Baking: Low Fat and Guilt-Free White Chocolate and Berry Cupcakes

Usually when it comes to cakes, I'm all about the full-fat, dollops of strawberry jam and clotted cream but I spotted this low-fat recipe in the Cox Cookies & Cake book and gave it a whirl. It's a perfect cake for a homemade afternoon tea or a summer treat, and is so easy to make!

Ingredients you'll need:

100g of low-fat spread
100g of golden caster sugar
175g of self-raising flour
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
4 tablespoons of skimmed milk

For white chocolate topping:
50g of white chocolate
150g of low-fat cream cheese
2 tablespoons of icing sugar
200g of mixed berries (I chose blueberries and raspberries)

First off, preheat your oven to 200 C/ fan 180 C/ gas mark 6 and lay out a cupcake tin with 12 paper cases (mine actually made a few extra, so always leave enough cases!)

 
Now this is one of the easiest recipes ever, just throw in all the cake ingredients and whisk together until it's pale and fluffy.

Then spoon the mixture into the paper cases until they're all even. I find that using the back of a spoon can help to make them level and also giving the tray a gentle shake back and forth can help! And finally back for 15 minutes until golden brown.

If your oven is anything like mine (unpredictable) then you'll need to be checking them every 5-10 minutes or so to make sure they're not burning! Unfortunately I caught mine on the wrong side of golden brown, but they still taste delicious!

Leave them to cool for a few minutes then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Whilst the cakes are cooling, you can start the white chocolate icing.

Melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of hot water - be careful with this part! Make sure the bowl doesn't touch the water. Heat until completely melted then allow to cool slightly.

Don't let the chocolate cool too much before adding the cream cheese and icing sugar, then beat them all in until smooth. Chill in the fridge until it firms up a little.

Using a small palette knife or piping bag, cover the cupcakes with the white chocolate topping. Add the berries on top and a dusting of icing sugar and you're done!

Super easy and quick - and also not too unhealthy! Up next is a Blueberry Compote cupcake and perhaps a Maple Pecan bar I've spotted... Mary Berry watch out.

What's your favourite cupcake flavour?

Thanks for reading!
Rhiannon x

P.S And I can personally vouch for their deliciousness!