Devon Delights

Did you know on average, chickens lay on average 325 eggs a year? Times that by 20, add a flock of ducks and a scattering of geese and that's an awful lot of eggs to contend with.


 I am currently looking after my Mum's farm in beautiful Devon, watching these eggs stack up at an astonishing rate and so decided to do something about it today. I know this really should have involved whipping up some meringues or angel cake to use them up but instead we decided on chocolate cupcakes. I know I know... cupcakes are growing old, they have been done to death and the amount of times I have bitten into a dry, tired cupcake has taught me that they need a rehaul. They need to be perfect every time and there are a couple of things you can do to ensure this.  Two super important rules when making cakes are:


1. Always weigh the eggs. Eggs come in a variety of sizes and if they are too big, the cakes will end up dense and heavy. They should weigh the same amount as the butter and sugar.


2. If you are making a vanilla, almond, lemon or any other flavour that should produce a yellow cake, always use free -range eggs - the colour of the yolk is amazing and will drastically improve the colour of your finished cake. (Its ALL about the eggs!)


We decided on chocolate cupcakes as, when asked what he would like her to bake, my sister's boyfriend started reminiscing about her birthday cake (3 tiered chocolate fudge cake covered in yellow sunflowers). I always think cupcakes shouldn't be just a straight forward sponge,  it is nicer to be pleasantly surprised when you bite into them rather than sickened by the two inches of toxic pink icing your teeth have sunk through, only to find that the sponge, once found is dry as a bone. You want it to have a surprisingly soft, moist sponge from the first bite to the last (and making you wish there was another!). 

The recipe we created is below:

Mary-Kate's Cuppitycakes

-Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3
-Line 2 large cupcake tins (the small ones just don't do it justice) with muffin cases
Heat 100g dark chocolate (low cocoa-content if possible) with 200g unsalted butter, 200g light brown sugar and 100ml hot water
-Set aside for 2 minutes and then stir in 100ml single cream and 2 eggs (200g)
-Use an electric whisk to beat in 200g self-raising flour and 5tbsp good quality cocoa powder until the mixture is lump-free.
-Fill the cases 1/2 full, add 1/4 teaspoon of blackberry jam and then fill the cases to 3/4 full
-Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the top cracks and rises. A skewer won't come out clean because of the jam so best to use your judgement
-Leave them in the tin for 5 minutes and then set out on a cooling rack


-While these are cooling, roll out some royal icing as thin as you can and cut into roughly 10cm by 2cm rectangles.
-Roll the rectangle back on itself and experiment working it into a spiral to create a rose bud. Repeat until you have enough for your cakes
-For the icing heat 200g milk chocolate with 150ml single cream until you have a smooth consistency.
-Once the cakes are cooled smooth on the icing with the back of a teaspoon and add a white rose on top. Don't worry if the cakes  have sunk a bit- because of the jam this is quite normal and the rose will subtly cover it!


Also, when trying to bake whilst entertaining a 2 month old baby, you need this:

 My mother is a genius. He lies in his bouncy chair with the elastic around his feet and every time he kicks it moves - so much entertainment for a little person and meant we could bake to our heart's content!


Anyway tomorrow we are making gluten-free apple crumble cake. Stay posted!