They are lemony, soft and delicious, but they are not difficult. The Italian Meringue is the hardest part.
Heres the recipe:
Makes: 12 muffins
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 15–20 minutes
You will need
For the cupcakes:
100g unsalted butter, softened
100g golden caster sugar
1 vanilla pod, split
2 eggs
100g self-raising flour, sifted
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
75g ready-made lemon curd
For the meringue:
2 egg whites
100g golden caster sugar
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake papers.
2. For the cupcakes, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla seeds together in a large mixing bowl, using an electric hand whisk, until pale, fluffy and well combined.
3. Crack in the eggs, one at a time, and beat until both are fully incorporated into the mixture. Fold in the sifted flour and lemon zest until well-combined.
4. Spoon the cupcake batter into the cupcake papers. Add a teaspoon of lemon curd to the top of each cupcake.
5. Bake the cupcakes in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until they are pale golden-brown and spring back when pressed lightly in the centre.
6. Meanwhile, for the meringue, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed. Gradually add the sugar, whisking continuously, until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed. The mixture should be thick and glossy.
7. When the cakes are cooked, turn off the oven and preheat the grill to its highest setting.
8. Spoon the meringue into a piping bag with a small plain tube and pipe some in a spiral on top of each cupcake. Place the cupcakes under the hot grill two minutes to colour (or you can use a kitchen blowtorch to toast the meringue).
Recipe, Home Bake by Eric Lanlard (Mitchell Beazley, £20). Also appears on Baking Mad with Eric Lanlard, broadcast on Channel 4, March 2012.
And here is the best Muffin Tin I have found.
