Easter Egg Nest with Gold Eggs

This is a chocolate base of cupcake topped with tangy lemon frosting and served with mini chocolate eggs. I really like those chocolate eggs. They are Green and Blacks Organic that we get in the UK. I have started to buy lots of Fair Trade Products. My local charity shop, Oxfam is not only a great place to get vintage recipe books but it is a superb source of these fair trade products. They have a great collection of chocolate products ideal for using in cupcakes recipes and a good way to support others fairly in developing countries.


Ingredients
4 oz--110 gm--1/2 cup Castor sugar
4 oz--110 gm--1/2 cup butter or margarine
4 oz--110 gm--1 cup self-raising flour
1 tsp of baking powder
2 tablespoons of organic cocoa powder like Green and Blacks or Fair Trade
2 eggs
1 tsp of vanilla essence or 1 pod
1 tablespoon of milk


Method
Cream the butter and sugar
Add the eggs one at a time and beat well
Add the flavorings
Sieve in the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder. Mix
Add milk
Place into cupcake cases. this makes 9 muffin size cupcakes or 14 to 16 small cupcakes.
Cook at gas 5, 375F, 190C, small cupcakes for 10 to 12 minutes, large cupcakes for 20 minutes. Double up quantities for more delicious cupcakes.


Lemon Icing --Frosting
1/2 cup icing sugar mixed with 1/4 cup of butter, when smooth add 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice. You can also add the grated rind of the lemon. Mix well till creamy and spread on top of the cupcakes. Top off with crushed flake chocolate and mini chocolate eggs of your choice.


Variations
1. Add Tia Maria instead of vanilla essence for a coffee liqueur cupcake recipe.
2. Add 1 good teaspoon of instant fair trade coffee diluted in 1 tablespoon of water to the mixture instead of the milk for a Coffee cupcake recipe
3.Top off with Chocolate Frosting.
Put 100gm--3 1/2 oz plain dark fair trade chocolate, 2 tablespoons of cream, and 50 gm--2 oz--1/4 cup of butter unsalted and heat gently in a pan until they are melted and then add 100 gm--3 1/2 oz icing sugar and mix well. Spread onto the cupcakes and top off with a coloured chocolate egg.
I hope you enjoy these Easter recipes.

enjoy!!

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Tiramisu Italian Trifle Cupcakes,my favourite

This cupcake uses the chocolate cupcake recipe
The basic chocolate cupcake recipe I use is this;
Ingredients
1 stick--1/2 cup--4 oz--112gm unsalted butter
1 cup--4 oz--112gm Castor sugar(this finer than our granulated)
1 cup--4 oz--112gm self-raising flour( this has a raising agent already in it)
2 tablespoons of cocoa powder-I use Green and Blacks 70% cocoa organic
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence or 1 fresh vanilla pod


Method
Put the butter into a bowl with the sugar and cream together with a wooden spoon or a mixer on a middle speed.
Add 1 egg and mix in
Add the second egg and mix in
Add the flour, baking powder and cocoa. I weigh these out first and then add to the mixture by sieving them through a large metal sieve so air gets in and the ingredients are mixed.
Mix together gently and add the vanilla essence.
Divide the mixture into cupcake cases and fill about 2/3 full.
This makes about 12 in muffin size cases as seen below.
I cook these at 175C--350F--gas 4 for 15 to 20 minutes in the middle to top of the oven.
I find that the higher they are in the oven the higher they rise up.
If nearer the middle the cupcakes are flatter.
Just experiment with positions in your oven. Mine is gas so the temperature varies.


Filling
I cut out a cone from each cupcake with a sharp knife.
Coffee and Sherry Mixture
I make some coffee and sherry mixture to go on the base sponge of each cupcake.
In a bowl place one teaspoon of sherry for each cupcake you are making.
Add to this one teaspoon of instant coffee for every 10 teaspoons of sherry. Add more or less according to your taste.
Drizzle one teaspoon of the coffee and sherry mixture into the base of each cupcake.


Marscapone Filling
Take a carton of marscapone cream cheese and put it into a bowl. I mix it with a fork to get it to a creamy consistency. Add a teaspoon of sherry and mix in. Add some fine sugar according to taste.
Place a spoonful of the marscapone into each cupcake.
Put the top on each cupcake.
Put a swirl of marscapone on the top of each cupcake
Top off each cupcake with a cherry, raspberry, strawberry or a slice of fresh orange.
Grate over some very dark chocolate
These are very rich and delicious if you like the coffee and marscapone combination. I love the texture of the cheese.


Thanks for reading.

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Banana Cupcakes--Egg Free

I have adapted this recipe from an old English vinegar cake. It is made by a rubbing in method and does not contain any eggs. I think it could be adapted further to use oil instead of butter, soya milk instead of cow's milk and then it would be a vegan cupcake recipe. I hope to try this out but with another type of flavouring instead of banana.
The resulting cupcake was moist in texture, light and spongy.
Ingredients
8 oz--225gm--2 cups plain flour
4 oz--112gm--1/2 cup butter
4 oz--112 gm--1/2 cup sugar
1/8 pint--125 ml of milk
1 1/2 tablespoons of vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
1/2 large banana mashed
Method
Sieve the flour into a bowl.
Add the butter which now needs to be cut into small dice size pieces.
Rub the fat and flour together until it is like fine crumbs, between your fingers and thumbs.
Add the sugar
Add the mashed banana and mix together.
Put the milk in a jug and add the vinegar.
In another container dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in 1 more additional tablespoon of milk.
Add this liquid to the milk and vinegar.
This will start to froth.
Add whilst still frothing to the banana and flour mixture.
Mix together and spoon into 12 cupcake cases, about 1/2 to 3/4 full, see photograph below.
Cook at gas 5, 190C, 375F for about 15 to 20 minutes. do not open for the first 14 minutes or else they will deflate.
Check with a wooden stick, if they are too sticky they are not cooked.
Cool on a tray


The flour and butter are rubbed together between the fingers and thumbs until it is like fine crumbs, see below.

The mashed banana is added to the flour and butter and mixed together.

The completed mixture is put into cupcake cases.

The cooked banana cupcakes recipe. Cool on a tray and think about the topping

Hope these turn out well.

Enjoy, thanks for reading

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Kumquat Cupcakes

I found these crystallized Kumquats at a French market.
Ingredients
4 oz--110 gm--1/2 cup sugar
4 oz--110 gm--1/2 cup unsalted butter or margarine
4 oz--110 gm--1 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
2 eggs
The seeds from 1 vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
1/2 cup of chopped crystallized kumquats for the mixture
Topping
1/2 cup kumquats to decorate the top of the cupcakes
angelica for the cupcake decoration
cream cheese
juice of 1/2 lemon for topping
Method
Cream the butter and sugar
Add the eggs one at a time and mix in well.
Add the vanilla essence and chopped kumquats
Sieve in the flour and baking powder
Mix gently together
Put into cupcake cases
Bake at gas 5, 375F, 190C for 20 minutes
Cool
Topping
Mix together some cream cheese and lemon juice, add a dash of fine sugar to taste.
Spread onto cupcakes.
Add kumquats and angelica
Enjoy



Thanks for reading. Enjoy

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Chocolate and Strawberry Cupcakes

For this recipe I have used the chocolate cupcake recipe but adapted the filling. I have filled the chocolate cupcakes with a large spoonful of delicious strawberry jam or preserve. Use the best you can buy or make your own in season.

I have topped off the cakes with marscapone cream cheese which I have mixed in some vanilla essence so that it is smooth and creamy. If you like add some sugar but I think it is sweet enough with the strawberry jam.

I topped the cupcakes off with fresh strawberries.





I think these are very moist, tasty and very indulgent. Enjoy

Thanks for reading

There are lots more ideas and recipes in the labels list and archives

Crazycupcakes

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Basic Vanilla Cup Cake Recipe

Ingredients
5 oz (150g)	Butter - softened
5 oz (150g)	superfine (castor) sugar
6 oz (175g)	self-raising flour
3	eggs
1 tsp	vanilla extract
Method
1.	Pre-heat the oven to 350oF (180oC).
2.	Line a 12 cup cake pan, with cup cake papers.
3.	Crack the eggs into a cup and beat lightly with a fork.
4.	Place all the ingredients in a large bowl.
5.	Beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes, until light and creamy.
6.	Divide the mixture evenly between the cake cases.
7.	Bake for 18-20 minutes until risen and firm to touch.
8.	Allow to cool for a few minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.
9.	Allow to cool fully before icing.
Notes
Makes 12 cakes. Try this easy Chocolate Icing or if you prefer Vanilla Icing.

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