Courgette & Raisin Muffins

This week i've been done some research to find new and interesting flavours to add to our menu. While scouring the web I came across this recipe from Annabel Karmel for Courgette & Raisin Muffins.

For those of you who don't know Annabel Karmel is the UK’s best-selling author on baby and children’s food and nutrition. She is an expert in devising tasty and nutritious meals for children without the need for parents to spend hours in the kitchen. She Has also created a popular range of healthy chilled meals for children, which are available in all major supermarkets.

Now being a mum of two myself I am always looking for ways to get my toddler princess to eat healthy so i gave these a go. The recipe is very easy to follow and uses mostly ingredients you would have in the house already with the exception of wholemeal self raising flour and possibly mixed spice. I know what your thinking Courgette? in a cake? Blurgh! But honestly its really nice and with all the spices you can hardly taste it.

I had intended to take more pictures of these but they were a big hit with my little girl and were mostly gone before they'd even had chance to cool.

Courgette & Raisin Muffins 

Ingredients 

110g white self raising flour
125g soft brown sugar
1 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
110g wholemeal self raising flour
85g melted butter
180 ml milk
1 egg lightly beaten
125 g courgette, grated
125 g raisins
1 tsp demerera sugar

Method


Sieve together the white flour, sugar, mixed spice, salt and baking powder. Then sift in the brown flour and save the remaining bran in the sieve.

Melt the butter, allow to cool down and then mix with the milk and egg. Stir in the grated courgette, raisins and then the flour mixture.

Line a muffin tray with 12 paper cases.

Fill each one with the muffin mix till about 2/3 full. Mix together the reserved bran and demerera sugar and sprinkle on top of each muffin.

Preheat the oven to 170 C and bake for 25 minutes.

 Information

MAKES 12 MUFFINS

Ever tried this or any other vegetable based cake? Leave a comment below.

Rainbow Cupcakes

Hi All, Sorry Ive been AWOL its not that easy having two kids lol! Anway here is post I've been meaning to post for ages.... Rainbow cupcakes.

Ok so here are some step by step instructions for rainbow cupcakes.

1.) Make up a batch of cake mix, you can use any flavour just not chocolate. Separate your mixture into 6 bowls.

2.) Choose 6 different food colours and add a small drop of food colour to each bowl. I find gel colours work best here as they give more vibrant colours when baked. Mix colour in well.

3.) Line your baking tray with cake cases and place a tsp of each colour into each case. Repeat until all mixture is gone. If you want to go for a marbled look just stick a cocktail stick into mixture and swirl slightly.

4.) Bake at temp and time as your recipes requires. Allow to cool.

5.) Make up a batch of Buttercream, i always find best to exactly double qty icing sugar to butter and add 20g extra icing sugar. Separate into 6 small bowls.

6.) Using the same food colours as earlier, add a drop to each bowl and mix well.

7.) People always ask me how to stop colours running together when making multicoloured icing, let me show you this super easy trick. Take a piece of cling film and lay it on a clean worktop. Spoon your coloured icing onto centre of the cling film....

.... fold in top and bottom and roll into a sausage shape. Put an elastic band around one end to stop icing coming out.

8.) Repeat for all other colours. Group together and place into a nozzles piping bag open end first. Now your ready to pipe. This technique also saves your bags as there is minimum mess so not much cleaning to do.

9.) Give the bag a squeeze into a bowl until multiple colours start to show and then swirl your cupcakes. and Voila Rainbow cupcakes.

10.) Inside...

Tried this before? Comment below, also send us your pics we'd love to see them.

Birthday Princesses

In November last year my little princess had her 2nd birthday, so i decided to attempt a birthday cake with cupcakes to match. I had previously seen a cupcake tower in neon pink & lime green which i loved so chose these colours in my cakes.

I had been wanting to try my hand at making a sugar paste tiara for some time so i decided to do it for little princess's birthday cake. Not bad for my first attempt, icing on the cake isn't great but I've never done a fondant cake before (prefer buttercream).

2 weeks later and it was my friends daughters 3rd birthday, so i followed on the girly butterfly theme with her cake too.

Christening Cupcakes

These cupcakes were ordered by a couple for their sons christening, they were a mix of Summers Day (Lemon Cupcake with lemon icing filled with lemon curd), Chocoholic (Chocolate Cupcake with Chocolate icing filled with Chocolate spread) and Raspberry Sundae (Vanilla Cupcake with Vanilla icing filled with raspberry jam, topped with raspberry ice-cream sauce and sprinkles). These cupcakes were in two sizes Muffin Size and then bite size minis. I then decorated 3 cupcakes to spell out the little boys name to put on top of the cupcake stand, (which they also hired from me.)

Baby Shower Cupcakes

One of my BFFs (the Yummy Mummies, as we call ourselves!) gave birth to Boy/Girl twins last year and being the fabulous friends that we are the yummy mummies threw her a baby shower. I of course was in charge of bringing the cupcakes.

I also received an order for a lady who was having a baby shower but didn't know the sex of her baby so did a mix of pink & blue swirls (camera was playing up so colours are rubbish)

My oldest BFF (friends since the age of 5, 23 years!! God that makes me feel old!) had her first baby in November last year. In the midst of my traumatic pregnancy i decided to throw my self into planning her baby shower. As she didn't know the sex of her baby I chose to go with the colour theme she chose for her nursery. I also did some baby themed cookies in matching colours but forgot to take photos. 

Not only did I make baked goods for her shower but created a Nursery rhyme quiz which I have uploaded for you. You can find it here if you want to use it for an upcoming baby shower or just to test your knowledge.

Giant Cupcakes

Some of the giant cupcakes i have done this year....

Engagement Party

This Giant Cupcake & coordinating cupcakes were ordered my a friends sister for her engagement party. They were a range of different flavours including, Chocolate, Vanilla & Lemon. There is 96 muffin size cupcakes in total and a giant cupcake.