Recipe: Spiced Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I actually made these cupcakes just before Christmas last year, I typed out the recipe but forgot to post it and it was stuck in my draft folder ever since.  Since Bake-Along's blog hop event's theme this time is celebration cupcakes, I thought these would be pretty apt since they taste great, look great and it was made in honour of the Christmas month.

Spiced cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

I made these cupcakes with Baby D - he helped line the baking tray with cupcake liners, combine the ingredients, mix, and fill the liners with the cake mixture. Good job, my little assistant! ;)

The most wonderful thing about these cupcakes is the lovely smell of spices when you are baking them as well as when you take your first bite. I made these around Christmas time because spices always reminds me of Christmas. I have added some walnuts and dried cranberries into the cupcake mix, since my kids like fruits and nuts in their cake. The cake is very moist but doesn't look too pretty without make-up on, but once frosting is done, it is transformed into a pretty cupcake worthy of a celebration. For decoration, I used dehydrated ginger for the adults and edible gold balls for the kids (just in case ginger is too strong-tasting for them, you know). This recipe is also suitable for making a 8" triple layer cake - scroll down to the bottom for guidelines.

Topped with dehydrated ginger pieces

With edible balls (for the kids)

Spiced cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 25 - 30 minutes
Makes 15 cupcakes (or one 8" triple-layer cake)

Ingredients
300ml milk
2 tbsp golden syrup
2 tsp vanilla essence
60g walnuts, roughly chopped
25g dried cranberries
170g butter, at room temperature
200g caster sugar
2 egg, at room temperature
2 egg yolks, at room temperature
285g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp grated nutmeg
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground all spice

For the frosting
150g cream cheese, at room temperature
20g butter
1-2 tbsp whipping cream
3-4 tbsp icing sugar

To garnish
Chopped dehydrated ginger
Edible balls

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (no fan). Line a muffin-tray with 15 cupcake liners.

2. In a bowl, combine the milk, golden syrup, vanilla essence, walnuts and dried cranberries. Set aside.

3. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and egg yolks. Add the milk mixture (from Step 2) and stir well.

4. Sift together the flour, baking powder and spices 3 times.

5. Add the flour mixture in 4 batches, and fold in carefully after each addition.

6. Fill the cupcake liners until 2/3 full. Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes, then remove and allow to cool on a wire rack.

7. For the frosting, place cream cheese, butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric whisk. If it is too thick, then add some whipping cream to get spreading consistency.

8. Once cupcake has cooled, fill the frosting in a piping bag with star nozzle. Pipe frosting on cake and garnish with either chopped dehydrated ginger or edible balls.

Note: This recipe is also suitable for making a 8" triple layer cake. Instead of cupcake liners, line three 8" (20cm) cake tins with greaseproof paper and divide cake mixture between the tins and bake for 25 minutes. Spread the frosting between the layers and over the top.





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