Hazelnut & Lime Tutus

I’m notorious for whining my head off about cupcakes because they’re usually little clumps of bad-quality cake tizzied up in frothy outfits, so the mission was to design one with looks and personality. The ‘inspo’ combo comes from one of my favourite cocktails – lime and Frangelico liqueur – then I kept adding layers and things got serious …

MAKES 12 CUPCAKES

CUPCAKE BATTER

100 g (3½ oz) unsalted butter, softened

185 g (6½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) milk

80 g (2¾ oz/¾ cup) hazelnut meal, sifted

120 g (4¼ oz) plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted

1½ teaspoons baking powder, sifted

STEWED APPLES

180 g (6 oz) pink lady OR granny smith apples

Pinch of ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons soft brown sugar

100 ml (3½ fl oz) apple juice

45 ml (1½ fl oz) Frangelico liqueur

Finely grated zest of 1 lime

CANDIED LIME ZEST

Zest of 1 lime (use an old-fashioned zester that makes spirals)

250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) boiling water

3 tablespoons caster (superfine) sugar

1 tablespoon water

TO FINISH

1 quantity Crème Chantilly, whisked to stiff peaks (see here)

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°) fan-forced. Grease and flour a standard 12-hole muffin tin.

To make the cupcake batter, combine the butter, sugar and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl, and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs and milk, and beat until combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the hazelnut meal, flour and baking powder. Fill each of the muffin holes until three-quarters full of batter, and bake for 15–20 minutes, or until golden and an inserted skewer comes out clean. Turn the muffin tin upside down to release the cupcakes as soon as they come out of the oven. Transfer to a wire rack, right way up, to cool completely before filling.

To stew the apples, peel, core and quarter them, then cut into slices 3 mm (¹/₈ inch) thick. Combine them with the cinnamon, sugar, apple juice, Frangelico liqueur and lime zest in a small saucepan. Cook, covered, over medium heat until most of the liquid has evaporated. The apples will be soft but should still hold their shape, and have a residual crunch. Spread the apple out on a plate to cool, then chill until ready to use.

To make the candied lime zest, first place the zest in a small bowl, then cover with the boiling water. Drain the zest in a sieve, then combine it with the sugar and the 1 tablespoon water in a small saucepan. Simmer until most of the water has evaporated and the zest is very sticky. Set aside to cool.

To assemble your ‘tutus’, transfer the Crème Chantilly to a piping bag fitted with a 1 cm (½ inch) star nozzle. Fan 12 x three layers of paper cases progressively flatter, to emulate a tutu. Slice each cupcake into three horizontal layers. Place a bottom layer of each of the cupcakes on a prepared ‘tutu’. Pipe a small amount of the Crème Chantilly on the bottom layer, then arrange a layer of apple on top. Repeat for the second layer. To finish, put the top layer on each cupcake. Pipe rosettes of the Crème Chantilly to cover the top layer, then finish with the candied lime zest. Serve immediately.