Hummingbird Bakery Gingerbread Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the sponge
140g unsalted butter, soft
200g caster sugar
60g/4 tsp black treacle
60g/4 tbsp golden syrup
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
310g plain flour
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
240ml hot milk
For the icing
NB: you might prefer to double this depending on how thickly you like the cakes iced
300g cream cheese
150g icing sugar
150ml double cream
zest of a whole lemon
Method
Preheat the oven to 190C/180C fan/375F/gas mark 5 and line your tin with pretty cake cases.
Cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the treacle, golden syrup, eggs and yolks and mix until combined.
Sift together the flour, cocoa, spices, baking powder and salt. Add this to the wet mixture, on a low speed and adding in two or three batches alternating with the hot milk. Mix on a medium speed until all the ingredients are definitely incorporated and the cake mix looks smooth.
Fill the cake cases two-thirds full and bake for 18-20 minutes or until risen and springy to the touch.
For the icing, briefly whip the cream cheese until smooth, sieve over the icing sugar and then beat them together. Add the cream and beat again until it reaches a spreadable consistency. Finally, mix through the lemon zest and spread onto the (cooled) cakes.
i've not done the icing yet - will do tmrw. it gets a slating on this website here tho so i might just so a straight buttercream frosting. what do you think?