Happy National Cupcake Week

Hello everyone, I hope your all having a fantastic National Cupcake Week, National Cupcake Week is organised by British Baker magazine to celebrate the nation's fanaticism with this glorious sweet bakery product. The aim of the week, held from September 13th to September 19th 2010, is to celebrate the many wonderful recipes and exotic flavours available.

Everyone should give baking cupcakes a try this week and so I am including in this post, a little bit about 'baked in' cupcakes, a cupcake recipe and of course some Buttercream Bakery cupcakes too.

The collage above includes two batches I made for Buttercream Bakery, one set of 'Cake & Eat It' cupcakes, which have been made for a photo shoot with Cake & Eat It Productions and will be used as part as their latest advertising campaign.  The second batch are just adorable, Vanilla Vanilla cupcakes, half sprinkle dipped and half iced in pink and yellow.  Each cupcake is finished with a handmade fondant ice cream topper.

'Baked In' Cupcakes

Baked In Cupcakes are just cupcakes with stuff baked in, it's genius and definitely one of my favourite past times.  Today I made Peanut Butter Cupcakes with baked in Rolos (these are topped with Fortune Cookies because I had some lying around and it's the 'baked in' way to be resourceful, spontaneous and creative) and 'baked in Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. 

You can bake in pretty much anything, the possibilities are endless, toffees, candies, cookie dough, uncooked brownie batter, chocolates, dried fruits, marshmallows and pretty much anything in the cupboard you haven't found a use for yet.  Whilst your experiments may not always be 100% successful, you will always have fun playing around and enjoy tasting testing your weird and wonderful creations.  Many a genius cupcake has come from my 'baked in' play days.  Like me you can use one cupcake batter and add a number of different 'bake in' extras.

Baked In Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes

Martha Stewart's Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Makes 18

•1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

•3/4 tablespoon baking powder

•1/2 teaspoon salt

•1/4 teaspoon baking soda

•6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

•1 1/3 cups sugar

•2/3 cup natural, creamy peanut butter

•3 large eggs

•1/2 cup sour cream

•1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners.

Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl. Cream butter and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add peanut butter. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Mix sour cream and vanilla.

Add dry ingredients to mixture, if your adding chopped Rolos, nuts, fruit, marshmallows etc. then add them now.  Scrape sides of bowl.

Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.  If your adding Reese's Peanut Butter Cups then after filling your liners push one into the centre of each cupcake before baking.

Bake cupcakes for about 20 minutes.  Let cool in tins before removing to cool completely on wire racks.

Have a brilliant cupcake filled week and please share all your 'baked in' cupcake ideas with me x

P.S. The first Fortune Cookie I opened had no fortune in it, is this a bad omen..?

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Happy National Cupcake Week