New-York-Daily-News-ooh-look: Alluring Cupcakes

On my recent trek to Rozelle, I picked up a bottle of rosewater because I loved its colourful label and red lid. Which then raised the question – what can you make with rosewater?

It just so happens that Gourmet Traveller magazine had a recipe for cupcakes with rose-scented icing that I had my eye on, so I made them.

The cake itself is delicious, light vanilla. The icing is supposed to have a tinge of pink colour, but it’s hard to measure out just a drop of food colouring, so mine ended up a lovely lurid bubblegum pink. The rosewater fragrance is unmistakeable and very alluring!

Rosy cupcakes
Makes 15

Ingredients
125 g softened butter
220 g (1 cup) caster sugar
1 vanilla bean, scraped seeds only
2 eggs
225 g (1½ cups) plain flour
½ tsp baking powder
125 ml (½ cup) milk

Rosy icing
240 g pure icing sugar, sifted
1-2 tsp rosewater, or to taste
1 strawberry (or 1 drop pink food colouring)

Method
1. Preheat oven to 170C.
2. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla seeds in an electric mixer until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes).
3. Add eggs one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl and beating well after each addition.
4. Sift over flour and baking powder, stir to combine, add milk and stir to combine.
5. Half-fill 15 x 80ml-capacity muffin tins lined with paper patty cases (there may be a little mixture left over).
6. Smooth tops and bake until risen and golden (10-15 minutes).
7. Remove from tins and cool on a wire rack.

For rosy icing, combine icing sugar and rosewater in a bowl. Squeeze strawberry over bowl to extract juice (discard solids) – or add the one drop of food colouring. Gradually add 20-30ml water, stirring until smooth and drizzling consistency. Spread over cakes, filling to tops of patty cases, and stand until set (4-5 minutes). Store in an airtight container until required. Cakes are best eaten on day of making.

Recipe adapted from Gourmet Traveller (April 2009)