Gloverly Cupcakes

As chocolate orange is one of my absolute favourite flavours I couldn’t resist making these as a treat for breakfast in the run up to Christmas. I knew the girls would love them too, the only problem was that one just wasn’t enough! Click here to try this recipe.

The recipe is from a recent Waitrose weekly news paper.

125ml milk
600g strong white bread flour, plus extra as needed
7g sachet dried yeast
75g sultanas or raisins
75g candied peel
3 tbsp sweet dessert wine (or orange juice)
4 British Blacktail Free Range Large Eggs, 2 whole, 2 yolks, 1 white
75g golden caster sugar
1 large orange, scrubbed, zest
150g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
75g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), chopped
Icing sugar, for dusting

Heat the milk and 125ml water gently in a small saucepan until lukewarm. Combine 250g flour with the yeast in a mixing bowl, then add the warm liquid and stir to make a batter. Cover and leave in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Meanwhile, put the sultanas or raisins and candied peel in a small bowl and pour over the wine (or orange juice). Set aside to soak for at least 30 minutes.

Put the whole eggs, yolks, sugar, ½ tsp salt and the orange zest in the bowl of a freestanding mixer fitted with a dough hook and beat together with a fork. Scrape the risen batter into the bowl, along with the remaining 350g flour. Knead with the hook for 10 minutes, or until the dough is elastic. It should be quite wet. Chocolate orange panettone This miniature version of the traditional Italian spiced bread works well as a gift or for your Christmas morning breakfast. See our tip below for making your own tulip muffin cases

While the mixture is kneading, add the butter, a spoonful at a time, incorporating it into the dough. Tip in the wine-soaked fruit (with the excess juices) and chocolate, then mix briefly. The dough should be smooth and slightly wetter than a normal bread dough, but still roughly hold its shape. Add a little extra flour if it is still sloppy. Put the dough in a large, greased plastic container or bowl. Cover and leave to rise for 2-3 hours, or until at least doubled in size. Line each hole of a 12-hole muffin tin with a tulip case.

When the dough has risen, tip it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly to knock out any large air pockets. Divide the dough into 12 pieces, weighing about 100g each, and roll into balls. Put a dough ball in each tulip case, then cover and leave to rise for another 45-60 minutes, or until almost doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6. Lightly beat the egg white and use to brush the risen panettone, then bake for 20-25 minutes, until deep golden brown on top and baked through. Allow to cool completely in the tins, then dust with icing sugar before eating or giving as gifts.

These were a huge hit and I’ll be making another batch very soon!