Tasty Tuesday: Easter Cup Cakes

 Today I baked. I love baking but with only two of us in the house and my love for cake it isn't the best idea to cook all that often, really there is no need for it.

I am going to try and keep this Tasty Tuesday idea going and share some new recipes and some old favourites. As it is nearly Easter here is an Easter one to make with the kids or just for yourself.

It was a new recipe, new meaning I haven't used it before, from a recipe book called Corner Country Cooking. This is a cook book that has been produced by the Boulia, Bedourie and Birdsville Isolated Children's Parents Association (ICPA). Now if you look at these locations on a map of QLD you will understand the reasoning behind the title of the cook book, very clever. THe ICPA is like a widespread P&C that fights for the rights of Distance Education and Isolated Children. It is this valued group of people that help shape the way schools of the outback are run and the curriculum that the children are taught from.

I love cook books put out by the ICPA or Distance Education Schools as they are filled with real recipes made with things most people have in the pantry and they work.

I tweeked this one a bit, well only as far as putting a chocolate egg in the middle of each patty cake paper full of mixture. The eggs don't need to be pushed the whole way down into the mix as they sink a bit during cooking and the cake rises over them.

After they were cooked and had cooled I iced the cup cakes with chocolate icing, which I made up as I went, and topped them with a few sprinkles and another chocolate egg. I think more sprinkles ended up on the bench than on the patty cakes but the finished cake looks a little Eastery all the same.

Basic Cup Cakes (Easter Style)

Ingredients:

100g butter, at room temp

100g (1/2 cup) castor sugar

1tsp vanilla essence

2 eggs, lightly beaten

200g SR flour, sifted

100ml milk

chocolate Easter eggs

Icing:

1 cup icing sugar

2 tsp butter

1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice

Variation butter cream:

125g unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

2 tbsp milk

food colouring

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius or 160 degree celsius for a fan forced oven. Line a 12 hole patty pan with patty cases. Beat together butter, sugar and vanilla essence until light and creamy. Add eggs gradually, beating well between each addition. Add the flour and milk alternately in two batches. Divide mixture among patty cases. Gently push a chocolate Easter egg part way into each patty cake. Bake in a preheated oven for 15-20minutes. Allow to cool before spreading on icing. Sift icing sugar into a bowl. Beat in butter and enough lemon to reach a spreadable consistancy.

My confession is that I just put all the ingredients in a bowl and beat it. It worked beautifully. I do think they need a bit more moisure so maybe put in a lttle extra milk and or butter. My other confession is that my icing went something like this: Put in some butter, tip in some icing sugar, put in some vanilla essence, put in some coco, put in enough water to make it spreadable while beating. Spread onto patty cakes then top with sprinkles and a chocolate Easter egg.

 

Now these cup cakes are headed for Mr Sparky's work place where I am sure they will be guzzled down by the fellas in the work sheds.