Caramel Cupcakes & Courgette, Walnut and Cinnamon Cake

Sorry about the long delay between posts but exams and revision has left precious little time to write up our baking forays. Over the last few weeks we've  made a few more recipes from the bible of cupcakes The Hummingbird Cake Days.

First of all we made some Caramel cupcakes which had a beautiful richly smooth frosting with caramel undertones from the light sponge as well as the topping. They were as per usual another simple recipe that yields a huge number of cupcakes that wowed all we gave them to. They were the perfect token of appreciation for years worth of help and hopefully brought some happiness into someone's day. We would recommend them as they are perfect cupcakes but personally we preferred other recipes purely because of our own preferences.

We also made a Courgette, Walnut and Cinnamon cake which at face value seems to be an odd and adventurous recipe but was actually one of the best things we've baked from the book. It is essentially the same as a carrot cake but with a different vegetable which doesn't really have any taste but just keeps the cake incredibly moist. It was delicious! We would recommend this to anyone who has a love of cinnamon like we do but we would advise not telling people you serve it to that it has courgette in until after they've eaten it as it would change the way they view it. It's a huge cake that is always received positively and tastes divine. 

Chocolate Orange Cupcakes and Pistachio Whoopies

Over the weekend in order to try and relax before the exam season starts my sister and I had a bit of a huge baking session where we made chocolate orange cupcakes as well as our first attempt at the Hummingbird's infamous whoopies.
First of all we made the cupcakes and no exaggeration they were heavenly! Beautifully light chocolate orange sponge and a fresh, creamy, chocolate orange Philadelphia frosting.  Although as fun as baking always is this experience was somewhat marred by the consequences of eating far too much of the rich frosting that was left behind after we had iced all 18 cupcakes (it was just too tasty to throw away and there is something about the act of baking that makes you regress back to a toddler who's sole aim in life is to eat the cake mix which is perhaps the beauty of it).
We would most definitely recommend this recipe; it was simple to make and utterly scrumptious!

The day after we made our first whoopie. As vegetarians we were unable to follow the recipe completely as we cannot make the marshmallow filling. The whoopie's were another light tasty sponge but because the marshmallow would obviously be incredibly sweet the cakes themselves were almost slightly sour (because of the plain yoghurt in the recipe). We therefore decided to putting a layer of caramel in the middle to add sweetness. Overall they were a lovely snack but we definitely need to improve how we make them as they were huge and for future whoopie recipes we think that maybe some of the other frosting recipes would go nicely. A good recipe for non-veggies but potentially hit and miss otherwise. 

Rhubarb and Almond Loaf Cake

Earlier in the week we attempted a rhubarb and almond cake and I say attempted because it didn't go entirely to plan. We had to stew rhubarb for the first time ever and although a nerve racking experience we managed it (although the recipe could do with being more specific as to how to do it and for how long, but then we made the rookie mistake of blending the stewed rhubarb into the cake mix instead of mixing it by hand. We realised our mistake just that second to late and did put some extra rhubarb in after but it was still not marbled within the cake as it was in the picture. We also forgot to put the almond flakes on top but again remembered after it'd been baking for a few minutes so that turned out all right.
However despite our numerous mistakes it turned out really well; it was extremely moist (probably a bit too moist because of the excess rhubarb), had a tangy bitter sweet flavour of rhubarb and the toasted almonds. It was delicious and was the perfect treat whilst watching the brilliantly awful Eurovision.  We will definitely make this again

Hazelnut Praline Muffins

A few days ago we made our first batch of muffins which we were planning on taking to a family friend to cheer them which ended up with us baking them a t 10 o'clock at night so that they would be ready to take the next morning. However due to the rapid onset of a chest infection we were unable to go, but they most certainly didn't go to waste.
The recipe was more complicated than others we've followed but that made it more of a challenge. They were delicious with a crunchy hazelnut topping (due to the sugar sprinkled on top), light moist sponge and then a surprise to those who hadn't baked them of a centre of nutella. They were lovely and we would recommend them but they weren't the nicest thing we've baked form the book and there are other recipes that have more of an impact.

Apple Streusel Cake

 Today we baked our first ever apple cake; we know exciting stuff! This cake comprises of a thin basic sponge  then a layer of apple slices and all topped off with a thick topping of cinnamon crumble. It's deliciously moist and has a beautiful mix of sharp apple and sweet cinnamon which is all grounded and given texture by the slither of sponge at the bottom. Simply divine!

It was again another easy recipe that produces amazing products that are eagerly received by everyone, especially the intoxicating smell of this one which gets your mouth watering instantly. Yet another one we'd recommend!

Expresso Cupcakes

So yesterday my sister and I tried to recreate Hummingbird's infamous cupcakes and weren't hopeful at the prospect of creating the sheer beauty of the originals. However armed with a newly bought palette knife, espresso powder and a whole lot of optimism we started baking.
The recipe was incredibly easy to follow and the cupcakes baked perfectly in exactly the allotted time of 18 minutes, which did much to restore our faith in our OAP of an oven. However after the success of the actual baking came the most nerve racking part; the frosting! Admittedly not the most intimidating of tasks that could be asked someone but daunting none the less.

Maisy frosted the first one and was a complete natural; it looked beautiful! It took me a little longer to get the knack but all 15 cupcakes turned out amazingly and we couldn't be happier with them. They tasted fantastic as well; with a strong, bitter coffee taste both in the fluffy, light sponge and paste like frosting which wasn't too sweet but complimented the cake beautifully. We took our finished creations round to our Grandparent's house much to their delight, especially when we told them of our plan to bake every single recipe in the book (as well as concern about the possible exponential growth of their girths.)

We loved this recipe! It did exactly what baking should do-create tasty, moreish treats that bring people together and make people happy. Anyone who wants to create amazing cupcakes that taste incredible, definitely have a wow factor and are easy to bake should use this recipe. We wanted to put it on here but are unfortunately unable to due to the annoyance of copy right.  

Coffee & Chocolate Loaf

As our starting cake, and as inexperienced bakers with geriatric equipment, we chose a easy loaf cake with only five steps to follow. The preparation of the mixture took only fifteen minutes and was straight forward and idiot proof, which is lucky!
Taking the extraordinary amount of time to cook of an hour; plenty in which to worry that our oven would start an uprising and turn against us by destroying everything put inside it, it finally came out, looking perhaps a little charred on the edges but alive none the less! It was light and airy inside with a deep, bitter flavour of pure chocolate. Overall a triumph!
Would definitely recommend this divine dark creation but would advise keeping a close eye on it in the final stages of cooking to get it on before it crisps.
Below on the left is the image from the cook book and next to it is our attempt decorated with a light dusting of icing sugar and a few coffee bean (most certainly not there to hide the crispy bits).
1 down 99 to go!