Showing posts with label cupcakes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cupcakes. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

One of My Favourites :: Raspberry & Coconut Cupcakes


These little ruby-filled cakes are so my one of my favourites that I made over 100 of them for my wedding reception!  I can't claim this recipe as my own even though I have made some changes.  It came to me via my dear friend Mim who had made her alterations after finding it in one of her recipe books (I suspect it was a Marie Claire but I can't be sure).

I used to call them friands, even though they really aren't, due to the friand pan I used to bake them in.  But now, with all the different patty cases available, and the fact they mean less cleaning, they have morphed into the humble cupcake.

As you know, I am never one to keep a recipe to myself as I love it when others like something I've made so much that they would like to make it for themselves!  Plus, I rarely create my own recipes, only adapt other's so I really have no right to keep anything to myself.



Rasberry & Coconut Cupcakes (I think the original name was Baby Raspberry & Coconut Cakes)
makes 12.

125 g unsalted butter
1/3 cup almond meal
3/4 dessicated coconut
3/4 cup caster sugar (or sifted icing sugar)
1/2 cup plain flour, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
24 raspberries, fresh or frozen (I use frozen)

1. Preheat oven 180C fan forced. (conventional just cook for further 3 mins or until cooked through)

2. Place butter in a saucepan over low heat and melt until it is very light golden colour.

3. Place almond meal, coconut, sugar, flour and baking powder in a bowl and using a hand held mixer, mix until combined.  Add egg and mix.  Add melted butter and mix until well combined.

4. Pour or spoon mixture into prepared patty cases and sprinkle with 2 raspberries per patty case.  As Nigella told me, I use one of those icecream scoops that you squeeze the handle to release the contents of the spoon.

5. Bake for 12-15 mins (18 mins conventional depending on oven) or until cakes are golden and springy to touch and moist in the centre.

Serve warm with double cream or serve cold with a dollop of greek yoghurt.  Lovely to have with any type of tea but today we had them with a good old glass of milk
.



Okey dokey, if you want to make them more friand-like, increase sugar to 1 2/3 cups icing sugar sifted, and use 5 egg whites instead of 3 whole eggs.



By the way, I do love the look of sweet baked goodies with a powdering of icing sugar on top but I can't bring myself to do it as I think we consume way too much sugar in this household as it is.  I usually halve the amount of sugar in most recipes (as I did with this one).

Oh I do hope you like these as much as we do!

xxx

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Yes Cake!

Can you have a party without a cake?  I guess you can seeing that Rick and I didn't have a wedding cake (I baked about 100 Raspberry & Coconut cakes- more about that another time) . . . but can you have a 1st birthday celebration without a special cake?  I don't think so!  It just wouldn't be the same. 

So, being brave and new, I decided that it was time that I should confront fondant and tell it who's boss.  Ok, I actually enlisted the help of my friend Jen who has made a few multiple storey fondant decked cakes for her daughter's birthdays- but asking for help is not breaking the rules!

So you start with about three of these chocolate numbers.  Don't be put off if your cake sinks in the middle because you cut them to size and lay them like bricks with a butter frosting morter.


I bought that apron in San Fransisco and love it - thought I'd let you know . . .
Then you cut your fondant, add your dye paste and knead, roll and wrap!  Jen took these photos and laid the fondant on the cake for me (I didn't have time for mistakes so she did it!)




But I covered these vanilla cupcakes.  Oops, a bit of icing powder here and there!





This is the end result.  One happy little birthday fella and his little family!


Will I use fondant again?  Yes, perhaps.  It is totally a visual thing for me as I don't like to eat it as much as I like eating a sourcream frosting or a decadent chocolate ganache (with or without the cake!!)

So, I think I can tick fondant off my list of brave and new things despite the excessive use of icing sugar. 

xxx

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