You thought this post was about Lemon Meringue Cupcakes… WRONG this is a post about me and how competitive I am… If it is something that matters, like work or deadlines or paying bills, or serious world stuff, I’m not competitive at all. I don’t care what people think, of course I want to be good at what I do and I strive to do that and be the best I can be, but when push comes to shove, I am a little to phlegmatic about the things that most people find very important.

BUT, you see, I am very competitive at things that don’t matter, like monopoly, trivial pursuit, trivia nights, can you see a pattern here???? Well these Lemon Meringue Cupcakes came out of that sort of competition. As you may or may not know Choice Magazine gave Thermomix (world-wide) a lemon award for the Launch of the New Thermomix 5 model, which was highly publicised and had a media cycle about some disgruntled customers etc… (what they didn’t publicise was that 2 weeks later Choice rated TM5 at 94/100 blitzing every other competitor).

Thermomix Australia, took it in their stride (sharing their lemonade recipe, with the old adage, “when life gives you lemons, make lemon aid) and at a combined branch meeting there was a competition for who could make the best lemon dish. WELLLLLLLL, That was all that had to be said for me… I was thinking and scheming and planing about what would make the best impression, what would taste the best etc… and this is what I came up with.

Just the week prior I had done a post for LEMON MERINGUE TARTS and I thought that lots of people would make them so I came up with this cupcake concept! And I am pleased to say that my cupcakes WON!!!! But does it matter in anyones world but mine? NO! Is it important compared to world peace or climate change? NO! But here it is… My winning recipe! Because at the time (and now really) it matters to me! 🙂

AND THIS IS ME TAKING A BOW!

This makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients – Cake

250g Unsalted Butter, softened

1 Cup Castor Sugar (210g)

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

4 Eggs

2 Cups Self Raising Flour (360g)

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

1 Cup Milk (250g)

Finely Grated Zest of 3 Lemons (if you decide to halve the mixture to make 12 cupcakes, live on the wide side and still add all the zest)

Ingredients – Lemon Curd

4 Eggs

1 Cup Castor Sugar

1/2 Cup Lemon Juice

125g Butter

Ingredients – Meringue

4 Egg Whites ( I normally have egg white in the freezer, but don’t throw out the yolk, make a yummy scrabbled eggs for breakfast the next day or a hollandaise sauce)

½ cup of Castor Sugar

Method – Cake

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and prepare 24 cupcake patties.

2. Whip butter and castor sugar until light and fluffy, then add vanilla.

3. Add eggs one at a time until all are well combined. (It might look a bit curdled, but that is ok) then add in lemon zest and mix well.

4. Sift flour and baking powder together and fold half of it into the mixture, then add half the milk and continue to fold in well.

5. Add remaining flour and milk and mix until well combined and divide between 24 cupcakes.

6. Bake in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

7. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooking rack until completely cold.

Method – Lemon Curd

1. Place butter, sugar, and lemon juice in a heat proof bowl and place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water.

2. Cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for 5 minutes or until sugar dissolves and remove from heat.

3. Quickly whisk in eggs and then return to heat.

4. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, for 8 – 10 minutes or until mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon, then remove from heat and allow to cool.

5. place in the fridge to completely book before “PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER.”

Method – Meringue

1. Beat egg whites until they form into firm peaks, then gradually add sugar 1 Tablespoon at a time and continue beating until all sugar has been dissolved into the meringue.

2. Place mixture into a piping bag ready to pipe onto the cupcakes.

See PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER, after the Thermomix Method

THERMOMIX METHOD

This recipe was made in the TM5, but the same quantities can be made in the TM31.

Ingredients – Meringue

4 Egg Whites

120g castor sugar (pre-milled)

1 Tablespoon of lemon juice

1 pinch of cream of tartar

Method – Cake

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and prepare 24 cupcake patties.

2. Place Butterfly into mixing bowl, lock into place and add butter and castor sugar into the mixing bowl. Beat 2 minutes/speed 4, scrape down the bowl and beat for another 2 minutes/speed 4.

3. Add in vanilla and eggs and mix 10 seconds/speed 4. Remove butterfly.

4. Add in baking powder, flour and pour milk on the top, mix 60 seconds/speed 6, or until well combined. While mixing, use spatula to help the mixture move around.

5. Divide mixture between 24 cupcakes and bake in the oven for 12 – 15 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

6. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooking rack until completely cold.

Method – Lemon Curd

1. Place butterfly into mixing bowl and secure, then add eggs, and sugar mix 5 minutes/37 degrees/speed 1, then whisk 1 minute/speed 4.

2. Add lemon juice and butter then mix 12 minutes/80 degrees/speed 3.

3. Place in the fridge to cool.

Method – Meringue

Please make sure that your bowl is very clean before starting the meringue stage of this process.

1. Place butterfly onto blade and whisk egg whites with lemon juice and cream of tartar until dry and stiff firm peaks form 4 minutes/50 degrees/speed 2.5 with MC removed.

2. Turn Thermomix onto speed 2 (no heat anymore) and add 1 tablespoon of sugar every 30 seconds. Add vanilla then keep mixing at speed 2 until you can not feel any sugar in the meringue when you rub it between your fingers, a total of approximately 10 minutes. You may need to stop every minute or so and make sure that all the sugar is going into the bowl and not onto the butterfly or blade.

3. Place mixture into a piping bag ready to pipe onto the cupcakes.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

1. Using a small paring knife, cut around the edge of the top of the cupcake, making sure that you go in on an angle so that when you are finished you have a hole in the cupcake to place the lemon curd filling in.

2. Fill the cupcake hole with lemon curd.

3. Pipe the meringue on the top of the curd as decoratively as you like.

4. Blow torch the meringue so it has a lovely caramelisation. Please be careful because the paper cups burn very easily I nearly lost a few!!!

Thank you for being apart of my winning recipe. It might be a bit fiddly, but they are so worth it! They will definitely be a hit at you next birthday or special occasion or really if you just want to make them and eat them! 🙂

If you put them in blue cupcake patties they could even be frozen mountain cakes? That’s and idea, I might even have to give that a go!  🙂

Enjoy Irresponsibly!!!

Liz xx

P.S What to do with the cake tops that you have cut out see below.

Slather with lemon curd and eat 🙂

If you like this recipe, you my like some of these. Just click on the name to be taking to the link!

Ginger Kisses

Passionfruit Yogurt and White Chocolate Muffins 

 Red Velvet Cupcakes

Raspberry and White Chocolate Muffins

Lamingtons

Lemon Meringue Pie/Tarts 

Black Forest Cupcakes

Elizabeth Connolly

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I have been cooking since I can remember. I am a Thermomix consultant, so now (whenever possible) try to give you Conventional AND Thermomix methods for the recipes. I like to share tips on how to save money and how making food from scratch isn't really that hard (especially with a Thermomix). If you have any questions about the Thermomix or cooking/food in general please email me as I'm happy to chat.
Liz xx
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