Banana, Cherry and White-chocolate cupcakes

As I mentioned in my last post, I firmly believe that the way to get through January without succumbing to post Christmas blues is to indulge oneself; indeed the motto for January should be 'a little of what you fancy...'. After all, there's plenty of time in the rest of the year for strict denial and cut backs of all kinds.

The snow that everyone else in the UK seems to be enjoying is unfortunately staying stubbornly away from here but whilst waiting patiently for the magical transforming properties of that elusive white stuff, I thought that these little bundles of sweet, sticky pleasure might help to pass the time. They're filling so ideally suited to stave off a mid afternoon slump, accompanied by a cup of coffee or tea. I imagine they would be ideal to satisfy a post frolic-in-the-snow hunger pang too...

As someone who doesn't really like white chocolate, I seem to be using it quite a lot in my baking these days. I find that it works really well when you offset the intense sweetness - the sourness of the dried cherries does that perfectly here. Providing a bit of crunch in contrast to the smooth chocolate is likewise a good idea. To that end, I've added a few walnuts to Nigella's original recipe. I've also reduced the amount of white chocolate slightly.

 I'm entering this into the fabulous Forever Nigella challenge started by Sarah at http://blog.maisoncupcake.com/forever-nigella-faq and hosted this month by Sally at Recipe Junkie http://recipe-junkie.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/forever-nigella-22-food-to-cherish-your.html. This month's theme is 'Food to cherish your loved ones with' and these cupcakes certainly do that.

I'm also sending this over to Javelin Warrior's weekly challenge, Made with Love Mondays, a weekly series to promote, share, and celebrate foods made entirely from scratch.

RECIPE

125g unsalted butter

200g caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract
3 ripe bananas
60ml sour cream
2 large eggs
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
300g plain flour
40g dried cherries, chopped
40g white chocolate, chopped,
30 g walnuts, chopped

12-bun muffin tin with paper cases

 Preheat the oven to 180°C

Mash the bananas in a bowl with a fork.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan, then, off the heat, add the sugar, vanilla and mashed bananas.

Stir in the sour cream and the eggs and beat to mix.

Sieve the bicarb, baking powder and flour together so they're well mixed. Don't miss this step out because it ensures the bicarb is evenly distributed. Add to the wet ingredients together with the cherries, white chocolate and chopped walnuts.

Stir until the mixture is just blended and divide between the 12 muffin cases. I've started to use an ice-cream scoop to do this and it works really well.

Cook for 20 minutes or until golden and springy on top. Remove the cupcakes in their papers to a wire rack and leave to cool.

Coconut and Cherry Slices

My Aunt has a whole repertoire of recipes for bars and slices and these have been a favourite of mine since I was little. I loved how the chocolate layer at the bottom went slightly granular after being cooked in the oven. Even people who say they don't like coconut eat these and they're great for the gluten-free brigade as well. They are known as 'picnic slices' in my family and are indeed well-suited to outdoor eating although they are also perfect with a cup of tea or coffee to combat mid-afternoon slump. For some inexplicable reason, nobody made these for years and when I decided I wanted to resurrect them, I couldn't even find the recipe. Happily however, my mum came across it when she was sorting out her cookbook cupboard last year and they have since made a successful comeback, appearing at most family gatherings throughout the year.

RECIPE

200g milk chocolate
75g soft butter
150g caster sugar
150g desiccated coconut
75g sultanas
75g glace cherries, chopped
1 egg

A baking tin, 17 x 26cm approx, greased and lined with greaseproof paper

Preheat oven to 140°C

Melt the chocolate and spread it evenly over the bottom of the tin. Leave to cool.

When the chocolate has hardened, cream the sugar and butter together. Add the egg and mix again.

Mix in the remaining ingredients and spread evenly over the chocolate base, smoothing the top.

Bake in the oven for 40-45 mins.

Leave in tin till cold, then remove and cut into slices.