When Life Gives you Lemonade, Make Cupcakes!

So after a long day in work admiring the rare Scottish sun from the fifth floor window in work, I came home and decided I needed a little bit of summer inspiration. An ice lolly or a glass of lemonade, no, I needed a perfectly summer cupcake. These can be enjoyed anytime day or night and in any weather but with a lemony tang and a burst of sweet raspberry, these cupcakes are the perfect May treat. 

I started off with a basic lemon cupcake recipe to which i included the zest of a lemon for that extra zing. After these were perfect fluffy with a golden top, i added a perfectly pink swirl of buttercream piled high topped with a fresh raspberry, a slice of lemon and a summer straw to give it a taste of a summer drink.

Ingredients

For the sponge:

125g Soft Unsalted Butter

125g Self-raising Flour

125g Caster Sugar

2tbsp Milk (if needed to thin mixture)

2 Large Eggs

Finely Grated Zest of 1 Small Lemon

For the icing:

125g Soft Unsalted Butter

250g Icing sugar

Juice of 1 Small Lemon

250g Raspberries

Method

Preheat oven to gas mark 4/180°C. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with your choice of summer inspired cupcake cases.

Start by sifting sugar into a mixing bowl and combine with sugar until light in colour and fluffy. Next, add in your eggs, milk, flour and lemon zest and combine until batter is smooth. Divide mixture evenly and pop them in the oven to bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown and springy to the touch.

Meanwhile, make the icing. Sieve icing sugar into a bowl and gradually add in butter and beat with a whisk until light and fluffy. In your sieve strain raspberries to get rid of the seeds and then mix in with your icing mixture. If necessary, sieve in some more icing sugar until you have a perfectly pipeable buttercream.

Now for the fun part, swirl your buttercream onto your cakes any way you like and decorate in your best summer inspired decorations.

Enjoy :)

Luisa

xo