Caribbean Coconut and Mango Cupcakes

One of my colleagues is a vegan and I don't like the idea of leaving anyone out when I bring cakes into the office. With this in mind, I wanted to try my hand at baking without any animal products and I was very happy with the results - I think you will be too.

Since another colleague had helped me with some design work and I thought cupcakes would be a great way to say thanks. I asked him if he wanted anything special to which he replied, 'something with mango in it'. So I went on the hunt for a recipe that was vegan and would pair well with mango 'buttercream'. I immediately thought about coconut since the two go exceptionally well together.

Keen to really pack a mango punch I needed the butercream to be impressively fruity and my biggest concern was how to make the buttercream taste like real buttercream - the mouth-feel is so important. Creamy but not greasy on the lips. I think I've managed to get close, but it's something I want to work on so expect there will be other non-dairy buttercreams on the blog in the coming months.

I've adapted Chloe Coscarelli's coconut layer cake that you can find here.

Ingredients:

For the cake

460g plain flour

450g sugar

1tsp salt

1tsp baking powder

500g unflavoured soy milk

60g white vinegar

200g Trex (vegetable shortening)

2tbs rum

185g desiccated coconut (unsweetened)

For the frosting

250g Trex

750g icing sugar

100g - 150g mango pulp

Yields 36 small cupcakes or 18 large cupcakes.

For the cakes

1. Preheat the oven to 175C/350F.
2. Line a cupcake tin with liners.
3. Mix the soy milk, rum and the vinegar together in a bowl and set aside for 10 minutes to curdle.
4. Stir together the coconut, flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
5. In a mixer with the paddle attachment cream together the sugar and the Trex until light and fluffy.
6. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and then half of the soy milk mixture. Continue until both the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together. Do not over mix.
7. Fill the cupcake tin using an ice cream scoop and place inside a preheated oven.
8. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden turning halfway through.
9. Let cool completely before frosting each with the mango buttercream.

For the frosting

1. In a mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the Trex until light and fluffy. 
2. Add icing sugar in 250g portions and mix until you have incorporated all of the sugar.
3. Add in the mango pulp and mix until combined and a consistency that is easy for you to work with.

Unlike other vegan cake recipes the mixture can sit whilst you bake the cupcakes without causing the finished cupcake to fall. It seems to be a rather forgiving recipe and it has the seal of approval from both vegans and non-vegans. Next time I make a vegan cake I'm going to try coconut butter alongside the Trex to improve the buttercream.

Mouthwatering Margarita Cupcakes

Lemon Drizzle cake has to be one of the most requested cakes I ever make and I must admit that I get a little bored making it over and over again. Rather than go on strike and never make another, I decided to make a few changes and ended up with a real treat.

Always true to my Tex-Mex roots, I love a good margarita – especially frozen, which gives away the fact that I'm a Dallasite. So I figured why not make a margarita cupcake and went about looking for a recipe. It wasn't long before I was struck by a rather obvious idea… why not adapt a lemon drizzle cake?

I went to my cookbook library to find the best recipe to adapt and I found the perfect version to tinker with in Paul Hollywood’s ‘How to Bake’.  Any recipe that calls for ground almonds won't do because the taste of almonds would come through. I doubled the recipe, swapped out lemons for  two limes and an orange, and used a shot of tequila rather than lemon curd.  No doubt you could substitute rum for the tequila and make yourself daiquiri cupcakes instead.

These are ideal for having a simple Cinco de Mayo celebration or any other time you want to have a treat! Enjoy.

Makes 12 large or 18 medium cupcakes.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/355°F

For the cake 

Ingredients:

150g unsalted butter

250g sugar

300g flour

½ tsp bicarbonate soda

1tsp cream of tartar

4 eggs

45ml tequila

2tbs milk

Zest and juice of two limes

Zest and juice of half an orange (save the other half for the frosting)

For the drizzle:

Ingredients

100g caster sugar

50g icing sugar

juice of two limes

35ml tequila

1. Using the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar and beat until light and fluffy, approximately 5-10 minutes.
   
2. Add the eggs one at a time and then add in the lime and orange juice and mix thoroughly.
3. Mix in half of the flour, bicarb, cream or tartar, and zest and once combined add in the second half and mix the rest by hand.
   
4. Line a cupcake tin with liners and using an ice cream scoop fill the cupcakes 2/3 of the way full and place in a preheated oven. After ten minutes, gently turn the pan and leave to continue baking for another ten to fifteen minutes until done.
   
5. Mix the sugar, juice and tequila just before the cupcakes are ready to come out of the oven. While still hot, drizzle over the glaze on each cupcake and let cool. Once cool decorate with margarita Swiss meringue buttercream.