Sunday 29 July 2012

Chocolate and pistachio cupcakes

Ingredients:
230g/ 8 oz. butter, softened
230g/ 8 oz. caster sugar
4 eggs, beaten
230g/ 8 oz. self raising flour
1tsp. baking powder
150g/ 5 1/2 oz. plain chocolate (melted in a bowl over a pan of hot water)
50g/ 1 3/4 oz. pistachios, chopped

Icing:
125g/ 4 1/2 oz. butter, softened
400g 14 oz. icing sugar
A handful of raspberries and a handful of pistachios

  • Preheat the oven to gas mark 3/ 160ยบ C
  • Fill a twelve hole muffin tray with paper cases.
  • In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.
  • Beat in the eggs gradually.
  • Gradually fold in the flour and baking powder.
  • Gently stir in the melted chocolate and chopped pistachios until just combined.
  • Divide the mixture evenly between the cases, and put in the oven for about 25 mins, until risen. You should be able to stick a skewer or knife in and it come out clean if they are ready.
  • Remove from the oven, and put on a cooling rack.
  • While the cakes are cooling, prepare the icing.
  • I don't actually weigh ingredients out when making icing, but for those who like to, the above quantities should work. 
  • Cream the butter until pale and soft. 
  • Cream in the icing sugar.
  • Put the raspberries in a sieve and squash them into the sieve, letting the juice run into the icing. Stir in.
  • If you plan to pipe the icing on you will need to leave the icing in the fridge for about half an hour (if you leave it in too long and it's a bit too solid, just leave it to soften a bit once out the fridge).
  • Pipe/spread the icing on to the cakes. 
  • Either chop finely, or if you have a food processor, whizz the pistachios.
  • Sprinkle to pistachios on top of the cakes.

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