Recipe: Beetroot Cupcakes with Orange & Poppy Seed Icing

We are all so used to carrots being used in baking and whilst Carrot Cake is definitely one of my favourites, I wanted to try something a little different, so I decided to experiment a little by replacing beetroot in my standard Carrot Cupcakes recipe. I felt that a cream cheese icing would clash with the earthy sweet and very distinct flavour of the beetroot, so finished these cupcakes with a simple orange glacé icing and a sprinkling of poppy seeds.

The cupcake batter is quite a deep purple colour prior to baking but this mellows a bit in the heat of the oven. However the beetroot flavour remains wonderfully intense. These cupcakes are incredibly easy to make and a must for anyone who loves beetroot!

Beetroot Cupcakes ingredients

INGREDIENTS:

Cupcakes:

200g self-raising flour, sifted

175g light muscovado sugar

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp mixed spice

Finely grated zest of 1 orange

2 large eggs, lightly whisked

150ml sunflower oil

200g beetroots, peeled and grated

Icing:

150g icing sugar

Juice of ½ orange

1 tblsp poppy seeds

METHOD:

Prior to baking

Cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan Oven 160C/Gas Mark 4 and line a 12-hole muffin tin with cases.
2. Place the flour, sugar, spices, bicarbonate of soda and orange zest in a large mixing bowl and mix briefly with a wooden spoon to combine all the ingredients.
3. Add the lightly whisked eggs, sunflower oil and grated beetroot and mix together until thoroughly combined. Divide the mixture between the cases and bake for approximately 20 minutes until the cupcakes are well risen and a thin skewer inserted into the centre of one comes out clean.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes before transferring the cupcakes to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Icing:

1. Place the icing sugar in a small mixing bowl and add enough orange juice to create an icing with a fluid consistency, but don’t make it too runny. Drizzle some of the icing over each cupcake and scatter over some poppy seeds before the icing sets.

Makes 12 Cupcakes.

The finished Beetroot Cupcakes