Banana & Raspberry Muffins

Fruity muffins are one of my favourite types of baked good. I tried out this tasty banana and raspberry recipe today so thought I would share with you. If you like the sweetness of banana combined with the slight tartness of raspberry, these will be perfect for you. 
They are super easy to make and have a lovely bouncy and light consistency that makes them feel guilt free.

Recipe: Makes 12
250g Plain Flour
170g Light Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Bi Carbonate of Soda
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Salt
2 Eggs
3 Mashed Ripe Bananas
75ml Vegetable Oil
75ml Milk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
170g Fresh or Frozen Raspberries

Method: 
1. Preheat oven to 190C. Either line your muffin tin with cases or like me, use kitchen roll and tiny bit of butter to grease your tin instead of using individual cases.
2. In a medium sized bowl, combine all dry ingredients: flour, sugar, bi carb, baking powder and salt.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the mashed banana, eggs, milk, oil and vanilla until combined.
4. Add dry ingredients to banana mixture and combine. 
5. Chop raspberries into quarters and fold the majority into the mixture, saving a few to sprinkle on top.
6. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until a knife or skewer comes out of the muffin clean.
7. Leave to cool in the tin for around 5 minutes before removing.

And there we have it! They're lovely with a cuppa!

Whats your favourite type of Muffin?

Salted Caramel Dark Choc Chip Cupcakes

Hi again! Long time no speak!

Salted Caramel is one of my favourite things of all time. I'm not always a fan of sweet with savoury but I just feel that salted caramel really really works. As it is now Autumn (my absolute favourite time of the year) I thought it was time to bring out the Autumnal-ish bakes! This is a recipe that I haven't attempted before so it was a bit of a guessing game. I chose to add dark chocolate chips as I thought they would tone down the super sweetness of the caramel. Its easy to get sickly with such a strong flavour. I had quite a few taste tasters for this bake and they seemed to be a success. So lets get started!

Recipe:
Cupcakes
6oz (170g) Butter (Softened)
6oz (170g) Caster Sugar
3 Eggs
6oz (170g) Self Raising Flour
1/4 tsp Coarse Sea Salt
1x 100g Bag of Dark Chocolate Chips (Keep a few aside for sprinkling at the end)

Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting
1x 397g Can of Caramel
3oz (85g) Butter 
1/4 tsp Coarse Sea Salt
15oz (425g) Icing Sugar

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 170C and fill your muffin tin with 12 cases. I picked a bright Autumnal Orange for this bake. 
2. Cream butter and caster sugar until smooth.
3. Measure flour into seperate bowl and add salt. Add the flour and eggs gradually to the butter and sugar mixture.
4. Stir in dark chocolate chips, making sure to leave a few for sprinkling if you'd like!
5. Spoon mixture into cases and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer/sharp knife comes out clean.
6. While the cupcakes are cooling, whip up your buttercream. Measure approximately half a can of Caramel into a large bowl along with the butter.
7. Measure icing sugar and salt into a smaller bowl and add gradually to butter and caramel mixture. Use an electric whisk to whip the mixture up until it is holding its shape.
8. When the cupcakes have cooled, use some of the remaining caramel and spread it on top of the cupcakes.
9. Fill up your piping bag with the buttercream and pipe away! I attempted to put stripes of the caramel into my piping bag before my buttercream so that it would make a nice swirl effect, which it did! BUT it only lasted for a couple of cupcakes so I wouldn't recommend it.
10. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips on the top to finish them off.

There we go! A tasty autumnal bake to cheer you up in this bleak weather!

Enjoy.

Luscious Lemon Cupcakes

I have mentioned before how anything lemon is my absolute favourite! So today's post is going to be my favourite recipe of all time: Luscious Lemon Cupcakes.
These cupcakes are perfect even for people who don't usually like lemon. "You've made me like lemon", quote from my other half who, til now, was a strict chocolate dessert type.
They're deliciously sweet and light with a lovely lemon zing.
So lets get into it!

Recipe: (Makes 16... for some reason)
Lemon Cupcakes
250g Butter
350g Caster Sugar
3 Eggs
250g Self Raising Flour
3 Lemons: 3 Zest, 2 Juice
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Lemon Curd (Optional)

Vanilla Buttercream: 
110g Butter
340g Icing Sugar
A splash of Milk

Method: 
1. Preheat oven to 160c and line your muffin tray with cases.
2. Add the butter, caster sugar, eggs, flour, 3 lemon zests, 2 lemon juice and vanilla extract to large bowl and mix until thoroughly combined and creamy looking.
3. Portion out into muffin cases and bake for 15-20 minutes on a middle shelf.
4. Leave to cool in the muffin tray.
5. Whip up your buttercream by measuring your butter into a large bowl and adding a splash of milk. Add your icing sugar gradually and whisk with an electric mixer until nice and thick and forming stiff peaks. 
6. (Optional) Use a teaspoon to scoop out the centre of the cupcake and drop in a dollop of lemon curd. I just used a Gale's lemon curd from the supermarket, I'm planning on attempting to make my own at some point so stick around for that.  
7. When your cupcakes have cooled, pipe or spread on your buttercream. I added little fondant flowers too just to have a play around.
8. Tah Dah! There you have your Luscious Lemon Cupcakes!

I hope you enjoyed this recipe! If you give it a go, let me know!

Mint Choc Chip Cupcakes

Hi again!

I don't know about you but mint choc chip ice cream is one of my favourite ice cream flavours! 
This cupcake recipe is super tasty and really does give the taste of mint choc chip ice cream, without the brain freeze. I was really happy with how they came out (even if I did forget the chocolate chips...oops) BUT, I added them on the top instead which worked out well too. The recipe is based around a normal cupcake recipe, with just a couple extra bits. Really easy, honestly!

Recipe: 
Chocolate Cupcakes
6oz Butter
6oz Caster Sugar
2oz Cocoa Powder
4oz Self-Raising Flour
3 Eggs
1x 100g Bag of Milk Chocolate Chips (Added into the cupcake or sprinkled on top)
12x Brown Cupcake Cases or colour of your choice.

Peppermint Buttercream
4oz Butter
A Splash of Milk
1tsp Peppermint Flavouring
12oz Icing Sugar 
I added a tiny bit of green gel colouring to get the minty colour but thats optional.
A Sprinkle of Choc Chips or any Chocolate decoration.

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 160c and pop 12 cupcake cases into your muffin tray.
2. Cream butter and caster sugar together until smooth.
3. Sieve Flour and Cocoa powder into seperate bowl. Add eggs and flour/cocoa gradually to the butter mixture. Mix until nice and smooth.
4. Pop your mixture into your cupcake cases and bake for 15-20 mins on a middle shelf.
5. Leave cupcakes to cool thoroughly before adding buttercream

Buttercream method:
1. Cream butter, milk and peppermint extract until blended.
2. Weigh 12oz Icing sugar into seperate bowl.
3. Add icing sugar gradually to butter mix. I like to use an electric mixer as it gives a nice pale colour and makes sure the mixture is nice and smooth.
4. Add your colouring at the last stage of your mixing.
5. I always like to pipe the buttercream so I used a star shaped nozzle for this cupcake. If piping, I find it easiest to measure up the nozzle and pop it in the piping bag then fold the bag over the top of a tall glass to hold the bag up, ready to be filled with your buttercream. Leave a couple of inches empty so that you can twist the top of the bag. 
6. Hold the piping bag upright and start in the middle of the cupcake, work your way around the edge and back up into the middle. 
7. Sprinkle with a few choc chips!

I hope you give these a go! If you do, send me your links or pictures or whatever else :)


Rosie

Classic Vanilla Cupcakes

Hi there!
This is my first ever post as "Rosie Loves to Bake" and I'm a bit nervous to be honest! But I hope you enjoy! 
I'm starting off easy, with the first recipe I ever learnt. Something simple with super easy ingredients: Vanilla sponge cupcakes with a delicious Vanilla buttercream.
This is the recipe my mum taught me when I first began baking. I base pretty much every sponge recipe I do nowadays around this simple set of ingredients. It always produces the most beautiful, light and fluffy vanilla sponge without fail. I have never met a single person who doesn't enjoy these cupcakes, they are absolutely scrum!

Recipe: 
Vanilla Sponge Cupcakes
6oz (170g) Butter, at room temperature.
6oz (170g) Caster Sugar
6oz (170g) Self Raising Flour
3 eggs, at room temperature

Vanilla Buttercream
4oz Butter, at room temperature
A splash of milk
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
12oz Icing Sugar

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 160c (Fan).
2. Line muffin tin with cupcake cases. I recommend using a muffin tin instead of a normal bun tin as they are a slightly deeper so help to keep your cupcakes upright and nice and neat. 
3. Measure butter and caster sugar and beat together until smooth and creamy in consistency.
4. Measure your flour and eggs into seperate bowls and gradually add them to your butter and sugar mixture. Beat until nice and creamy. The mixture should be able to hold soft peeks. (See picture below)
5. Spoon mixture into cupcake cases. (I like to use a soup spoon, it gives you a nice even starting measurement into each case)
6. Bake at 160c on a centre shelf for approximately 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden on the tops. 
7. Leave to completely cool before adding buttercream.

Buttercream Method:
1. Measure butter into large mixing bowl. Add vanilla extract and a light splash of milk. Mix until smooth.
2. Measure icing sugar into seperate bowl.
3. Slowly add the icing sugar, a couple ounces at a time, into the butter mixture. Electric hand whisks are great for this. They create a nice pale colour and a lovely stiff, fluffy consistency that is perfect for piping.

Piping Method: 
1. Choose the nozzle shape you are going to use. I used a classic large star nozzle as it is easy to pipe and produces a really pretty shape. 
2. Snip the end of your piping bag and drop your nozzle in, ready for piping!
3. Fold down the edges of the piping bag and use a spatula to load it with buttercream. Leave a couple of inches empty and twist the piping to stop any spilling out of the top.
4. Hold the piping bag upright and start in the middle of the cupcake. Keeping a steady pressure, go around the edge of the cupcake and swirl back into the middle. Release the pressure and pull the piping bag upwards to create the little clean point on the top of your cupcake.
5. Decorate however you like!

I hope you enjoyed this recipe and have a go at it yourself!

Thanks for reading :)

Rosie