How to Preserve Lemons & Limes

Following on from my Coconut & Lime Cupcake Recipe, here are some ways that I have been preserving limes from my abundant crop this year.

I don't use limes that often in winter (as it is in Australia right now). I use them in summer for Thai salads, drinks and desserts. So I decided to preserve the limes now by freezing them, so I have them ready for summer.

I started out simply juicing the limes I had picked. Then filling ice-cube trays with the juice, covering the trays and freezing them overnight.

This would have been a lot easier with an electric juicer!

I then added those frozen lime ice cubes to zip-lock bags, marked the date and returned them to the freezer. I can now defrost the lime juice when I need it for a salad dressing, marinade or a Mojito!

I also experimented with cutting limes into slices and wedges and freezing them. I'm thinking I can add these 'limesicles' to a water jug on a hot summers afternoon.

None of these techniques are rocket science, but I thought I'd share my experiments with you. The same techniques work for lemons. The lime juice and pieces will freeze for up to six months.

The same techniques can be used for mangoes (flesh) and passionfruit (pulp).

The rest of the limes I have bagged-up and given to friends.

So if you do receive some fruit from a friend or neighbour, or you have a bountiful tree, I hope some of these techniques will come into good use.

Happy preserving.

Elise

Next post: Make your own vintage cake stands.

FREE Printable Father's Day Card

Sweet Scarlet Father's Day FREE Printable Card - great for the kids to give to Dad

Download this FREE PDf file below.

Hello to Sweet Scarlet friends in the UK & US!

Happy Father's Day for this Sunday, June 19. (It's not Father's Day until September in Australia).

To celebrate, I have designed this cute card, perfect for the kids to give to Dad.

I have printed it on an 'earthy' paper stock, but you can print it on whatever you like.

Enjoy & happy Father's Day to all the dads!
Elise

DOWNLOAD:
Please use the links below to choose your paper size to download. You will be directed to the Scribd website. Click "Download" to download the PDF file to your computer. Then print, trim & create!

• US Letter size paper
• A4 sized paper

PDF file which you will download from Scribd.

Coconut & Lime Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Buttercream

I have an abundance of limes at the moment. My Kaffir Lime tree has gone crazy again this season.

This year I am determined to make the most of them and have been using the limes for guacamole, in curries (leaves, zest & juice), on pancakes, over Thai fish and now cupcakes.

This recipe is delicious and it might seem like a heavy recipe, but this cupcake is light and fresh. The lime syrup makes a great addition and the cooling cream cheese in the buttercream balances all the tartness and the sweetness.

Enjoy!

Coconut & Lime Cupcakes

1 cup self-raising flour (add 1 tspn baking powder if using all-purpose flour)
3/4 cup caster sugar (superfine)
1/3 cup shredded (or desiccated) coconut
100g (3 oz.) unsalted butter, softened
3 eggs
100ml (3.5 fl.oz) plain yoghurt
100ml (3.5fl.oz) milk
1 tblspn grated lemon zest

1. Pre-heat oven to 170C/325F
2. Line baking pan with cupcake cases.
3. Beat butter for 3 minutes with electric stand or hand mixer. Add sugar and beat until pale & fluffy.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating between each addition.
5. Combine yoghurt, and coconut in another bowl, add milk.
6. Add yoghurt mixture to butter, sugar & egg mixture. Mix well.
7. Add lime zest & mix.
8. Fold in sifted flour hand and mix by hand using a spatula until just combined. Do not over mix.
9. Spoon mixture evenly into cupcake cases.
10. Bake on middle shelf of oven for approx. 20 mins or until tops of cakes are springy.
11. Remove from oven and brush tops with lime syrup (see below) while cupcakes are still warm.
12. Allow to cupcakes sit for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and cool on a wire rack.

Lime Syrup

75ml (2.5 fl.oz) fresh squeezed lime juice
1/3 cup sugar

1. Bring water and sugar to boil in small saucepan over moderate heat. 
2. Remove from heat.
3. Allow to cool before using.

Cream Cheese Buttercream

125g (4oz.) softened butter

100g (3oz) cream cheese
3 to 4 cups icing (confectioners) sugar

1. Beat butter until pale with an electric stand or hand mixer.
2. Add cream cheese and beat well.
3. Add sugar 1 cup at a time, beating well between additions.
4. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons milk if required.

Pipe buttercream onto cupcakes and top with grated lime zest and lime sections sprinkled with caster (superfine) sugar.

I hope you have a chance to try out this recipe ... it's a good one!

Elise

Next post: How to Preserve Lemons & Limes

Sweet Scarlet featured on Cupcakes Take the Cake

I'm very excited to be featured again on the blog Cupcakes Takes the Cake and have my Pink Lemonade Cupcakes & recipe featured.

Click here or on the image below to view.

Cupcakes Take the Cake Blog

Sour Cream Chocolate Cupcake with Nutella Hazelnut Buttercream

I was inspired by some Swiss Hazelnut Ice Cream I recently had, so I added Nutella and coffee to my regular buttercream recipe for that hazelnut taste.

Next time I think I will roast the hazelnuts and ground them up to a maize, then add them to the buttercream.

They were still good though!

Elise

Recipe: Pink Lemonade Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream

Hey everyone.

I have wanted to make these Pink Lemonade Cupcakes for ages and finally got the chance on a sunny afternoon a few weeks ago.

I dressed them up with some handmade mini-bunting. Cute huh?

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes:

Makes about 12

1 cup plain or all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 pinch salt

1/2 cup caster or superfine sugar

1/4 cup canola oil

2 egg whites

1/3 cup lemon cordial concentrate (I used Bickfords)

1/4 cup buttermilk

pink food colouring

1. Preheat over to 180C (350F)
2. In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt
3. In a large bowl whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites & corial concentrate until smooth
4. Alternately beat in flour mixture & buttermilk 
5. Add enough food colouring to turn batter pink
6. Scoop batter into cupcake cases in muffin tray
7. Bake for 20–25 minutes until tops of cakes spring back when lightly touched
8. Let cakes sit for 5 minutes and then turn out on to wire racks to cool.
9. Frost cooled cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream.

Lemon Buttercream:

3 cups icing sugar (confectioners sugar)

125g (3oz.) softened butter

2–3 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon lemon essence

zest from half a lemon

1. Beat butter with an electric mixer until pale
2. Add 1 cup sugar, cream of tartar, lemon essence, lemon zest and 1 tablespoon milk. Beat well.
3. Add another cup sugar and 1 more tablespoon milk. Beat well.
4. Add final cup of sugar. Beat well. Add a little more milk if needed.
5. Divide buttercream into two bowls and colour using food colouring – a little goes a long way.
6. Fill the left side of you piping bag with one colour of buttercream.
7. Fill the right side of your piping bage with the other colour of buttercream. Your bag should look like it is half-and-half of the two colours when standing vertically.
8. Squeeze buttercream from the bag until the two colours can be seen, then pipe as normal.

Good luck!
Elise

Tutorial: How to Make Quick & Easy Gumpaste Roses

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Once you get the hang of these roses, you can start making them quite quickly.

Roses can be stored in an air-tight container for up to 12-months.

I have to say that this is the way that I make roses, and perhaps is not the way others might make them.

What you will need:

Non-stick mat, non-stick rolling pin, paintbrush, water, spatula, dusting pouche filled with corn starch, some gumpaste (I have used fondant with a little Tylose added) and a round cutter. I have used a 20mm cutter for this tutorial, but you can use any size cutter depending on what size you want your finished rose to be. 

You can also use flower modelling paste to make your rose

Roll your gumpaste using corn starch to stop it from sticking
to about 2-3mm thick. Cut out 7 circles using your round cutter.

Keep your circles under a glass or cup to stop them from
drying out. Store unused gumpaste in plastic or clingwrap.

Working with one circle at a time, squeeze the top half of the
circle between you thumb and forefinger.

Once squeezed, your gumpaste should be about the
same thickness as a real rose petal.

To make the core of your rose, gently roll your
circle inwards to create this spiral

Use your paintbrush to add a tiny amount of water to seal
the petal in the spiral shape. Don't add too much water or
you will end up with a sticky mess!

Working with one petal a time, squeeze the top edge of the
circles to make more petals. Place the new petal over the centre
of the join of the rose core. Wrap the petal around the core.
Use a paintbrush with a little water to get them to stick

Keep adding squeezed petals, overlapping the centre of the
new petals where the previous petals have met 

Slowly add more petals and your rose is starting to take shape

Once you have added all the petals, tease the petals open using your fingers 

Trip the bottom of use rose using a spatula or knife,
so that you have a flat-bottom on your rose 

That's your rose finished! 

I made my rose into a cupcake topper, by adding a
white fondant plate on the bottom and a bow that
I made from a silicone mold. Let your rose and
topper dry hard uncovered, overnight

Then add your topper to a delicious cupcake and don't they look great!

Good luck with this tutorial - I hope you have fun.

Until next time
Elise