Another weekly-installment type post; who knows how long it will last, considering my obsessions with cooking/baking tend to come and go. But for now, I think it will be fun! I'm going to try to have every recipe be something I've actually made, rather than just "this looks good".

A few days ago on Twitter, somebody I follow mentioned the cupcake recipe here. I love strawberries and kiwis, and the idea of them combined in a cupcake? Divine! I rushed right out to the store (at 11:30 at night) .... and forgot my shopping list. Damn! Still, the only thing I forgot was the lemon. I remembered the lemon juice, but not the lemon. I'm blonde, be quiet.

I was too tired to make them when I got home anyway, so I got a lemon the next day. And then ... I delayed by re-arranging my entire kitchen. It wasn't very efficiently arranged; I didn't really have any counter space. After spending hours washing every dish in the house, and cleaning the kitchen, I was finally ready to bake.

The first step was to cream sugar into butter, and I nearly screwed it up right there. I hadn't baked in so long that instead of creaming it, I went at it with a fork, as if I were cutting butter into dough. D'oh! Luckily I realized my mistake before I'd wasted more than a minute or two ... and that's when I busted out my trusty, rarely used electric mixer. However, I hit a little snag with the lemon zest ... in the form of not having a zester. I gave it a try with my cheese grater, but it just didn't work ... so I went ahead without it. I now have a lemon I have no use for.

While creaming sugar, and chopping kiwi, and mixing ingredients, I realized I miss doing this! I used to cook and bake a lot more often. Then I moved in with my aunt and cousins to be their nanny, and I cooked dinner for the kids, but it wasn't my kitchen. Then I moved to my own apartment again, but I was working at first four, and then at least two, jobs. I cooked a little more often, but it's been ages since I actually baked anything. It was very satisfying to pop the first batch of cupcakes out of the oven.

And boy, did they turn out delicious! They were good by themselves, because they were really moist and tasty. But the frosting? Aw damn. Cream cheese frosting with little bits of fresh strawberry and kiwi mixed in may just be the best thing I've ever tasted. Also, they really weren't difficult to make at all. It made 14 cupcakes, and I still have more than half of the leftover frosting--you just don't need to use much, because the cakes are so moist and sweet on their own.

This recipe, and the photo, are taken directly from Couture Cupcakes. I had planned to take pictures of my own, but the thing is, I don't have a frosting bag, so I just had to glop the frosting on with a knife and they weren't nearly as pretty. :)

Lemon Kiwi Fruit Cupcakes

125g / 1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup superfine sugar
3 eggs
1 ¼ cup self-rising flour
1 tsp finely grated lemon rind
1 tbs lemon juice
1/2 cup sour cream
2 kiwi fruit finely diced

1. Preheat oven to 180 (350).
2. Line a muffin tray with cupcake liners.
3. Cream butter, lemon zest and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Beat in the flour until just combined, add the sour cream and lemon juice and beat until well incorporated.
6. Fold in the finely diced kiwi fruit.
7. Evenly divide the batter into cupcake liners and bake for 20 - 22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
8. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Strawberry and Kiwi Cream Cheese Frosting

125g / 1/2 cup butter
125g / 4 oz cream cheese
2 cups icing [powdered] sugar
2 strawberries finely diced
1/2 kiwi fruit finely diced
2 - 3 tbs milk

1. Cream butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
2. Add the strawberries, lemon zest and kiwi fruit. Beat until fruit is combined with the butter.
3. Add cream cheese and beat for 2 minutes.
4. Add one cup of icing sugar to cream cheese mixture. Gradually add rest of icing sugar and milk until you get the consistency you want.

And not that I'm all into the food-shaming thing anymore, but these are a pretty healthy baked good. Because of the fruit there's a decent amount of vitamins; there's enough dairy to contribute 3% of your daily calcium per cupcake; and although there's a good dose of carbs, using full-fat dairy products lessens the effect. I had two cupcakes, with frosting, on an empty stomach and didn't get that crazy blood sugar rise-and-crash cycle going on.

Tomorrow I'm going to try substituting mango for kiwi, and make it a cake instead of cupcake. Mmmmm.