Tea Party cupcakes

A sneak peak.... Sunday tea party

Just a little taster of the baked goods that I made for yesterday's tea party. The rest of the pictures should be up by tonight! These are the rasberry cupcakes with white chocolate buttercream icing, the recipe is in my second ever post!

Tea party preperations

So today i was supposed to check out prices for printing flyers, that sadly didn't get done! I got distracted in a cute little baking shop in Cork and bought a few too many cake decorations. My mam is having a little afternoon tea party tomorrow afternoon and I'm in charge of dessert...cupcakes naturally!!

I'll put some pictures up once they're done!

Happy Saturday!

Tiptoe # 2

So next step in operation cupcake (original, I know) is tomorrow when I'll be heading to Cork city. I'm basically going to check out some office shops that do leaflet printing and find out how much it would cost to print maybe 20-50 flyers.
Have a delicious weekend!

The Country Market

So as I said earlier, today I was going to check out a country market held in my town to see if I'd be interested in selling my cupcakes there. Well I walked in and there were two old ladies sitting just by the door with a box of money, one just smiled and said just go in . So I did , into a big room where there were 2 other old ladies siting down in the corner chatting away and that was it. no one else! They had about 3 tables lined up that had brown bread, eggs and some queen cakes scattered on them...definitely no market for cupcakes!!

I Thought while I was there though I might as well buy something and support the local economy (ha by spending 1euro 60! every little helps they say!..)and bought 4 little buns, really cute, like ones i used to make when I was younger...they bought me right back:) So this tiptoe brought no business success but a lot of nostalgia...and who doesn't like nostalgia!

So I know this a baking blog but I am seriously obsessed with beyonce's new album, well the three songs I've heard from her anyway! I have been listening to this song on repeat for about a week, think it's time I bought the album!

Anyway today is step one of setting up my little cupcake business, well it's not so much of a step as a tiptoe but I said I would bog my journey so...!
This afternoon I'm going to a country market that's held in my town to check it out really. I had never even heard of it before last week so I'm not sure if many people even go to it. I want to see if it's popular and even if their would be an audience for my cupcakes. I'll keep ye informed:)

Happy Friday!

Strawberries and cream Birthday Cake

So this is a reeally simple recipe. I made it for my dad who loves a nice simple fresh cream cake, so for his birthday I made him this (I'm broke remember :S). Anyway It's a basic sponge mixture but sponge can often be dry and this is a really good recipe I think. Again, perfect for a summers day! filled with freash cream and strawberries, it's light but delish! enjoy!

175g butter, softened

175g caster sugar

3 eggs beaten

175g self raising flour, sifted

Two 7inch diameter sandwich tins

1. Preheat the oven at 180'C/ 350'F/gas mark4. Greases and line the sandwich tins.

2.Cream the butter in a large bowl until soft. Add the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.

3.Beat the eggs into the butter and sugar mixture, beating well after each addition.

4.Sift the flour over the mixture and fold in with a spatula.

5.Pour the mixture into the prepared tins. Smooth the top and bake in the oven for around 20.

6. Leave to cool in the tins for a few mins before turning them out and taking off the lining paper. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

7. Whip about 150 mils of cream and spread over one of the sponges. Cut some washed strawberries into thin layers and place over the cream until the cream is covered. Place second sponge on top, spoon a tablespoon of cream in about 8 spots around the top of the cake and top with half of a strawberry. Finally sift some icing sugar over the top and serve....with tea!

This is really the nicest the day it's made, as you're using fresh strawberries and cream it won't really last long so it's best made for a party where it will be snatched up in seconds!

Strawberries and cream Cupcakes

As much as I regret this fact, it's a fact, I never eat fruit. Okay well that's dramatic but I'll definitely say rarely. The only fruit I actually enjoy are strawberries, especially in the Summer. So I made these Sweet, creamy delicious cupcakes for a little gathering with my friends.

Oh and they're just called strawberries and cream, it's in fact vanilla buttercream frosting on top, not cream. Even more delicious I think but of course, you could use cream on top if desired!

Enjoy.x.

These cupcakes are so soft and fluffy and sweet, I ate like three by themselves while they were cooling down , that just proves it!

 225g Caster Sugar,

210g self raising flour, sifted,

1 teaspoon baking powder

25g cornflour

125g fresh strawberries, hulled and crushed

225g unsalted butter at room temp

4 large free range eggs

1.preheat the oven to 160(fan)/180'C/350'C/gas mark 4 and line a muffin tray with cupcakes cases (about 12)

2.Put the sugar, baking powder, cornflour, and crushed strawberries into a food processor. Pulse until mixed. Add the butter and eggs and process. I f you are using an electric hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together first, beat in the eggs, one by one, and then add the remaining ingredients and beat well.

3.Carefully spoon the mixture into cupcake cases , filling them about two thirds full and bake in the oven for 25 minutes. The cupcakes will be relatively moist even when cooked.

4.Remove from the oven and leave to cool in tins for around 10 minutes before moving to a wire tray.

5.Once cooled, core the cupcakes and spoon a teaspoon of strawberry jam inside.

This buttercream always gets compliments, and even better it's quick and easy to make!

110g Unsalted butter, at room temp
60 ml semi skimmed milk,
1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
500g Icing sugar, sifted

1.In a large mixing bowl beat the butter, milk, vanilla extract and half the icing sugar until smooth. Gradually add the remainder of the icing sugar and beat again until smooth and creamy.

Yup! that easy!

Rasberry Cupcakes with White Chocolate buttcream frosting

So, to say that I was (and still am) obsessed with the royal wedding and the lovely william and kate would me an understatement! seriously, I think I could have a problem.

Anyway the wedding of course was on the 29th of April, right when all my friends were studying for college exams and when I had a project to do for college (it was untouched on my lap during the first half of the coverage until i finally admitted to myself i wouldn't get any done). Basically I couldn't celebrate properly!

So once June began I hosted a summer's afternoon tea party for myself and My looovely friend Hayley (and fellow royal couple obsessee!)  as a late celebration of the Royal Wedding. Look I know, It's kinda crazy, Just leave me alone.

Moral of the story, for a lovely Summers' Day I thought these delicious cupcakes would be perfect!

Enjoy:)

110g Unsalted Butter, at room temp
180g Caster Sugar
2 Large eggs
125g self raising flour,sifted
120g plain flour, sifted
125ml semi-skimmed milk,at room temp
1 teaspoon good quality Vanilla extract
3 tablespoons good quality seedless raspberry jam

1. Preheat the oven to 160(fan)/180/gas mark 4 and line a muffin tray with cupcakes case.

2.In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar until pale and smooth, which should take a few minutes using an electric beater. Add the eggs, one at time, mixing for a few minutes after each addition.

3.Combine the two flours in a separate bowl. Put the milk in a jug and add the vanilla extract to it. Add one third of the flours to the creamed mixture and beat well. Pour in one third of the milk mixture and beat again. Repeat these steps until all the flour and milk have been added.

4. Gently fold in the raspberry jam without combining it completely so that some streaks of jam are seen in the mixture. Spoon the mixture into the cases, filling them to about two-thirds full. Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes.

5. Remove from the oven and leave cakes in the tin for around 10 mins and then carefully allow to cool on a wire tray. Once they have cooled carefully core the cupcake and pore about teaspoon of jam inside.

110g Unsalted butter at room temp
60 ml semi-skimmed milk
1teaspoon good quality vanilla extract
500 g icing sugar, sifted
100g good quality white chocolate
3 tablespoons double cream

1. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter, milk, vanilla extract and half the icing sugar until smooth. Add the rest of the icing sugar gradually and beat until the buttercream is smooth and creamy.

2.To melt the chocolate , put the broken chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir occasionally until melted, leave to cool slightly. Once the chocolate is cooled add to the buttercream mixture and also add the double cream. Beat well and use immediately.

yummers....

Just another blog?

And so it begins... !

As this is the first post on my (may i say) delightful blog, allow me to intoduce myself.
My name is Éadaoin, a Fashion Design Student from Cork, Ireland who loves to bake!
I have no professional training and am by NO means an expert baker!! My sister will never let me
forget the times I forgot to add flour to cupckakes or  when I used baking soda instead of icing sugar
for icing....i kid you not!! It was a long time ago in my defense!


Anyway I'm pretty fed up with this whole recession, who isn't!? I've handed out sooo many
cvs...and yet, no job.
So , time to take things into my own hands!!
Basically i've baked for friends and family for a long time so why not offer it to more
people! I'm hoping to start baking for markets and hopefully earn a profit while i'm at it!
I also love photography and food photograpy so this is the perfect outfit to show what I
love to do!

So join me dears,  as i blog my journey to Bake myself out of this recession and through college!

And by the way, any recipes featured on this blog were probably not created by me (unless specified ), they have been found and collected from cookbooks, magazines or kindly donated by friends and family!

Let's get baking then!
x.