happy new year cupcakes

So...what to do with the left over mincemeat and brandy?  Somehow it just seems a bit wrong to make more mince pies once Christmas is over and done with so Happy New Year cupcakes it is then.

to make 24 cupcakes
150g stork for cakes
100g caster sugar
3 eggs
150g self-raising flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
200g mincemeat
1 tsp mixed spice

preheat oven to 170c.  I had it set to 180c for the first batch and a couple caught a little.  I think this is down to the high sugar content of the mincemeat.  Second batch went in at 170c and were just fine.

Cream together butter, sugar and mincemeat.  Add the eggs one by one then the dry ingredients.  Put a spoonful (I find a soup spoon is just right) into paper cases in a bun tin and bake for about 15 minutes.

for the butter icing
250g butter
500g icing sugar
3 tbsp brandy

To finish, I sprinkled a little bit of cinnamon on top for extra decoration.  Now to find some people of New Year's diets!

butterfly cupcakes

Specially for a little girl's birthday party

Had the great honour of making an army of cupcakes for a little girl's birthday party so made 20 each of lemon and strawberry cupcakes decorated with lashings of butter icing and little white butterflies, and filled with jam.


to make just 20 cakes
150g stork for cakes
150g caster sugar
3 eggs (free-rangers of course)
150g self-raising flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp lemon or strawberry flavouring
1/2 jar of lemon curd or strawberry jam (not the lumpy sort though)

preheat oven to 180c.  Put the paper cases into bun tins ready
soften the stork then beat in the caster sugar
add eggs one at a time
mix in the flour, baking powder and flavouring
half fill the paper cases and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch
leave to cool
once cooled inject the cakes with the jam/lemon curd until it squirts out the top a little


for the butter icing topping
250g unsalted butter
500g icing sugar
2 tsp lemon or strawberry flavouring
a few drops of yellow or red colouring

beat the butter until soft
gradually add the icing sugar
add flavouring and colouring
pipe on to cakes in a fancy swirl



                   I topped the cakes with little butterflies made from ready-made icing.  I've got a nifty little cutter that cuts out the shape and prints the butterfly patterns on the icing all in one go.  To give them a bit of shape I hung them on wooden skewers (patterned side down) until firm then stuck them onto the butter icing before that set.



feed to small children and stand well back while they get a sugar rush then a hit of artificial colouring!