If life hands you lemons...make cupcakes!

When the sun comes out and you start to fill up with the joys of being able to go out of the house without a scarf or a precautionary brolly, this is generally when I get 'lemon fever' and I also eat a lot of salads. These are two of my favourite lemon cupcakes.

The first is a Chop's Cakes classic the lemon and raspberry jam filled cupcake if I tell you the recipe I will have to kill you and i'm too young to go to prison. These were actually for an order I had for an Easter Summer Party, I much prefer topping my cupcakes with fruit as I don't think you can get anything prettier.

I recently bought a lemon drizzle cake from Marks and Spencer and devoured it with a bottle of Chardonnay, I don't know whether it was the wine but it was so good I had to make them in cupcake form.

Lemon Drizzle Cupcakes

Ingredients
125g butter, softened
200g caster sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
Zest of 2 lemons
200g Self Raising Flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
100ml whole milk

• Preheat the oven to 180°C, Gas mark 4 and line a cupcake tin with 12 cases.

• Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy and then stir in the lemon zest.

• If using an electric mixer whck it up to a high speed and gradually add the eggs in splish by splash (I usually beat my eggs up ini a measuring jug so they are easier to pour into the batter).

• Alternate sifting the flour and baking soda with a drop of milk until all is incorporated.

• Spoon into cupcake tray (use an ice cream scoop for accuracy to ensure you dont have some cakes smaller than others) bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown.

Lemon Drizzle
100g caster sugar
Juice of 2 lemons

• While the cakes are baking mix together the sugar and lemon juice.

• It is important that you spoon on the drizzle while the cakes are warm or the cakes will not absorb enough drizzle to make them moist.

• Leave to cool, I like to mix up a little icing sugar with the left over lemon juice and drizzle it on the top aswell.