Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

As much as I go on about my love of chocolate, vanilla is actually my favourite flavour... and sometimes coffee is my favourite... then, I do love hazelnut... and caramel... and you can't really beat almond... or browned butter... or gingerbread... or cinnamon...

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

Makes about 15

adapted from here

For the Cupcakes:

1 cup "00" flour

¼ cup cornflour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

2 eggs, at room temperature

¾ cup caster sugar

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

½ cup canola oil

½ cup buttermilk

For the Frosting:

75g unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups icing sugar

1 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 - 2 tablespoons milk

Make the Cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a couple of cupcake pans with paper liners, you'll need about 15. Set aside.

Put both flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a mixing bow, whisk to mix and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs and sugar for about 3 minutes on high speed. Add the vanilla and oil and beat to mix for about 1 minute. Change to paddle attachment and reduce the speed to low. Add half of the flour mixture, followed by half of the buttermilk. Once combined, add the remaining flour mixture and the rest of the buttermilk. Mix until just combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared cupcake pan and fill the liners to half full.

Bake for 12- 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Make the Frosting:

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar util light and creamy.  Add the vanilla and beat until incorporated. Gradually add the milk a little at a time until it is a piping consistency. Beat for a further minute or so until really whipped and airy. Pipe onto the cooled cupcakes.

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

We have recently been away to watch and support our youngest son Joey (and his team) represent Victoria at the Australian Junior Volleyball Championships on the Gold Coast. The week before this event (an event that he has been training for for months) he came down with a vicious virus that beat him up quite a bit. It robbed him of his energy and appetite and even saw him at the hospital one night. Though he managed to be just well enough to fly out with the team, he played the first few matches still sick. As the week progressed, he slowly recovered. He is still on the Gold Coast at a training camp, eating meals for elite athletes. I'm guessing I'm going to have to make another batch of these cupcakes for when he gets home. I'm pretty sure he'll have his appetite for something decadent by then, if I know my boy.



Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting
Makes 12

For the Cupcakes:
125ml water
110g unsalted butter, chopped
1 egg
80g plain, unsweetened Greek yoghurt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
150g plain flour, sifted
¾ teaspoon baking soda, sifted
220g caster sugar
¼ teaspoon sea salt flakes
75g peanut butter (I use a natural one)
25g cocoa powder, sifted

For the Frosting:
300g caster sugar
75ml cold water
2 egg whites
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Make the Cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 160C.  Line a 12 hole cupcake pan with paper liners.  Set aside.

Put the water and butter into a large saucepan and heat until the butter has melted.  Remove from the heat and add the egg, yoghurt, vanilla, flour, baking soda, sugar and salt. Whisk to combine.  Placea third of the batter into a separate bowl and add the peanut butter.  Whisk until incorporated and smooth. Set aside.

Add the cocoa powder to the remaining batter and mix until smooth. Spoon the peanut butter batter into the bottom of each liner.  Top with the chocolate mixture. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Make the Frosting:
Put the sugar, water, egg whites, cram of tartar and salt into a heatproof bowl.  Whisk with a hand held electric beater until smooth, about 30 seconds. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water.  Don't let the pan touch the water. Continue to whisk the mixture at high speed for 7 minutes, or until stiff and glossy.  Remove from the heat, add the vanilla and beat until incorporated.

Spoon the frosting into a piping bag and pipe generously onto each cupcake.

Apple Butter, Cinnamon, Pecan Muffins

We grow apples.  When it's harvest time, we have lots of apples.  Too many to just enjoy fresh from the trees. I hate waste about as much as I love apples, so what doesn't  make it into compotes and crumbles or pies and pie holes, has to be preserved.  Last season I made apple butter for the first time... it won't be the last.  It's delicious spread on hot buttered toast, dolloped onto a bowlful of hot porridge (or any breakfast cereal for that matter), swirled though thick and tangy Greek yoghurt, used as a filling for a sponge cake along with some softly whipped cream, spooned on top of pancakes with a pat of slowly melting salted butter, or as a lush ingredient in some warm, moist breakfast muffins.  Apples never had it so good.

NOTE: Here's the recipe I used to make the apple butter, but you can also use store bought applesauce for this recipe.

Apple Butter, Cinnamon, Pecan Muffins
Makes 6

For the Topping:
¼ cup pecans, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon golden caster sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the Muffins:
180g self-raising flour
60g brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons finely chopped pecans
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
60ml buttermilk
60ml grape seed oil
1 cup homemade apple butter (or store bough applesauce)

Make the Topping:
Put all the topping ingredients into a small bowl and mix until combined.  Set aside.

Make the Muffins:
Preheat the oven to 180C.  Grease a 6 hole muffin pan generously with cooking oil spray.  Set aside.

Put the flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans into a large bowl and mix.   In a separate bowl, whisk the egg, vanilla, buttermilk, oil and apple butter together.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and stir until just combined.  Divide the batter between the muffins pans and spoon the topping mixture evenly on top of the muffins.  Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Leave the muffins to cool for 2 minutes in the pan before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Espresso and Hazelnut Friands

We arrived back home from a holiday in sunny Malaysia to freezing conditions... and a mountain of laundry. In KL ('cause that's what the cool kids call Kuala Lumpur), we breakfasted on the most delicious freshly made roti with bowls of dahl for dunking and large glasses of icy kopi tarik (iced coffee) in 35C heat.  The evening we arrived back in Melbourne, it was -4C!!!  One day we were sipping cold drinks in the sun, the next we were cupping hot mugs of coffee in our hands to keep warm.  Not that I'm complaining, I love breakfast no matter where I'm eating it.

Below are a few holiday snaps I took if you're interested (there are more on my IG page).  Otherwise, just scroll to the bottom for the recipe.

Espresso and Hazelnut Friands

slightly adapted from here

Makes 9

50g cacao powder

2 tablespoons cornflour

50g golden caster sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

230g ground hazelnuts

40g dark chocolate, chopped

100ml olive oil

125g honey

80ml brewed espresso

5 egg whites

Hazelnuts, roughly chopped

Preheat the oven to 180C.  Grease nine 110ml-capacity friand tins and line them with a strip of baking paper.  Set aside.

Sift the cacao powder, cournflour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large mixing bowl.  Add the ground hazelnuts and half of the chocolate.  Stir to combine and set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine the oil and honey and place over low heat until the honey is runny. Remove from the heat and add the espresso.  Set aside.

In a bowl, use a balloon whisk to whip the egg whites until frothy.  

Add the oil mixture and egg whites to the cacao mixture.  Gently fold to combine.  Spoon the batter into the prepared tins and sprinkle with chopped hazelnuts and remaining chocolate.

Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Leave to cool in tins for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

Chocolate Chip and Nut Muffins

You can get the recipe for these Chocolate Chip and Nut Muffins over at Bakelife. (Foodie life.)

Banana, Date and Cinnamon Muffins

When I'm running out of lunchbox snacks, it's time to break out the muffin pan.  That way I get to send the boys to school with a homemade treat and I get to enjoy a quiet breakfast of muffins and coffee.  It's a win-win situation.



Banana, Date and Cinnamon Muffins
Makes 12

For the Sugar Sprinkle Topping:
1 tablespoon raw caster sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the Muffins:
375g self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
220g raw caster sugar
1 egg
125ml grape seed oil (or other light flavoured oil)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
180ml buttermilk
12 medjool dates, pitted
1 medium banana

Make the Sugar Sprinkle Topping:
Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Set aside.

Make the Muffins:
Preheat the oven to 180C.  Line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners. Set aside.

Put the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar into a large mixing bowl.  Whisk briefly to combine.  Set aside.

Put the egg, oil and buttermilk in a separate bowl and whisk until thoroughly mixed.  Set aside.

Put the dates and banana into a blender (or use a stick blender) to blitz to a smooth puree. Add the puree to the buttermilk ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and stir gently until just combined.

Use an ice cream scoop to divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Sprinkle the tops with the sugar sprinkle topping and bake for about 20 - 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool

Coffee Cupcakes with Italian Meringue Frosting

Get the recipe for these delicious Coffee Cupcakes with Italian Meringue Frosting at Bakelife.  It's coffee to have with coffee... which can only be a good thing.