Gingerbread and banana muffins

Today I would like to present gingerbread and banana muffins. They were really good, moist, dense, spicy .... in my opinion they were just perfect. I have decorated them with white frosting, the same which is used to decorate gingerbread cookies. For additional spice I have sprinkled them with chopped crystallized ginger. What is worth to mention those muffins are egg free and they contain some wholewheat flour. The recipe comes form this website. 

Ingredients for 12 - 16 muffins *:

• 130g wholewheat flour
• 175g flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 and 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 and 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• pinch of nutmeg
• 90g Dark Muscovado sugar
• 3 bananas (about 275g mashed bananas)
• 145g black treacle
• 112g buttermilk
• 4 tbsp canola oil

* I have baked mine in muffin cases and cardboard molds.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

In a big bowl mix together the flours, baking powder, soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, cloves and nutmeg. Set aside.

With a fork mash the bananas. Add the sugar, black treacle, buttermilk, canola oil and mix until smooth. 

Pour the wet ingredients into a bowl with dry ones. Mix until all ingredients just combined. Spoon the batter into paper cases, about 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven for 20 - 30 minutes. Check with skewer. If skewer inserted in the middle of cake comes out clean the cake is ready. 

Transfer to the wire rack to cool down.

In a meantime prepare the frosting. 

Frosting:

• 1 egg white
• 1/2 cup icing sugar
• chopped crystallized ginger

Place the egg white and icing sugar in a bowl and stir with spoon until smooth and white. Drizzle over each cooled down muffin. Then sprinkle with chopped crystallized ginger. 

Gingerbread cupcakes with orange icing

This is Ina Garten's recipe so it has to be delicious. If only you like moist, spicy filled with fruits cupcakes with sweet and fruity icing you will be delighted. Although  I reduced the amount of raisins as we don't like that many. And unfortunately  instead of thick icing I made thick sauce which was delicious too, but slightly messy.  

Ingredients for 12 big cupcakes:

• 150ml rum or water (originally 250ml)
• 130g raisins (originally 220g)
• 115g butter
• 185g black treacle (originally 16 tbsp)
• 200g sour cream
• 1 orange zest
• 350g flour
• 3/4 tsp soda
• 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 70g diced crystallised ginger

Place the raisins in a saucepan pour over the rum or the water and heat up until the liquid starts boiling. Then remove from the heat, cover with lid and set aside. Dice the crystallised ginger.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.  

Into a separate sauce pan pour the black treacle add the butter and heat up until starts boiling. Then pour this mixture into an electric mixer bowl. 

While this mixture cools down prepare dry ingredients. Sift the flour, soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and salt into a bowl and whisk them together. 

Add the freshly grated orange zest into a black treacle mixture, then add sour cream and beat them together. Beating continuously add the dry ingredients. When the batter is smooth gently fold in soaked raisins and diced ginger. 

Spoon the batter into prepared earlier paper cases about 3/4 full bake for 20 -25 minutes. When well risen remove from the oven, leave them for a few minutes in the muffin tin then transfer to the wire rack to cool them down.

While the cupcakes are cooling down prepare the icing. Unfortunately mine icing turn into a sauce, was a little bit runny but was really tasty.

Ingredients for icing:

• 225g cream cheese
• 115g soft butter
• 1 orange zest
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 225g icing sugar
• crystallised ginger for decoration

Place the cream cheese, butter, orange zest and vanilla extract in an electric mixer bowl and beat until all ingredients well combined. When ready add icing sugar and again beat only for a while. What I did wrong was that I was beating the mixture for too long, that is way it was too runny at the end. 

When cupcakes are cooled down spread the icing over each cupcake top, decorate with ginger and enjoy :)  

Gingerbread latte

Those cupcakes were very delicious. Gingerbread flavour, soft and rich cake with cinnamon and coffee butter cream. Perfect ! The recipe comes form 'Making cupcakes with Lola' cookbook.

Ingredients for 12-18 cupcakes:

• 120g golden syrup
• 120g black treacle
• 200g heavy cream
• 250g flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 and 1/2 tbsp cocoa
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp mixed spice
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 135g butter
• 125g brown sugar
• 2 eggs

Sift the flour, baking powder, cocoa, coffee, ginger, mixed spice, nutmeg, salt into a big bowl and set aside.

Put the golden syrup, black treacle and heavy cream into a sauce pan. Heat the ingredients up until they turn into liquid. Do  not  let the mixture to boil.

Into an electric mixer bowl put the butter and sugar and beat until light and fluffy. 

In a meantime preheat the oven to 180C. line muffin tin with paper cases.

When the butter and sugar turn into fluffy mixture add the eggs one at the time beating continuously. When the eggs well incorporated add half of the flour mixture and half of wet ingredients mixture beat until all ingredients combined and repeat with remaining ingredients. 

Spoon the batter into paper cases about 3/4 full. Bake about 25 minutes. When ready remove form the oven and keep for a while in muffin tin then transfer to wire rack to cool down completely.

Ingredients for frosting:

• 120g soft butter
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 300g icing sugar
• 3 tbsp milk
• mixture of 2 tsp instant coffee and 1/2 tsp boiling water and  1 tsp cinnamon

Place the butter into an electric mixer bowl and beat until light and fluffy. Then add the vanilla extract and sugar (reduce the mixer speed otherwise your kitchen will be dusted with sugar) and beat until well incorporated. The add the milk and increase the speed to high. 

In a meantime put the instant coffee, cinnamon and boiling water into a small bowl and combine them with a spoon until they turn into a thick mixture. When the butter cream is ready add thick mixture and beat until is well incorporated. 

Put the butter cream on top of each cupcake. Enjoy !

 

 

Pumpkin muffins with cranberries and black treacle

This recipe comes from Carol Pastor cookbook '75 best - ever muffins'. We liked them very much. They were very tasty, spicy, sweet, moist.  The cake was fluffy and a little bit crumbly. Adding pumpkin pure to the batter  is a good idea to introduce veggies into a children diet

Ingredients for 12 muffins:

• 115g soft butter or margarine
• 150g Dark Muscovado sugar
• 60ml black treacle
• 225g pumpkin pure*
• 1 egg
• 225g flour
• 1 tsp soda
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 15g dried cranberries

 * I have bought a pumpkin recently so I made my own pumpkin puree. There is a method. Cut the pumpkin into smaller pieces. Remove the seeds (set them aside) and cut off the skin. Place the pumpkin on baking tray one piece beside another and bake them in the oven for 45 minutes in 180C. Poke the pieces of pumpkin with fork to check if they are soft. Then place them into a blender and bled for pure. You can store them in a jars in a fridge for a few days or freeze. If you like the pumpkin seeds, wash them and place on the same baking tray, keep them in a warm oven (60C) until they become dry. Then remove the with shell and enjoy !

pumpkin puree

Coming back to muffins.

Preheat the oven to 200C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.

Into a big bowl put the butter and sugar. Beat them together until fluffy. Then add black treacle and beat until well incorporated. 

Next add the pumpkin pure and and whisked egg.

In separate bowl combine the flour, soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Fold them into wet ingredients mixture. And last, but not  least, gently fold in the cranberries.

Spoon the batter into baking cases, 3/4 full. Sprinkle pumpkin seeds over the top of each muffin. Bake 12-15 minutes. When ready transfer to the wire rack to cool down. Enjoy !

 

Bran muffins with bananas, raisins, walnuts and black treacle

This is another recipe for banana and bran muffins on my blog. I wanted to try this one as well because those muffins are packed with goodies and sound very healthy at the same time. The recipe comes from Ina Garten colection. 

Ingredients for 12 -18 muffins:

• 40g wheat bran
• 225ml buttermilk
• 55g soft butter
• 60g light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 6 tbsp black treacle
• 1 tsp grated orange zest
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 210g flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 120g raisins
• 2 bananas
• 50g walnuts

Combine buttermilk and wheat bran and set aside.

Dice the bananas, chop the walnuts and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 180C. line muffin tin with paper cases.

In an electric mixer bowl cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, for about 5 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed and add one egg at the time. After the eggs add the black treacle, orange zest, vanilla and bran/buttermilk mixture. Combine all ingredients.

In separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, soda and salt. Gently fold in the flour mixture into wet ingredients mixture. Do not over mix it. Fold in the bananas, walnuts and raisins with rubber spatula.

Spoon the batter into paper cases, fill them to the top and bake for 25 minutes.

Enjoy !

Gingerbread man muffins

This recipe comes from 'Cake days. Recipes to make every day special. The hummingbird bakery.'

Ingredients for 18 muffins:

• 140g unsalted butter
• 200g caster sugar
• 60g black treacle
• 60g golden syrup
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 310g flour
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 240 ml hot milk

Preheat the oven to 190C. Line muffin tin with paper cases. This time I had silicone muffin cases so there was no need for muffin tin and greasing.

Sift the flour, spices, baking powder into a big bowl and whisk them together. Put the  butter and sugar into electric mixer bowl and beat them until white and fluffy. Then add the golden syrup, black treacle, eggs and egg yolks. Beat them until all ingredients well incorporated. In a meantime heat up the milk. 

To the mixture in the electric mixer bowl add alternately the hot milk and dry ingredients mixture. Pour the batter into muffin cases 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Leave them in muffin cases fro a while after baking then transfer to the wire rack. Muffins have to be cooled down before decorating them.

Ingredients for frosting:

•  600g icing sugar
• 100g soft butter
• 200g Philadelphia cream cheese
• sugar, chocolate sprinkles

Put butter and icing sugar into electric mixer bowl and beat on low speed until sandy.  Add cheese and beat until soft and fluffy.

With a spoon, knife spread the frosting over muffins' tops and sprinkle with sprinkles. Enjoy !