Whole oranges for afternoon tea...

Afternoon tea just demands a little mouthful of goodness, doesn't it? Something that is light but sweet, that slips down with a cup of something hot. That gives you a little energy to get through to your evening meal. But does not send you off into a siesta.

In keeping with these ideas, I turned a cake into cupcakes recently. And I don't think I'll be heading back to cake world with this one. Cupcakes it is. Easy to snaffle down. Less mess than a whole cake. Very transportable, to work for afternoon tea say...

This recipe has come together from a variety of sources. It is intended to be a quick, whip up sort of cake. But no matter how much you process whole oranges I have found it still get chunks of peel. And peel puts people off. So I followed the Jewish/gluten free ideas of boiling your oranges first until sumptuous and soft. Until the whole house smells clean with citrus scent. This does extend the cooking process by a few hours. But it effectively uses up some sorry fruit you may have lying around. And I often boil the fruit the night before and leave them sitting in their water until I'm ready to cook. Or boil up a few oranges, stash them in the freezer and simply defrost whenever the need for cupcakes arises. Hurrah!

Whole Orange and Raspberry Cupcakes

Makes 28 or so

2 whole oranges

1 3/4 c plain flour

3 tsp baking powder

1 c sugar

3 eggs

150 g butter

3/4 c raspberries (frozen is fine)

A good few hours before you want to eat your cupcakes, place the oranges whole into a saucepan of water. Ensure the oranges can be fully submerged. Cover and bring to a gentle boil. Simmer for an hour or so, until soft but still holding their shape. Cool.

Pre-heat oven to 170* C. Place cupcake papers into an average sized cupcake/muffin tray.

In a food processor, blitz the oranges until they are smoosh. Add the flour, baking powder, sugar and eggs. Pulse until combine. Melt the butter and then add it to the batter with the motor running. Turn off the processor and fold in the raspberries.

Spoon mixture into the cupcake papers, until 3/4 full. Bake in your oven for around 15-18 minutes, until golden and lovely looking. Cooked through helps too. Leave to cool in the tray for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat the baking process until all the mixture is transformed into cupcakes.

Serve dusted with icing sugar, or with a touch of cream along side. Or simply as they are.