Growing and Baking

Anybody that knows me will know that my fingers are definitely not green! I've struggled as best I can with the various plants that I've been given, and tried even harder when my offspring have come back from Beavers or Rainbows with something they've planted. That said, both children's runner beans and blotting paper just turned mouldy in their plastic cups (and on both attempts!).

I am in complete admiration of those that do manage to feed themselves with their own crops, and even more so of those that have managed to reach the point where they can bottle or preserve and sell their produce.

We are unlikely ever to reach that point!


This year though, Madi's sunflower plant has flowered. Ok, it's not very big but we have a flower on the third year of trying!

Even more exciting, the seeds planted as part of the Victorian kitchen session we attended have produced courgettes! (A huge thank you to Katya and Hannah- I would never have believed this possible!)

Unfortunately none of us actually like courgettes, but most fortuitously there was a recipe in this week's First News for courgette cupcakes! I admit they don't exactly sound delicious, but Madi loves baking, and JK might not realise they have a vegetable in them if we put enough icing on!

Ingredients
1-2 courgettes (250g), grated
handful of sultanas
juice of one orange
2tbsp honey
3 eggs
sunflower oil (175ml)
brown sugar (200g)
self-raising flour (225g)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
handful of flaked almonds, toasted and chopped
2 limes, zested

Method
1. Pre-heat oven to 180oC and line a 12-hole muffin tin with muffin cases.
2. Grate the courgettes and squeeze out as much juice as possible. Pat dry with kitchen paper.
3. Stick the sultanas in a pan with the orange juice and honey. Bring to a boil and simmer for a couple of minutes until the raisins are plump and the liquid is mostly absorbed.
4. Crack the eggs in a bowl with the sunflower oil and sugar and whisk until creamy.
5. Sift over flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda.
6. Fold in with the almonds, the grated courgettes, the sultanas and the grated zest of two limes.
7. Dollop into the muffin cases and bake them for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when stuck in the middle.
8. Leave the muffins to cool a bit in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack.
9. Beat the cream cheese with icing sugar and the juice of two limes until smooth and creamy.
10. Spread the icing over the cooled muffins and decorate with whatever takes your fancy.