French Toast Cupcakes.

The beauty of being cold is that dedicated people like myself, bake. There is something so appealing about a warm oven and the smell of vanilla, that no human being can resist it.
Last week I made French Toast Cupcakes. My flatmate got a promotion, so it had to be done. Any excuse to bake...
The recipe was taken from the 'EAT ME' book by Cookie Girl. I use it all the time, because it has so many recipes that it is almost guaranteed you'll find one suitable for Any occasion.
The recipe is simple, and fun. The end result is perfect, really. I am not an expert baker, so to try and bake 'french toast cupcakes' was quite a stretch from my usual culinary preferences, but it turned out very successful.

Ingredients: (Makes 12 cupcakes)

170g/6oz plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp of salt
110g/4 oz unsalted butter
225g/8 oz granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp maple syrup
50ml/2 fl oz milk

Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.  Line a 12 hole non-stick muffin tin with paper cases. If you don't have a muffin tin, use a normal baking tray and find thick cupcake cases made of silicone, or alternatively, use paper cases, but make sure they are strong enough to hold the mixture.

Sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into a bowl. Melt the butter and let it cool slightly.

In a separate large bowl, whisk the sugar and eggs together, then add the melted butter. Mix the vanilla, maple syrup and milk in another separate bowl.

Now, it's all ready to come together so, Stir the flour mixture into the sugar, eggs and butter, followed by the milk mixture. Beat until everything is well combined.

Divide the mixture between the cases, each should be three quarters full, but that can vary depending on the size of the cases.
Bake in the centre of the preheated oven for 20 mins. Once they're done (check with a skewer and it should come out clean) place on a wire rack to cool. If you don't have one, improvise! I used a plate... how creative!

Meanwhile, as the cakes cool off, the icing process begins, for this you will need:

110g/4oz unsalted butter, room temperature
110g/4oz cream cheese, room temperature
450g/1lb icing sugar, sifted
1/4tsp cinnamon
colouring paste (optional)
sprinkles

Using a whisk, preferably electric, but a normal one will do. (Go toned arms!) Mix butter and cream cheese. Add icing sugar a third at a time, beating thoroughly after every addition.
Add cinnamon with the last of the sugar. Add food colouring.
Now, about the food colouring... The ones in the picture from the book are brown and pretty. I couldn't find brown so I chose a creamy yellow, it turned out OK. Be creative!

Use a piping bag, or a ziploc bag to pipe icing onto the cakes. Working from outside to inside. It doesn't matter if they're not perfect. Cupcakes are fun, not perfect.

Enjoy!!!!!

Yes, they're not perfect but I guarantee this recipe will blow your mind!
Xx Kudos!