Orange Almond Cupcakes Recipes

ORANGE-ALMOND CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in top position. Line 18 muffin-pan cups with paper liners. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, and 1/3 cup marmalade until pale yellow and fluffy, 4 minutes. In a food processor, process almonds until finely ground. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and process until almonds are completely incorporated into flour mixture.
• With mixer on low, beat eggs, one at a time, into butter mixture, scraping down bowl after each addition. Add buttermilk and flour mixture each in three additions, scraping down bowl after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
• Fill each muffin cup with cup batter. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 22 to 24 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Let cupcakes cool in pans on wire racks. Top each with a dollop whipped cream and evenly drizzle with 1/3 cup marmalade.

ORANGE & ALMOND CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 170C/150C fan/gas 3½. Line 2 x 12-hole muffin tins with muffin cases. Put the butter and caster sugar in a large bowl and blend with an electric hand whisk until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking well between each addition. Add the flour, almonds, baking powder and a pinch of salt. Mix again, then add the orange zest and juice, and almond extract. Give a final mix to combine everything.
• Use 2 dessertspoons to divide the mixture between the cases. Bake for 22-25 mins, changing the tins over after 15 mins. Remove from the oven, leave to cool for 10 mins in the tins, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Can now be frozen for up to 3 months.
• To make the icing, tip the butter into a large bowl and blend with an electric hand whisk until smooth. Add the icing sugar, cream cheese, almond extract and orange juice. Mash everything together first with a spatula (to avoid a mess), then go in with the electric whisk and mix until smooth. Add your food colouring and mix again until you have an even colour. (If you're using liquid food colouring, it will make the icing runny, so add a little more icing sugar.)
• Fit the piping bag with a large curved star point piping nozzle, then fill the bag with half of the icing and twist the end closed. To pipe, hold the piping bag directly above the centre of the cake and, applying a steady pressure, pipe in a swirl, working out towards the edge of the cupcake. When you reach the edge, swipe the nozzle to create a smooth finish - you can always cover this bit with leaves, so don't worry too much if it looks messy. When you have piped 12 cupcakes, empty any remaining icing from the bag back into the bowl with the reserved icing. Add a little more colouring to create a deeper shade (and a little extra sifted icing sugar if the icing gets too runny). Whisk again, then refill your piping bag and ice the remaining cakes. Can be stored somewhere cool for up to 1 day (the fridge is fine, just make sure that you remove 30 mins before eating).
• Before serving, add a few leaves, if you like: pinch off small pieces of green sugar paste or fondant icing and shape into leaves. Use a sharp knife to add detail, then stick onto the cupcakes. See tips, below left, for how to build your bouquet.

ALMOND CUPCAKES WITH ORANGE ICING

Steps:

• In a bowl whisk together the flour, the almonds, the baking powder, and a pinch of salt. In another bowl with an electric mixer cream together the shortening and the granulated sugar, beat in the egg and the almond extract, and beat in the flour mixture alternately with the water, beating well after each addition. Divide the batter among 12 paper-lined 1/2-cup muffin tins and bake the cupcakes in the middle of a preheated 350°:F. oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Turn the cupcakes out onto a rack and let them cool completely.
• In another bowl beat together the confectioners' sugar, the butter, the zest, and the juice, beating until the icing is fluffy, and spread the icing on the cupcakes.