I have had a disastrous baking week this week. I made some delicious blondies that just aren't quite blog ready yet and some absolutely horrendous cookies. Honestly, they were just something else. Don't even know where to start in fixing the recipe just yet!! So these vanilla cupcakes were just an absolute relief when they came out so perfectly and were soooo delicious.
I like to think my current vanilla recipe is lovely enough, I have never had any complaints and it is super easy to make and alter to make endless different recipes. Nothing is ever perfect so why not tweak it to make it even better? I kept all the quantities the exact same but rather than whisking in the entire eggs, I separated the eggs and whisked in the yolks first. I then whisked the egg yolks until thick and frothy, as you would with meringue and folded them into the batter before baking. It made the cupcakes sooo much lighter. Definitely worth the extra effort (unless you had to hand whisk your egg whites like me... not so sure then). I was also unsure about whether flour and baking powder was better than self raising flour, I mostly use self raising but I have been experimenting with plain flour and baking powder and now realise that it is faaar superior. The cupcakes seem to rise so much higher. So from now on, I will specify PLAIN flour and baking powder in my recipes.
The icing I used on these cupcakes was also absolutely beautiful but needs a little bit more development before it is blog-worthy - only the best for you guys! The beauty of a vanilla cupcake is it goes with almost any buttercream or icing (see a few of my favourites: salted vanilla, whipped brown sugar buttercream, vanilla buttercream). So until I have perfected this delicious icing, try any other flavour and you will not be disappointed!!
Ingredients: (makes approximately 12)
100g plain flour, sifted
100g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
100g caster sugar
2 large eggs, separated
1.5 tsp baking powder
2 heaped tsps vanilla extract (best quality available - I use Madagascan bean paste
Plenty of sprinkles
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180c/350f. Prepare muffin tray by lining with muffin cases.
2. Cream butter and sugar together until light, fluffy and pale in colour.The more you beat it the better!! Whisk in the egg yolks and the vanilla extract.
3. Fold in the flour and baking powder until fully combined but be careful not to over mix, then add the sprinkles.
4. Whisk the egg whites until they are thick and frothy, will take approximately 3 minutes with an electric egg whisk or more like 10 minutes if you are unfortunate enough to have to use a hand whisk. Once the desired consistency is reached, carefully fold in this egg mixture.
5. Pop 2 tablespoons of mixture into each case or until about 2/3 full. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown and a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool then top with lovely swirls of your favourite icing!
Everyone, seriously, this will be your new favourite vanilla cupcake recipe. A cupcake recipe with a little something extra, please give it a go and let me know what you think :)
Teri x
No comments:
Post a Comment