Johannisbeer-Orange with Vanilla Jam Cupcakes

Following hot on the footsteps of the matcha cupcakes came these little mouthfuls of heaven. Each cupcake was one mouthful of absolute joy. I couldn't believe my tastebuds at first so I had to have another one, and another one and maybe another one after that. Since there was about 45 on my kitchen bench, I thought best not to tempt myself too much and we both whisked them off to our respective colleagues. "Oh my god", I heard along with "that's so good" and "how did you do that?". Cries from Dan's camp included "they're the best yet" and "I wish it was the size of a football". But alas, I cannot take credit for it, the magic ingredient was Petra's Johannisbeer-orange with Vanilla Jam that arrived in my parcel that she sent me.

To really highlight the flavours of the jam, I kept the cupcakes relatively simple, using a vanilla cake recipe and vanilla buttercream frosting recipe from my newly acquired copy of Crazy About Cupcakes. Hot out of the oven, I injected the cakes with a squirt of the jam from a baking syringe. After they had cooled, I frosted them. A whole pecan on top added that certain something to the texture that was previously missing.


Golden Cupcakes

110 grams of butter, softened
1 cup of caster sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups of flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup of milk

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Arrange mini cupcake papers on a tray, ready to fill. In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, beating between each addition. Add the vanilla and mix well.

In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients. Add them to the butter mixture a little at a time, alternating with the milk. Mix well once all incorporated.

With a clean whisk and bowl, whip the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter. Fill the cupcake liners 1/2 to 3/4 full. Bake for 12 - 15 minutes until golden on top.

Straight out of the oven inject each cupcake with a little jam of choice. If the jam is too thick, thin it down by microwaving it for 20 or so seconds on high. Inject from the top and cover the hole with frosting once the cupcakes have cooled.

Don't get addicted.

Vanilla Frosting

1 1/2 cups of icing sugar
55 grams of butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 tablespoon of milk

Whip the butter and gradually add the sugar while doing so. Stir in the vanilla and milk. Whip until smooth and of spreading consistency.