate Lemongrass Salted Macadamia Cupcakes

You are correct, white chocolate and macadamia is a stock-standard flavor combo, nothing new or unusual here. And lemon, well this is also a very common baking ingredient that is sometimes paired with white chocolate. The reason these flavors are common is because they are so divine together. So if I’m creative a recipe that’s stock-standard what is going on and why even bother making up a recipe? The hero ingredient in which I have never baked with before and don’t believe I have ever even heard of being in a sweet treat before is the Lemongrass (also lemon and macadamia is a little unusual in itself but not enough for me to create a recipe off). The lemongrass provides a lovely variation to the norm lemon flavor, the salted macadamia provides a lovely crunch texture to the cupcake and the salt elevates the tone in the white chocolate making this cupcake super delicious and walks all over any lemon cupcake I have ever had! Also, the natural yoghurt and the lemon juice adds a slight sourness and bitterness that offsets the intense sweetness of the icing sugar making the icing a lovely more restrained addition.

Ingredients:

250g flour
4 tsn baking powder
½ tsn salt
80g sugar
160g white chocolate
80g macadamias
40g Lemongrass
1 tbsn lemon zest
70g butter
100g apple puree
140ml buttermilk
2 eggs

Icing:

70ml natural yoghurt
300g icing sugar
15ml lemon juice

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 200c degrees and line a 12 hole cupcake tin with patty cases.
Sieve the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a bowl and stir to combine.
Chop the white chocolate and macadamia into small pieces and place into the flour mix, stir.
Grate the lemongrass and stir into the flour mix.
Melt the butter in a bowl in the microwave and add the buttermilk, puree and eggs. Whisk with a hand whisk until well combined.
Pour the milk mix into the flour mix and using a hand whisk beat until just combine.
Pour the batter into the patty cases and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until and skewer in the center comes out clean.
Place the cupcakes onto a cooling rack until cool.
Meanwhile to make the icing beat the ingredients until well combined.
Using a spatula spread over the cupcake evenly.
Grate extra white chocolate, macadamia and lemon zest over the icing.


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Millet Chocolate Chili and Cinnamon Cupcakes

Posted on February 1, 2016 Posted in Cupcakes .

Millet Chocolate Chili and Cinnamon Cupcakes

This was quite an interesting experiment for me as I have never ever cooked with millet. In fact before I read a little on this grain online I never knew it existed. How I came to baking with this ingredient?

I had a grain salad while out for lunch recently and one of the ingredients was Freekeh, which I have had before but never knew what it was. I really liked the way the Freekeh was cooked and tasted in the salad and as I have dabbled with grain baking in the past (Quinoa Berry Christmas Cake as an example) I decided I wanted to experiment with this ingredients.

As I was doing my research into the Freekeh grain I came across the millet grain which is quite similar to couscous, which I have baked a cake with before.

I figured that as I had a Sunday free I would buy both ingredients and make Freekeh based cupcakes and Millet based cupcakes. Now they both have completely different textures and flavor profiles so the flavor pairings and base cupcake ingredients were different but the results were interesting.

The freekeh chocolate and peanut cupcakes were ok but I noticed over time the freekeh lost its softness and was too hard in the mix (maybe my fault for under cooking??).

The Millet cupcakes were vanilla and macadamia nut to enhance the millets nutty flavor…this was not an exciting cupcake to rave about. I then decided to use the millet as a texture not as a flavor profile and added chilli, chocolate and cinnamon to the mix. The outcome of this was great, the texture of the millet is really soft and light and adds a texture pop to the treat. As for the Freekeh…it may just be a lost cause but I’m sure I will try again in the near future.

Ingredients:

Millet:

180g millet
360g water
30g butter

Cake:

1 egg
100g sugar
90ml buttermilk
90ml canola oil
30g cocoa powder
1 tsn ground cinnamon
160g flour
½ tsn baking powder
¼ tsn bicarbonate of soda
Pinch salt
¼ tsn chili powder

Frosting:

200g icing sugar
30g cocoa powder
100g butter
¼ tsn chili powder
½ tsn ground cinnamon

Method:

Pre heat the oven to 175c degrees and line a 12 capacity cupcake tin with patties.
Place the millet in a frying pan on high and stir until the millet is slightly golden.
Add 360ml water to the pan and turn the heat to a simmer stirring.
Add the butter, stir and leave the millet to 90% absorb the water.
Take the millet off the heat and leave aside to cool and absorb the liquid fully.
Place the egg and sugar in a bowl and using electric beaters whisk until pale and fluffy.
Add the oil and buttermilk and whisk for 1 minute.
Add the remaining ingredients (the dry ingredients), stir with a spoon until just combine.
Beat with the electric beaters until smooth and silky.
Add the cooked millet and beat until combine.
Pour the mix into the patties and bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Set the cooked cupcakes aside to cool.
To make the frosting place all the ingredients into a bowl and using electric beaters whisk until fluffy and combine.
Once the cupcakes are cooled using a piping bag and a star piping nozzle frost the cupcakes.
Enjoy.

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Whisky Chocolate Cupcakes with Spiked Ganache

Posted on January 3, 2016 Posted in Cupcakes .

Whisky Chocolate Cupcakes with Spiked Ganache

Ok so this is a little similar to recipes I have made up in the past but I promise it is still experimental.

I don’t actual think I have ever consumed whisky before, in fact, I know that buying it for this recipe was the first time I have ever purchased the liquor but after a few interesting conversations with whisky lovers I was inspired to experiment with whisky baking.

After I had the whisky I brought a few different types of chocolate and did the taste test thing. Outcome, dark chocolate was a goer and to be honest the subtitle whisky flavor against the rich chocolate was actually quite appealing (even to a non drinker)!

After a bit of playing around with ratios I finally came to a recipe that I was quite happy with.

And how do you top a moreish and rich cupcake? With a moreish and rich spiked ganache!

Ingredients:

Cupcake:

200g brown sugar
125 butter
90ml Whisky
100g dark chocolate
150ml milk
¼ tsn salt
2 eggs
120g self raising flour
60g cocoa powder

Icing:

375g dark chocolate
30ml Whisky
135ml cream

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 180c degrees and line 20 medium sized cupcake patties in a cupcake tin.
Place the sugar, butter, Whisky, chocolate, milk and salt into a saucepan and stir continuously on a simmering heat until smooth.
Take off the heat and allow to cool in the pan completely.
Using a hand whisk beat in the eggs one at a time into the Whisky mix.
Sift the flour and the cocoa to the Whisky mix and whisk until well combined.
Pour the mix into the prepared patties until ¾ full.
Place the tin in the oven and bake for 15-18 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Leave aside to cool completely.
To make the icing, place the cream in a bowl in the microwave and heat until boiling.
Add the chocolate and leave for 1 minute, then whisk until smooth and glossy.
Add the Whisky and whisk until combine.
Place the icing in the fridge for 20 minutes to thicken and cool completely.
Place the icing in a piping bag fit with a star nozzle and pipe the icing over the top of the cupcakes.

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