Lemon curd blueberry meringue cupcakes

I adore blueberries and lemon curd, I love cupcakes and my all time favourite dessert has to be lemon meringue pie so this is something I thought I would try to marry my three favourite things together and boy are they good!!! As usual with all these recipes if you are not gluten free just switch back in regular flour. This recipe should make about 12 cupcakes maybe more if your cases are not as deep as mine.

Ingredients for the cupcakes

150g butter or margarine

150g caster sugar

3 medium eggs

150g gluten free self raising flour, I use Doves Farm (or Freee foods I think they are called now)

about 5 tblsp lemon curd (depending on how lemony you want them)

a few handfuls of blueberries (again depends how many you want in your cakes)

Ingredients for meringue topping

2 free range egg whites

100g caster sugar

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 170c/325f/gas 3

2. Line your cupcake tin with paper cases.

3. I use the all in one method for my cakes. So easy if you have either a hand mixer, a free standing mixer with the paddle attachment or a food processor and that is I add the flour, butter, eggs and sugar and whizz until pale and light and fluffy. It never fails.

4. If you prefer to make it as you would a Victoria sandwich cake then cream the butter and sugar together until pale, light and fluffy, either in your mixer with the paddle attachment or by hand with a hand blender or wooden spoon in a bowl.

5. Add the eggs one at a time and after the first one I add in a tblsp of flour just to prevent it from curdling and then again after adding the other eggs. Beat really well after each addition.

6. Sift the flour and then add the rest into the mixture and beat until light and fluffy. 

7. Fold in the blueberries until well distributed.

8. I like the lemon curd to be in the middle of my cupcakes so put a spoonful of cake mix into each case. Then add about 1 tsp lemon cud into each case (this bit really isn't an exact science so no need to be too precise!) You can add more or less depending on how lemony you want them. I like lots so add good dollop in each one.

9. Then top the lemon curd with more cake mix to cover it.

10. Bake in the oven for between 15-20 mins. or until a skewer when inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. While they are baking prepare your meringue topping.

11. Make sure your bowl is scrupulously clean for this as meringues just won't work if there is the slightest bit of  grease on the bowl.

12. Whisk the egg whites with a hand whisk or freestanding mixer with the whisk attachment until the are stiff. You can test to see if they are ready by tipping the bowl upside down. If they do not slide out they are ready. (I like to do this over either mine or the children's heads for a giggle!) 

13. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time and continue whisking until thick and glossy.

14. Once you cakes are baked remove from the oven and place on a wire rack.

15. Either pipe or spread the meringue mix on top depending on what you prefer (Or have time for)

16. Then either brown with a blow torch or brown under a hot grill just until coloured but not too much.

17. These are delicious as a pudding with a big dollop of cream and more blueberries on the side or just with a cup of tea.....

 

Blueberry almond cake

This recipe came about one day when my husband came back with 2 kg of Blueberries! We do get through a lot each week usually but not that many..... I knew I would have to use quite a few up in recipes over the next week and as I was baking a cake that day I thought I would add a few blueberries instead of my usual almond cake favourites. The result was wonderful and so easy too.

Ingredients

150g butter, softened

125g caster sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp almond essence

75g gluten free self raising flour ( I use Doves Farm or I think it amy be called Freee foods now!)
75g ground almonds

175g Blueberries

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170c/gas mark 3

2. Grease a 20cm loose bottomed cake tin (having the loose bottom makes it much easier to remove the cake without damaging the pretty top) and line the bottom with baking parchment.

3. Put butter and caster sugar into a bowl and beat with an electric whisk or with a freestanding mixer with the paddle blade, until creamed together and pale and fluffy.

4. Break in one egg and whisk well adding a spoonful of flour if it starts to curdle.

5. Crack in the second egg and a spoonful flour and whisk again.

6. Add the ground almonds, almond extract and whisk until blended . Then add in the flour and give it a final mix.

7. The mix is quite stiff but spoon into the tin and spread it out as best you can.

8. Scatter with the blueberries and then pop into the oven and bake for about 45-50 mins. I always check after 45 mins by inserting a skewer into the middle to see if it comes out clean.

9. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

10. Carefully turn out of the tin. Slide off the bottom of the tin onto serving plate and drizzle with icing if desired, can top it with extra fresh blueberries as I have done although not necessary.

11. Works really well as a cake or as a pudding with cream. Either way its delicious. 

Gluten free chocolate secret muffins

I call these chocolate secret muffins because they contain courgettes and if I had told the children they did before they tasted them they probably would have given them a wide berth!!! As it was they absolutely loved them and so they now know that they have vegetable matter in them but the name has stuck.........These are gluten free but as with most of my recipes it is very easy to switch back, just switch in self raising regular flour for the gluten free flour.

Ingredients

250g self raising gluten free flour (I use doves farm)

375g caster sugar

65g cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

4 eggs

350ml vegetable oil ( I use grapeseed oil)

340g finely grated courgette

120g chopped chocolate

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180c / gas mark 4

2. Line your muffin tin with muffin cases.

3. I use a mixer with a paddle attachment for this but you can use a bowl and a hand mixer or whichever process you prefer for mixing cakes.

4. Into a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, salt and cocoa powder. 

5. In a separate bowl beat the eggs in with the oil

6. With the mixer running add the oil and egg mix into the dry ingredients and beat until well blended, then mix in the courgettes and again beat really well so they are well distributed throughout the mix.

7. Add in the chopped chocolate and again beat.

8. Spoon the mix into the muffin cases so they are 3/4 full, you should get at least 15 out of this although it depends on how deep your cases are so you may get less or more. 

9. Bake in the preheated oven for about 15-20 mins. I always test mine after 15 mins as have an aga so they can bake quicker. They are baked as soon as a sharp knife or skewer poked into the middle comes out clean. 

10. Place on a wire rack to cool. Enjoy either slightly warm or cool and store in an air tight tin. 

Gluten free chocolate and pistachio shortbread

Recipe

175g butter

75g caster sugar

150g rice flour

100g ground almonds 

75g chocolate chips or chopped chocolate

25g chopped pistachios

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180c/gas mark 4

2.Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, (I use a free standing mixer with the paddle attachment but you use whichever method you prefer)

3. Add the rice flour, ground almonds and mix until combined, then add in the chopped pistachios and chopped chocolate.

4. Shape into a cylindrical log roughly 5cm in diameter and wrap up in greaseproof paper ( It will be a little sticky but don't worry it will firm up) 

5. Place in the fridge for about an hour. You can skip this part but the dough will need to be rolled into balls and flattened into discs as is a sticky mix at this stage. I do also sometimes leave the dough overnight and make them the next day even. 

6. After about an hour unwrap and slice into round discs that are about 1cm thickness, don't worry if it crumbles slightly just squidge it together and shape into a round disc again, you can use some rice flour if a little sticky still) place them on several baking sheets that have been lined with baking parchment spacing far enough apart to allow for spreading.

7. Bake for about 10-15 minutes until golden. (you may need to rotate the trays half way through depending on your oven)

8. Once cooked leave on the baking sheets to firm up before moving to a wire rack to cool.

9. Store in an airtight container 

Variation;

1.You can half dip these or drizzle them in melted chocolate and sprinkle with more chopped pistachios for an extra special treat. 

2. You could leave out the pistachios and just add chocolate chips or chopped chocolate

3. You could swap the pistachios and chocolate for anything you desire