Saturday 2 February 2013

Honey, lemon and rosemary cupcakes...



For 12 small cupcakes

100 g /  1/2 cup (less a table spoon) of non salted butter
2  tablespoons or 1/4 cup of olive oil
135 g / 1/2 cup (less a tablespoon) of honey 
150 g / 1 1/4 cup  flour
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of baking powder
3 tablespoons of lemon juice (and some zest)
1 teaspoon of fresh rosemary finely chopped (it's nice but optional!)

Pre-heat the oven to 180°c or 350°f

Melt, on the lowest heat, the honey, olive oil, butter and cool slightly (if you have very runny honey and very soft butter skip this part). Mix in the flour (and baking powder) to the honey and butter.  Add in the 2 eggs - once mixed,  add in the lemon juice and rosemary. Put in the cupcake cases (that are already placed in a muffin case tin).  Bake for about 22 minutes.

Topped with a lemon butter cream 
(it is also optional,  I only did half this recipe as I just love the cake without!! 5 cakes above and one below! The other six we ate warm with a pot of tea!)

for 12 (but not masses - you may want more!)
110 g / 1/2 cup soft butter
240 g / 2 1/3 cups icing/powdered sugar
4 or more tablespoons of lemon juice (check the texture before adding it all)
lemon zest to taste (optional)

Soften the butter.  Add the sugar and lemon - I used a spoon, adding more juice when you need it.  It should be fluffy and soft but not runny!!  Once the cakes are cool you can spoon it on or pipe it on.  You can chill them down (more the summer!) if you want the butter cream to harden a little but be careful it doesn't go too hard!

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One cake was saved... (he wasn't allowed any of the top and just a bite of the bottom!)


This was Aston earlier wishing Sophie a happy sixth birthday from far away....
You can meet the photogenic Sophie and she is also here a lot!!

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Welcome to my new members, very happy you are here, so thank you ...

27 comments:

  1. This is so sweet Ivan! What a delectable combination of ingredients....sure to tempt the tastebuds! Aston is behaving very well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello,
      Thank you - I try! I like to put tastes together I enjoy - doesn't always work though. Aston blew out the candles twice, as you can imagine!! I am going to try just olive oil and lemon thyme next (if you don't see it on here... then it wasn't so good!!)
      Ivan

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  2. Dear Ivan,
    I agree with ND. It looks delicious and I particularly like the idea of eating them warm from the oven with a cup of tea. That is something that AGA and I would do.
    Bye for now
    Kirk

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    Replies
    1. Hello Kirk,
      I am not a big fan of icing, but I like to give a choice. The warm fluffy cakes make up for the lack of sweetness. Thanks.
      Ivan

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  3. YUM! I'm having a go at these Ivan. Thanks for posting. Love the picture of Aston, bless him! Claire

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Claire,
      Thank you, happy you like these - I meant to say you could do a mix of sugar and honey if wanted. Aston was overly excited for the first 7 pictures, lunging for a bit of cake but we got there in the end!!
      Ivan

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  4. What lovely sounding cup cakes, your doggie is so very cute.

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    Replies
    1. Hello Jill,
      Thank you, I still don't measure up to your wonderful cakes though!! Aston says thanks also!
      Ivan

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  5. Replies
    1. Hello Chania,
      Thank you, it took a bit of bribery for the picture with a dog biscuit, as he's a wiggly worm around food!
      Ivan

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  6. AW-W-W! What a sweetie you are!! That would be you Ivan! Sophie sends a big LICK of thanks! And look at Aston there getting ready to dive in!!

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    Replies
    1. Hello Jim,
      Our pleasure! Sophie has three fans in this household! Aston couldn't believe his luck, as cake is a rare treat for him! Hope you all had a fun day...
      Best wishes,
      Ivan

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  7. Ivan and Aston!!
    You are the best chefs ever! That cupcake looks so delectable, delicious and Doodlerific! Thank you so much...so kind of you to do this.
    Aston...you need a cupcake for this effort!

    Mucho thanks...Sophie Dooddle 1/2 Poodle here!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Sophie Doodle and Papa Ron,
      We couldn't not celebrate your birthday! Hope you had a special day and your cake looked so fantastic - Aston has put in an order for a mini birthday cake (with meat and bone icing!!).
      Best wishes,
      Ivan

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  8. Hello Ivan:
    We have discovered your blog through that of our friend, Kirk [Dale]. And although we have no aptitude when it comes to cooking, we love to eat. And all of this looks so very good and is, we are sure, delicious.

    We have signed as Followers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Jane and Lance,
      Thank you so much for following me, I have just joined your rather glamorous blog and shall return to read more. I search weekly for my dream house in Brighton... one day soon!
      I really enjoy Kirk's blog.
      Best wishes,
      Ivan

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  9. Those cupcakes looked so yummy, Ivan! And that birthday photo for Sophie Doodle was spectacular! What a kind and thoughtful thing to do - and Aston looks darling! Have a good week, Ivan!

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    Replies
    1. Hello Louise,
      Thank you... they have disappeared so a good taste test! Aston was more than happy to do a birthday pose for some cake, especially with our honey - he always looks at me, as if to ask, why can't I have this all the time?!
      A busy week this week, with some exciting thing going on... stay tuned!
      Ivan

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    2. I can't wait to hear what exciting thing is going on for you, Ivan!
      I finally faced down the celery root and made your delicious soup.
      Terry pronounce it tasty and made short work of the full bowl.
      I was a little more cautious because strange vegetables scare me. But it was yummy, and I too finished a big bowl in short order.
      Did you really mean to peel the celery sticks? I've never done that before!
      And thanks for the safety tips on peeling the celery root. I was using a big, sharp knife! And what a surprise when I cut it in half!
      I've tried freezing some of the leftover soup because the recipe makes a generous pot.
      My only regret is that I bought some vegetable stock from the store, and the next time I'm going to try making my own instead. The stock was dark brown in color, so the soup had a light brown rather than delicate green color.
      I'm going to write a post about my adventures with the celery root.
      And I'm going to go back all through your posts to see if you have shared a recipe for making homemade vegetable stock.
      I hope you are having an exciting day! I'm sending some ear scratches to Aston!

      Delete
    3. Hello Louise,

      So pleased you enjoyed the soup and it freezes well (always good to have things as back up especially after all the work that goes in!). Yes, you can peel the outside of the celery sticks to remove the strings or snap the top and remove them by pulling down (sometimes you don't need to, depends on the season). I do make stocks a lot but I haven't gone through a vegetable one - the key is to cut the vegetables small and even blend after. Passing through a sieve and pressing down hard with a soup lade, to get as much of the juices out. Using onions, leeks, carrots as the base and adding in other vegetables and herbs you have.
      Aston thanks you!
      Ivan

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    4. Thanks for the tips, Ivan! I've been thinking of you and your partner living it up in Paris! I hope you are having a wonderful time!

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  10. Oh, I like the photo of Aston. It seems a very good dog.

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    Replies
    1. Hello,
      Thank you, he has his naughty-puppy days but I love him more for it!
      Ivan

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  11. These look so, so good. I am on a diet and very hungry indeed - this post is torture but I've read you recipe about six times and keep looking at the photos. I love cupcakes and I love anything lemony so this is win win! Do you by any chance do a low-fat version...?

    Gillian x

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    Replies
    1. Hello Gillian,
      I am working on something which may please you! I think the honey element is good instead of sugar and I have to make a full olive oil one soon also - will work on it when I return...
      Ivan

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  12. Yummy! My birthday is coming up next week. I want a cupcake.....just a tiny one ;-)
    Loi

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    Replies
    1. Hello Loi,
      Aquarius interesting... we are off to celebrate my partner's a birthday tomorrow (bit early but we have family coming over!). If you want a cup cake, they are be being made in Paris!! Happy Birthday for next week...
      Ivan

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