Lesleys Vanilla Cupcakes

These are the BEST base cupcakes ever :) These are actually what converted me to making cupcakes from scratch!

150gr butter - room temperature
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 cups SR flour
2 teaspoons lemon juice
dash of vanilla extract

Pre heat oven to 180 deg
Cream butter and sugar till pale, add eggs 1 at a time (mixing in each one)add lemon juice and vanilla
add half the flour and milk, mix in, add in the remaining flour and milk mix till pale
Bake

Muffin pans 20 mins
cupcake pans 15 mins
mini pans 10 mins

You don't want them over cooked......just cooked is best (golden not brown )

Lesley's frosting

250gr butter
1kg icing sugar

beat butter until smooth and then add icing sugar (give or take on the amount depends on how sweet you like it) .....beat until smooth and fluffy

You may need to add a few drops of milk if your frosting is a bit stiff.....only add a few drops at a time till you get the desired frosting

This makes enough for about 48 cupcakes but it can be stored in the fridge

Savoury Muffins

2 cups of SR flour

1/2 cup chopped ham

1/2 cup grated cheese

1/4 cup chopped mushrooms

1 chopped capsicum

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

125grams melted butter

1 cup milk

1 egg lightly beaten.

Pre heat oven to 180 degrees and grease muffin tin.

Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl

Stir in butter, milk and eggs until just combined. DO NOT OVER MIX.

Bake in oven for 15 minutes until it's golden brown.

Serve warm with a little spread of butter, yummo!

Very Versatile Biscuits

400g condensed milk
5 cups SR flour
1 cup sugar
500g margarine

Combine condensed milk and marg until smooth
Add sugar and flour and mix well with a wooden spoon.
Roll into balls and place on a baking tray then flatten with a fork
Bake at 180 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

The best thing about these biscuits is you can add ANYTHING. Chocolate chips, M&Ms, peanuts, fruit, a dolop of jam, smarties, jubes, absolutely anything you want in a biscuit :)

Cheese Scones

3 cups of self raising flour
1/2 cup grated cheese
1 cup of milk - room temperature
80gm cubed butter - room temperature

Preheat oven AND tray to 220c

Add SRF and cheese to a large bowl, mix together with hands, add butter and rub with fingers until it goes like breadcrumbs.
Add milk in one go. Get a rounded knife and cut through till milk is mixed in well.
Use hands and kneed gently until smooth
Roll out about 2cm high and cut 5cm rounds out of it. Add a little more grated cheese to the top.
Place on hot oven tray.

Cook for 10 - 15 minutes until you can knock on the top of one and it sounds hollow.
Transfer onto a plate that has a tea towel draped over it
Wrap scones in teatowel. This keeps them warm and helps to make a nice crust.
Serve warm with butter.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

I used coconut which I had coloured with a couple of drops of food colour for the decoration (if you can call it that).

INGREDIENTS

¾ cup butter, softened (170grams)

1½ cups castor sugar

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

2 Tbsp liquid red food color

2 tsp white vinegar

2 1/2 cups cake plain flour

Icing

2 bricks philly cream cheese, softened

½ cup butter, softened (113 grams)

1½ cups castor sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Whip up butter and sugar, add eggs one at a time and mix well, stir in the rest of the ingredients. Bake for 20 minutes at 180 degrees

Whip up everything for the icing until fluffy, ice cakes when they have cooled.

Brownie Cupcakes

3/4 stick of butter (1/3 cup...85grams)

1/2 cup Dark Chocolate Chips

85 grams Cadburys chocolate

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup Granulated sugar

2 eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup Plain flour

1/4 Tsp Salt

Preheat oven to 160-180.

Melt the butter, and two types of chocolate together on a double boiler (I used a pot but you have to be VERY careful to continually stir over LOW heat).

Stir until smooth and lumpless.

Remove the top of the double boiler from heat, and whisk in both types of sugar

Whisk in the eggs one at a time.

Whisk in vanilla, flour & salt.

Divide into 12 wells in a paper-lined cupcake pan.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean with only moist crumbs. Mine took about 25 minutes.

Remove to wire rack to cool.

Chocolate Brownies

150 grams soft butter
1 firmly packed cup of brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup coca
1/2 cup plain four

Preheat oven to 150 degrees, grease and line a shallow tin (I use a square cake tin)
Beat butter with sugar until soft and fluffy
Add eggs, 1 at a time
Add coca and beat until mixed
Add flour and mix
Pour into tin and bake for 25-35 minutes depending on how gooey you like it.
Cool and slice... yummo!

Rice Bubble Bars

170 g marshmallows

60g butter

½ tsp vanilla essence

3½ cups rice bubbles

½ cup mini M&Ms (or alternative)

small amount of chocolate for drizzling over the top

Line a 18 x 28 cm baking tin with baking paper
Melt the marshmallows and the butter together over low heat, in a large saucepan. Stir in the vanilla essence when they are just about melted.
Remove the pan from the heat & stir the rice bubbles in. Then add the M&Ms, stir them in quickly.
Pour the mixture into the lined pan and spread out evenly.
Cool. Cut into small bars or squares when set.
Melt a small amount of chocolate & drizzle over the top. Let the chocolate set before cutting it up.

Alternatives

Instead of M&M's you can have 100s & 1000s, chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruit... You can use cocopops instead of rice bubbles for a coco bar, or a mix of both :) If you can't use gluten then you can getthe gluten free puffed grain cerial from the heath food shop.

Better Than Sex Cupcakes

These are TO DIE FOR!!! Seriously... try them! There will be 2 mixtures, one chocolate (brown), one cheese (white) and the icing!

Brown
95g plain flour
30g cornflour
30g cocoa
185g caster sugar
1/2 tsp bicarb
60g room temperature salted butter
1 egg
125ml milk

White
250g philly cheese at room temperature
1 tbsp milk
130g caster sugar

Gnash
160ml Condensed Milk
250g cadbury milk chocolate
30g salted butter

Mix the brown ingredients in a bowl until it's well mixed, then beat with electric mixer for a couple of minutes until it changes colour slightly.
Mix the philly, milk and sugar in a bowl and beat with electric mixer for a couple of minutes until it's well combined.
In cupcake papers half fill with the brown mixture, then dolop a spoonfull of the white mixture on top of each one.
Bake for 15 minutes at 180degrees

For the icing/gnash combine over gentle heat stirring until the chocolate is melted and mixture is bubbly.
Pour a little of it over each cooled cupcake.
It sets VERY quickly so if you want to add shaved chocolate to it I suggest you shave it before hand and leave it in the fridge :)

Very messy but so so yummy!!

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

These are a favourite here. The boys LOVE them!! We make them around once a week :)

225g plain white flour
2tsp baking powder
55g butter, softened
225g soft light brown sugar
115g smooth peanut butter
2 eggs
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
100ml milk

Pre heat oven to 180c.
Line cupcake tray with papers.
sift together flour and baking powder
Put the butter, brown sugar and peanut butter in a large bowl and whisk for 1-2 minutes mixed well.
Add the eggs, one at a time, then add the vanilla
Using a large metal spoon, fold in the flour mixture and then the milk
Fill each cup with batter and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes until golden brown and firm to touch.
Leave the cupcakes in the pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
FOR THE FROSTING
150g peanut butter
55g philly cream cheese
25g butter softened
225g icing sugar

Mix peanut butter, cream cheese and butter until it's smooth. Add icing sugar and mix well

When cupcakes are cool, ice them :)

Tim Tam Cupcakes

250g plain flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

125g unsalted butter, room temperature

200g Castor sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

180ml single cream

½ packet Tim Tams

cream cheese frosting

180g white chocolate, broken into pieces

180g cream cheese, cut into pieces

185g unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into pieces

½ packet Tim Tams

Pre-heat oven to 180°c

Mix flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Add vanilla.

Alternately add flour mixture and single cream and beat until batter is smooth.

Fold in crushed Tim Tams.

Spoon batter into cupcake papers, to about 1/2 full

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until tester comes out clean.

Remove from oven and cool

Cream cheese frosting
In a large bowl over simmering water melt white chocolate until smooth and creamy. It should be just warm to the touch

Beat cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add melted chocolate and beat again until smooth

Use frosting immediately or it will hardenSprinkle crushed Tim Tams immediately, while frosting is still soft

Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding

Now I am not a fan of the packet stuff but the kids like it and it's a nice unhealthy desert on cold winter nights. So when I came across this recipe I HAD to try it that night, and boy I was impressed. It's nice and that says a lot coming from me :D

Pre heat oven to 170 degrees C

Grease a dish, I used a round cake tin.

It's reccomended that you put it on a tray to stop overflow from dirtying your oven, I didn't find this a problem but I did it anyway.

1/3 cup brown sugar firmly packed

1 cup SR flour

1 tbs coco powder

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

3 tbs melted butter, cooled

sauce

2/3 cup brown sugar firmly packed

1/4 cup coco powder

1 1/2 cups boiling water

Mix egg, milk and butter in a large mixing bowl

Add flour, sugar, coco and mix

Pour into dish and flatten with spoon, this is important to make it rise evenly

Time for the sauce!

Sprinkle the brown sugar over the top, then sprinkle the coco.

Pour water over the top

Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes. Enjoy with icecream or cream. Yummo!