6 Recipes for St.Patrick's Day to Try

I have a small collection of Irish recipes for all occasions - a hearty family supper, a traditional St.Patrick's Day party, or a special celebration. I hope you'll find your favorite!

Semolina Raspberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These elegant sweet offerings call for an aromatic hot tea to be sipped slowly from your finest china cup.

Lavender Cupcakes with Vanilla Lemon Marshmallow Topping

Lavender has a potent flavor, but that doesn't mean it has to be overpowering in dessert. In these beautiful Lavender Cupcakes with Lemon Marshmallow Topping, the vibrancy of lemon both brings out and helps temper the musky floral qualities of lavender. The flavors harmonize beautifully and make for cupcakes much more interesting.

Chocolate Orange Cannoli Cupcakes & Cacao Nibs

I created this recipe when thinking how I could convert one of my favorite desserts, cannoli, into a  Chocolate Orange Cannoli Cupcakes. Incredibly easy to make, decadently chocolatey, not too sweet, with beautifully light texture and moist within. A great combination of textures and flavors. These cupcakes have an Italian flavor and wow factor for a dinner party dessert. Deliciously naughty.

Irish Cream Coffee Cupcakes & Marshmallow Top

Cupcakes disappoint me every time I try them anywhere. Dry cake, fat sugary top are very frustrating. I have decided to make an ultimate cupcake, just as it must be. This recipe is a touch of perfection. Coffee flavor saturated cake with a hint of Irish cream taste and insanely delicious top. One ideally compliments the other and after the first cupcake you unintentionally reach out for the next. Perfect with tea or coffee outdoors on the warm spring evening... Or in any other way you feel to enjoy your deserved indulgence!

Peach, Oatmeal and Apricot Jam Cupcakes or Muffins, You decide!

Honestly, I don’t know what the difference between Cupcakes is and Muffins. Do you? I like to hear your thoughts.

Makes: 20

Ingredients:

• 1 ¾ cups self-rising flour
• ½ cup oatmeal
• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup superfine sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup peach juice
• ½ cup sour cream
• 20 canned peach halves or quarters in juice, drained
• ¼ cup peach or apricot jam

Note: I did not have sour cream so I used yogurt instead (1/2 cup), but not just a yogurt the Passion Fruit Greek Yogurt. It was amazing addition of the passion fruit to the cupcake.

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 20 standard muffin cups with paper liners.

Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl, then add the oatmeal and make a well in the center. Melt the butter and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat.

Wisk the combined egg and peach juice into the sour cream. Add both the butter and the egg mixtures to the well in the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until combined.

Divide the mixture evenly among the paper liners and place a peach half or quarter, cut side up, on the top of each cake. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the center of a cake.

Transfer onto a wire rack to cool. Heat the jam in a small saucepan until melted. Brush a little jam over each cake.

Apple And Raisin Cupcakes with Yogurt and Melon

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups self rising flour                  
• scant 2/3 cup unsalted butter, chopped                  
• 3/4 cup soft brown sugar                  
• 1 cup raisin, plus extra to garnish                  
• 1/2 cup apple puree                  
• 3 eggs

Cupcake Topping: 

• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 tablespoon
• 1/2 melon

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners.



Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center. Melt the butter and sugar in a small saucepan over a low heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat. Combine the raisins and apple puree with butter mixture. Pour into the well in the flour, along with the egg. Stir with a wooden spoon until combined.



Divide the mixture evenly among the paper liners. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into center of a cake. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.



To make the yogurt topping, combine the yogurt and sugar. Spread tablespoon of topping over each cake and put a piece of melon on top.

Lemon Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled and chopped
• 1 cup superfine sugar
• 2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour, sifted

Direction:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 36 mini muffin cups with paper liners.
Place the butter, sugar, and lemon zest in a saucepan and stir over low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the eggs, milk and and flour and beat with electric beaters until just combined.



Divide the mixture evenly among the paper liners. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a skewer comes out of clean when inserted into the cake. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool.
Decorate each cupcake with some strips of zest and meringue.