One a penny, two a penny, Hot Cross Cupcakes

So I didn't technically make hot cross buns, but that song just popped into my head and who was I to resist? This will be the last post from my current location, for tomorrow I'm heading back into the academic bubble where I hide for around 27 weeks of the year, so farewell Cheltenham for now

Tomorrow also happens to be Easter, so i thought I'd bake something seasonal for once (more on my less appropriately timed baking later)to take with me. Happy Easter! 

Easter cupcakes

Basically a hot cross bun crossed with a simnel cake crossed with a cupcake. These have all the tastes of Easter baking, even including chocolate or marzipan mini eggs (green ones are marzipan filled.) The piping is rather irregular, I started with a very narrow nozzle to do a sort of basket-y nest around the eggs, but that was taking too long and it's so hot at them moment that the icing was just turning too gooey and the strings of piping ran together so I got impatient. I’ll pretend it was for artistic variation…

Yummy little marzipan eggs, thank you Waitrose 

 Ingredients

150g unsalted butter

150g caster sugar

2 medium eggs

1 tablespoon orange juice (you could squeeze your own, but I just use a good quality juice like Innocent instead)

150g self raising flour

½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp mixed spice

50g grated apple

30g dried pear (or apricots if you prefer)

25g sultanas

25g grated marzipan and 20g cut into small chunks/rolled into little balls

Cream Cheese Icing

125g cream cheese

50g unsalted butter

300g icing sugar (I used natural golden icing sugar here, which gave a nice almond-y colour)

½ tsp vanilla syrup/extract

Pre heat oven to 170 for a fan

Beat the butter and sugar together then add the eggs one at a time and beat between each. Gradually sift the flour and baking powder into the buttery mix, still beating.

Rub the fruits with a little bit of flour so they don’t sink in the oven, then add to the bowl with the spices and grated marzipan and beat again. Then fold in the marzipan chunks so they stay whole.

Fill the cases (again I did a mixture of normal and small, I reckon it would make around 16 just standard sized) and bake for 15 minutes for the little ones, 20mis for the larger ones. Ice when cold.