Blueberry Muffins

Who can resist soft and moist blueberry muffins for tea? Certainly not me! :)

Don't the plentiful blueberries look rather squeezy in a small cupcake? Believe me, if you are a fan of blueberries like me, you will welcome them lovingly with open arms mouth. Hahaha...

Blueberry Muffins
Adapted from: 500 Cupcakes & Muffins by Fergal Connolly

Ingredients (Makes 12)
110 g castor sugar
1 tbsp lemon zest, grated
265 g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
2 eggs, lightly beaten
225 ml milk
115 g unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla essence
225 g blueberries, fresh or thawed frozen

Method
1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Place 12 paper baking cases in a muffin tin.
2. In a medium bowl, stir the sugar, lemon zest, flour and baking powder with a spoon.
3. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, butter and vanilla with an electric whisk until smooth, about 1 minute.
4. Add the dry ingredients and stir until the blueberries are just combined.
5. Spoon the batter into the cases.
6. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove tin from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Serve muffins immediately.
7. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

Pumpkin Cupcakes

It is a good thing that the people in the supermarket have cut and repackaged pumpkins into smaller pieces as I could not imagine finishing a whole big pumpkin!

The recipe calls for a single baking pan but I have baked them in cupcake size. Soft and fragrant, I thoroughly enjoyed the generous serving of pumpkin all over the cake. I will certainly make more pumpkin bakes in the future.

A question though: For the pumpkin skin, should I remove prior to or after the steaming? :)

Pumpkin Cupcakes
Adapted from: Fruity Cakes by Alex Goh

Ingredients (Make 18)
250 g butter
150 g castor sugar
3 eggs
150 g pumpkin, steamed and mashed
320 g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
60 g coconut milk / fresh milk
90 g pumpkin seeds
220 g raw pumpkin, diced

Method
1. Sift plain flour and baking powder together. Set aside.
2. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in eggs and beat until light and smooth.
3. Add in the mashed pumpkin and mix until well-blended.
4. Fold in the flour mixture and coconut milk and mix until well-combined.
5. Add the pumpkin seeds and 120 g diced pumpkin, mix until well-incorporated.
6. Pour the batter into cupcake moulds and sprinkle the remaining of the diced pumpkin on top.
7. Bake in a preheated oven at 175°C for 25 minutes.

Notes
- You can add in ½ tsp ground cinnamon to enhance the flavour.

Lemon Butter Cake

It has been a long time since I last posted, one month to be exact. Did anyone miss me? :)

After the Moist Butter Cake post, there are several encounters where wet lines are observed in my butter cakes. This time round, I halved the Lemon Butter Cake recipe, which The Little Teochew has tweaked from her Moist Butter Cake. The result is fantastic, a soft cake with a lovely citrus lemon scent! :)

Thanks to The Little Teochew for sharing the recipe. :)

Lemon Butter Cake
Adapted from: The Little Teochew

Ingredients (Makes an 18-cm round)
97.5 g plain flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
85 g unsalted butter, softened
60 g sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp lemon zest, grated
4 tbsp fresh milk

Method
1. Preheat oven to 190°C. Grease and line an 18-cm round cake pan.
2. Sift plain flour and baking powder together. Set aside.
3. Beat butter and sugar on medium speed until pale and fluffy for about 2 minutes.
4. Add in lemon zest and egg gradually and beat until well-combined. If the mixture curdles, add 1 tbsp of flour and continue mixing. 
5. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk, beating at low speed until the flour mixture is fully incorporated in the batter.
6. Switch the mixer to medium speed and beat for 10 – 15 seconds, just until the batter appears uniform. The batter should look thick and creamy.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smoothen the top with a spatula.
8. Bake at 190°C for 30 – 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes clean.
9. Leave the cake to cool in pan for 5 minutes. Unmold and cool on a wire rack completely.

Notes
- Omitted the Lemon Curd Cream.
- Use a smaller pan.