vanilla cupcakes

I love cupcakes.... they are just so cute and their are so many ways to decorate them. I kind of went for simple this time and that can be just as lovely too!

I was flipping threw my array of cookbooks, like I do on any old day, for inspiration and stopped at one of Bill Granger's books, I love his stuff!  He had this great recipe for the vanilla cupcakes, cause secretly I wanted to use my vanilla extract I had just made all my own, I was pretty excited.  Making you're own vanilla extract is so easy, I was surprised, a whopping two ingredients!  Use either vodka or dark rum, de-seed the vanilla bean pods and add them to the bottle too, shake once a day for two weeks.  

Vanilla cupcakes

250g (9oz) unsalted butter, softened                       

250g (1cup) caster sugar                                              

4 eggs

1 tsp natural vanilla (or you're newly made one!)

185g (1 1/2cups) self-raising flour

60g (1/2cup) plain four

185ml (3/4cup) milk

Icing

60g (1/2cup) icing sugar

2-3 tbsp hot water

a few drops lemon or vanilla extract

Place the butter and sugar in an electric mixer and beat until pale and creamy, add eggs one at a time, then vanilla until combined. Sift the flours and fold in while adding the milk.  Put the mixture into a 12 cup muffin tin and bake for 20min at 350F or 180C.  Makes 1 dozen