LIZ KOLBECK, WRITER AND COOK
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Purple Cupcakes - International Women's Day

13/3/2021

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Picture
Fluffy tasty cupcakes for some very special women
Purple Cupcakes

Something special for International Women’s Day!  Poppyseed and lemon cupcakes with a rich violet buttercream icing, to give that purple touch. I happened to have a small bottle of violet liqueur, which I needed to use up, but you could leave it out if you’d rather. I love Parma Violets - they’re the sweet I’ll pick out first from those old-fashioned mixes, but it’s a rather individual taste. The floral scent isn’t too strong, but test as you go and don’t add too much at once.

Our Seniors Lunch Club discussion was on the theme of Inspiring Women. Every member of the group chose a special woman to tell us about and gave a piece of advice to a young woman starting out today. We heard about local, international, famous and family – Angela Davis, the US Black Rights and Civil Rights activist; Lucille Ball, actress and producer; Amy Johnson, flying ace; Temple Grandin, animal behaviourist and autism activist; Elsie Inglis, WW1 doctor; Florence Nightingale; Marie Curie; mothers and mothers-in-law who were kind, supportive and strong; female bosses who were challenging and also supportive; local judges and barristers who encourage and mentor the younger lawyers. Our advice to young women comes from those who have lived through war, want and plenty. They’ve raised families, had professional lives, seen difficulties, dangers and great joy. Their advice is typically practical, down to earth, and mixed with the aspirational!

  • Have fun
  • Learn to cook
  • Follow your dreams
  • Try hard and be honest
  • Have courage in your own convictions
  • If you haven’t got the money, don’t buy it
  • Don’t be too loud and don’t say “Wow!” all the time
 
Makes 18 cupcakes         Timings: 1 hour for the cupcakes, then cooling time and then 30 minutes for the icing.
  • 200g butter or margarine
  • 200g caster sugar
  • 200g self-raising flour, sieved
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 1 tablespoon sour cream
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons white poppy seeds

For the icing:  250g unsalted butter, 150g icing sugar, 50g white chocolate, purple food colouring, 1 tablespoon violet liqueur


Pre-heat your oven to 180°C.  Beat the butter or margarine with the caster sugar until fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time with a spoonful of flour each time. Add the sour cream. Tip in the lemon zest and the poppy seeds and then stir in the rest of the flour, either with the mixer running slowly or by hand.

Spoon the mixture into cup cake cases and put the tray into the oven. I prefer to make one tray of 12 cupcakes at a time, and then make the next, rather than have to swop trays over from top to bottom halfway, which I think tends to make the cakes fall slightly. The un-used mixture will stand happily for 20 minutes while you cook the first batch.

Cook each batch for 15-20 minutes, remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

To make the icing: beat the butter until fluffy.  Melt the white chocolate over a gentle heat. Beat the icing sugar into the butter one spoon at time, then add in the melted chocolate, the violet liqueur, and beat again. I find the addition of chocolate helps hold the fluffiness of the icing. Add the colouring to your preferred level of purple-ness.
​
Ice the cakes using an icing bag with a star nozzle and decorate with candied violet petals and some purple glitter for the final sparkle.
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    Some Changes - April 2022

    Thanks to my friends and followers for your patience, and for your encouragement to start blogging again.

    I've been taking time away from social media and writing my books, "The Family Way" and "The Way Home" following the lives of two young Scotswomen from the outbreak of the First World War.

    I'm going to change the emphasis of my blog and follow what Jean and Gladys would have cooked and eaten, working as servants in a big house near Edinburgh in 1913.  

    Researching for the books, I've learned a lot about the lives of women at that time, and I'd like to share some of that with you.

    I won't give you story spoilers as I'm hoping to get the books published sometime soon.

    As always, please get in touch with any of your own family recipes that your grandmother may have cooked in the early 1900s. I'll adapt them to modern methods and share them on my blog.

    ​Happy Cooking!


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