Baking Mondays - J is for Jube Cupcakes

Strawberry, lemon and orange cupcakes topped with strawberry, lemon and orange swiss meringue buttercream, then sprinkled with coloured sugar crystals and topped with a jube.

This week Jubes won the poll and at first I was having some trouble deciding what to bake. I decided upon three Jube flavours - strawberry, orange and lemon. I wanted the top of the cupcakes to look like a jube so I went a little big crazy with the coloured sugar crystals - they would of looked better if I didn't rush spreading on the swiss meringue buttercream. Oh well they still tasted good and that is the main thing. Okay time for the recipes...

Jube Cupcakes
Makes 36 cupcakes

270g unsalted butter, softened
270g cream cheese, softened
450g caster sugar
6 eggs
150g self-raising flour, sifted
225g plain flour, sifted
1 lemon
lemon essence
yellow food colouring
1 orange
orange essence
orange food colouring
strawberry essence
pink food colouring

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius and line 3 12-hole muffin trays with cupcake liners.
2. Beat butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl between each addition.
4. Beat in flours on low speed.
5. Divide the batter into 3 equal portions.
6. To make the lemon cupcakes add the zest and juice of one lemon, a few drops of lemon essence and a little yellow food colouring to one of the bowls of batter and gently mix.
   
7. To make the orange cupcakes add the zest and juice of one orange, a few drops of orange essence and a little orange food colouring to one of the bowls of batter and gently mix.
8. To make the strawberry cupcakes add a few drops of strawberry essence and a little pink food colouring to one of the bowls of batter and gently mix.
9. Divide all three batters into cupcake liners and bake for 20 minutes.

Jube Swiss Meringue Buttercream

400g caster sugar
6 egg whites
375g unsalted butter
juice of one lemon
yellow food colouring
juice of one orange
orange food colouring
strawberry topping
pink food colouring

1. Combine the egg whites and sugar into a heatproof bowl and whisk over a saucepan of simmering water until sugar is dissolved and the mixture is as hot as you can get it without the egg whites cooking.
2. With the whisk attachment on your mixer whisk the egg white and sugar mixture on high speed until a stiff meringue is formed and the mix has cooled down to room temperature.
3. Now put the paddle attachment on your mixer and with the mixer on a low speed add a tablespoon or two of butter at a time. Once all the butter is incorporated turn the mixer up to medium speed and mix until the mixture is light and fluffy again.
4. Divide the buttercream between three bowls.
5. To make the lemon buttercream add the lemon juice and a little yellow food colouring and beat until incorporated.
6. To make the orange buttercream add the orange juice and a little orange food colouring and beat until incorporated.
7. To make the strawberry buttercream add strawberry topping to taste and a little pink food colouring.

Assembling the cupcakes

1. Pipe the orange buttercream on the orange cupcakes, lemon on lemon, strawberry on strawberry.
2. Sprinkle cupcakes with orange, yellow and pink sugar crystals.
3. Top with orange, lemon and strawberry jubes.

The ratings?

Me - 7/10 - these tasted good, had a good texture - but didn't have the major wow factor. Still good cupcakes though :)
Mat - 6/10 - more akin to a traditional cupcake, the bolder cupcake experiments tend to be much better.