Persian Love Cupcakes

5 from 3 votes

These pretty Persian Love Cupcakes will enchant you with their looks and flavour. Simply, yet effectively decorated, these little cakes are bursting with flavour. Rosewater, orange blossom, lemon & almond feature in the sponge which is topped with both a lemon saffron drizzle and lemon icing.

Prep Time35

Cook Time20

Total Time55

Course: Baking

Cuisine: Worldwide

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: cupcakes

Calories: 276kcal

Author: Jane Coupland

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes

120 g/ 1 stick Butter room temperature
120 g/ ⅝ cup Caster sugar
2 Eggs large, free-range
100 g/ ¾ cup Plain flour all purpose flour
40 g/ ⅓ cup Ground almonds
½ teaspoon Baking powder
1 teaspoon Rosewater (see notes)
1 teaspoon Orange blossom water
2 teaspoon Lemon zest (grated finely)

For the Lemon & Saffron Drizzle

1 Large pinch saffron threads
1 tablespoon Lemon juice
1 tablespoon Water
2 tablespoon Caster sugar

For the Lemon Icing

160 g/ 1 ¼ cup Icing sugar confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon Water
1 tablespoon Lemon juice

Decoration: edible rose petals, finely chopped pistachio nuts, edible gold leaf

Instructions

Make the Cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 170°C/ 325°F/ GM3 and line a cupcake/muffin pan with 10 cupcake liners
Sieve the flour and baking powder into a small bowl. Add the ground almonds and stir briefly to combine
In a large bowl beat the sugar and butter together until pale and fluffy
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition
Beat in the rosewater, orange blossom water and lemon zest
Mix in the flour mix until just combined - do not overbeat
Divide between 10 baking cases and bake for 18-20 minutes until well risen and a cocktail stick inserted into the centre comes out clean. As soon as the cakes go into the oven begin making the lemon & saffron drizzle

Make the Lemon & Saffron Drizzle

Put the saffron threads into a small saucepan with the lemon juice and water - set aside to 'bloom' until 3 minutes before the cakes come out of the oven
When the cakes are nearly ready, add the sugar to the saucepan and heat gently to dissolve the sugar, then bring to the boil and remove from the heat
As soon as the cakes come out of the oven poke holes in them using a cocktail stick and spoon the lemon & saffron drizzle over them (approx ¾ tsp per cake)
If not using the lemon icing, scatter crushed rose petals and pistachio nuts over the top. Finish with a small piece of edible gold leaf

Make the Lemon Icing & Decorate the Cupcakes

Let the cupcakes cool completely before icing
Mix the lemon juice and water together in a small jug
Sieve the icing sugar into a small mixing bowl, add ½ the liquid and stir until smooth. Keep adding more liquid, bit by bit, until a thick but slightly spreadable consistency is achieved - it should just fall off the spoon.
Top each cupcake with a generous teaspoon of icing. Use a small palette knife to gently guide the icing to the edges of the cake
Scatter crushed rose petals and pistachio nuts over the top. Finish with a small piece of edible gold leaf
Best eaten within 2 days. Store in an airtight container.

Notes

Not all rosewaters are equal. Some are much stronger in flavour than other. I have quite a strong bottle on the go at the moment, but if you know yours is on the mild side, feel free to add a little more to my recipe. it's definitely better to be cautious if you are not certain - too much rosewater can be overpowering.

Nutrition