the hungry mum

Have you ever met a beekeeper? I have met several over the years in my day job as a journalist and I am here to tell you that people who dedicate their lives tending to bees, hives, and all the paraphernalia that comes with it, are amazing.

I recently interviewed a beekeeper who I have met several times now. She is passionate and knowledgeable about all aspects of beekeeping and at the end of the interview she gave me a jar of honey from her hives.

This honey is nothing like the stuff you buy at the shops. It is thick and unctuous and just begging to be via a spoon dipped in the jar. Mmmm, honey. As the hive is located a few suburbs away it is possible that the bees may have even visited my garden to alight on my lavender bush.

I was inspired by a recipe in Good Housekeeping’s The Baking Book for these cupcakes. I didn’t even notice how few ingredients it had until I was standing with the mixer going, and then I was happily amazed.

GATHER:

125 butter, softened and roughly diced

125g runny honey

2 eggs

125 grams self-raising flour, sifted

buds of two lavender blossoms, finely crumbled, plus extra for garnish – ensure they are chemical-free, ideally from a loved one’s garden. These are from The Hungry Nonna’s garden – thanks mum 😉

Whipping or thickened cream, for garnish.

LET’S GET TO IT:

Preheat oven to 170C and line 6 Texas-sized cupcake holes with wrappers.

In bowl of electric mixer beat honey and butter until combined.

Add eggs, one at a time, then beat. Mixture will look curdled, is fine.

Using a silver spoon stir in flour and mix until just combined. Scrape into wrappers and bake for 15-20 minutes / until a skwere comes out clean.

Remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile beat some thickened cream until soft peaks, then dollop on top of cakes. Garnish with extra lavender buds.

Tags: afternoon tea, baking, cupcake, cupcakes, easy, from scratch, honey, lavender, recipe