With Apricot Cream Cheese Frosting
I hope your week ended well and your weekend will be fantastic. We started the weekend with a bout of rain. The temperatures are going to continue dropping, maybe some areas will even get some frost. I almost thought it was going to rain stair rods, but fortunately the rain usually stops very quickly, here.
I don’t know how many of you remember the Bangladesh factory disaster. It happened seventeen days ago, and caused the death of more than one thousand people. For 17 days, a seamstress lay trapped beneath thousands of tons of wreckage. Day temperatures are currently in mid 30s (°C) (95°F). She survived on dried food scattered around her and small sips of water. In the last two days, she drank only small sips of water. She kept on banging a pipe to attract attention, and finally someone miraculously heard her and was saved. It was such a moving story, sad but with a very happy ending. I wish her a speedy recovery and really admire her strength and determination.
Back to baking. I seem to love baking with Apricots, I don’t know why. I think it’s probably because of their bright orange colour. I love orange because it’s the colour of sunshine, enthusiasm and happiness. I don’t just use apricots for baking I also add them to my cereal, stews, pancakes, cakes and even salads, when they are in season. There are also several recipes for grilling apricots, with bacon of course. You know I am a die-hard bacon supporter.
Today I want to share with you the recipe for Apricot Cupcakes. I made them two days ago, and really enjoyed eating them. They were very nice. I promise. So here we go…
Remember to always assemble all ingredients before you start.
Combine water and sugar in a small pan (pot), stir over the heat without boiling until sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil and remove from heat.
Cool the resulting syrup to room temperature before using.
Combine butter, vanilla essence (extract) and egg yolks in a mixing bowl.
Beat until thoroughly combined. It will look more like scrambled egg, but don’t worry.
With the mixer on medium speed, gradually pour the cooled syrup in a thin stream into the butter-egg mixture, also beating at the same time.
Continue beating and adding the syrup until all the syrup is mixed in. This is what the mixture should look like after you’ve gradually poured the syrup and beaten well.
Stir in the sifted flour, all at once.
This is what the mixture should look like after you’ve stirred in all the sifted flour.
Fold in Apricots, gently, until combined.
This is what the mixture should look like after stirring in the apricots.
Beat egg whites, with an electric mixer, until soft peaks form.
Fold half the egg whites into the mixture, then fold the remaining egg whites, gently until combined.
The final mixture should look like this.
Spoon mixture evenly into 14 paper cases. Bake at 400°F (200°C) for about 20-25 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean
Remove from the oven, stand a few minutes.
Transfer onto wire rack to cool.
Serve without frosting.
Or frost the top with apricot frosting and decorate with half an apricot (I used dried apricots).
I had mine with tea. It tasted really nice.
I really enjoyed eating these cupcakes. I hope you do too.
Preparation time: 20 minutes + 30 minutes cooling time; Total cooking time: 20-25 minutes; Makes: 14 cupcakes Ingredients Instructions CREAM CHEESE FROSTING (use half of this recipe for one batch of cupcakes) Points to note: myfavouritepastime.com Apricot Cupcakes with Apricot Cream Cheese Frosting
These Cup Cakes have been Made By:
1. Nana’s Kitchen Click here to see
My Favourite Pastime 
[…] brand I use because it’s not very sugary. I mainly use it for glazing baked goods, but I also use dried apricots for baking. One of my favourite cakes is the Apple Cake with Apricot Jam Glazing. I think we’ve baked this […]
Mmm. I have a serious love of apricots. I keep on buying too many now that they are in season… so they often go bad. This post has inspired me to look into making an apricot cupcake recipe too! Thanks so much!!
Hi,
I have a bag of apricots in my fridge right now. I seem to prefer the dried ones, though, as they are available throughout the year and I love snacking on one or two per day. I used dried apricots for this recipe. The cakes were really nice. I would make them over and over again. Thanks so much for being here. Wish you a lovely weekend.
Hi Liz. Thanks for liking my post. Your blog looks great.
Thanks for visiting my Apricot Cupcakes too, I appreciate so much. I liked the Checker Board Cake, it looked so delicious! Hope to see you more often! have a fantastic weekend!!!!!
Hi. I was wondering what type of sugar do you use?
Omg I am terribly sorry. I took a short break from my blog and never saw your comment on time. I use the superfine white sugar (looks like what the British call caster sugar). I hope it’s not too late! Have a great weekend!
Liz
Hey Nana,
thank you so much for making the apricot cupcakes, they look lovely. You are so gifted in baking. Thanks so much for supporting my blog…Have a wonderful weekend!!
Yum!
These look delish!! Such a unique recipe, love it.
Long time, no see. I also love these cakes very much. Thank you for stopping by. Hope to see you again, soon. Best wishes!
I love apricots. These look great.
I love apricots too, so that makes the two of us. have a great day. Hope to see more of you.
Looks delicious!
And tastes delicious too. Thanks for stopping by.
Wow Apricot again! I will definitely try this too!
You must realize by now that I love apricots. This is an easy and nice recipe. You will definitely like the cupcakes. Thanks for your friendship. I appreciate that you always stop here and also remember that you made the apricot cake. Have a wonderful week!
I would have never thought to put apricots in a cupcake, but I must say that this looks and sounds delicious. Thank you for this wonderful recipe! I will be giving this a try.
I love apricots, so I always use them when baking. I love experimenting too, so I try everything and anything. But the cakes really tasted good, so I would highly recommend them. Thanks for stopping by. I love your blog. It’s neat and well organized and the recipes are great. Thanks for stopping by, hope to see more of you!!! Take care too!
List time !!!! lol …
1) I agree about the Bangladesh woman … that she survived all that time is amazing. I too hope she recovers. And that the working conditions improve now.
2) I have used apricots to make smoothies before (it really only takes one piece as the flavor is strong) … but have never cooked/baked with it. But those muffins look yummers. I like the non-frosted one nod nods.
3) *smirkles at the bacon comment* … omg Hey way, I wonder if you fried them up together it would work? I bet the apricots can carmalize. Hmmmm….
4) One of your other commenters said it best I think….nom nom nom….*smiles*
Hi Kate!
Sorry I had some guests for dinner tonight so took a bit of time to respond to my favourite comments. Yes it’s definitely list time, and that reminds me that I should be finishing the one you started for me!
1.The Bangladeshi woman really inspired me to stop being a lazy, and perpetually complaining human being. Every time I attempt to complain I shall say Bangladeshi (stop) right now.
2. Those muffins are double yummers and I’m glad you like the non-frosted one like me. That makes two of us.
3. I saw this cool recipe, let me find it and give you the link. I wanted to try grilling ’em together, the apricot caramelizing is the real reason for grilling.
4. Die-hard bacon supporter, I am, and will remain. Have a bacon filled dream and a bacon filled breakfast. Thanks for lifting up my spirit. Enjoy the rest of the week!
These look fantastic! If I wasn’t on the SCD, I would totally be trying them. Maybe I can substitute the sugar for honey.
I, too, love bright colors, especially on food. It just puts me in a happier mood! Your pictures look beautiful. I am practically drooling over your cupcakes!
Thanks for stopping by, thank you for the compliments and thanks for drooling over the cupcakes, that’s a good sign for the cook! Enjoy the rest of your week and hope to see you again.
These sound great!
Thanks for stopping by, you know I always look forward to your visit. Have a wonderful week and hope to see you again!!!
For me, a cupcake’s frosting has to capture my eye if I’m going to select one. These, with the dried apricot “toppe” would definitely do that. Good thing, too, for the cake is the real prize, filled with bits of apricot. You really shouldn’t judge a cupcake by its cover. 🙂
This is hilarious my sister and I were just discussing cupcakes, (she hasn’t seen this post) and she was complaining about the cupcakes being smaller than the frosting/icing on top so people are eating more butter/frosting than the cake itself. She’d much rather have the cupcake minus the frosting/niceties on top. I prefer eating just the cake. Thanks so much for stopping by and have a great week!
They look very tasty. I’m also a fan of apricots, I sometimes use them in scones instead of raisins and add some ground almonds too. Very impressed by the step-by-step photography. I’m no good at multitasking.
Thanks for popping by, it’s good to see you again. Apricot and ground almonds is an interesting addition to scones, I must try that the next time I am making scones. Okay the goal of my blog is to inspire those who are not cooking to cook/bake, hence the step by step instructions. Very tedious, but I hope it helps inspire others to cook/bake. Have a wonderful week and thanks for stopping by.
O … nom nom nom nom ……
Thanks for stopping by, thanks for liking my post. Kind regards! Have a wonderful weekend!
I love dried apricots. Thank you for the recipe and mouth watering pictures.
I love apricots too. I always seem to be cooking/baking with/eating them. They are nutritious too! Thanks for stopping by and thanks for leaving this note. Have a pleasant weekend.
I love your blog ,recipes and beautiful photos!
I love your blog too. It’s “Sweetsational” and full of goodies. When I am craving sweet, I know where to go and the cupcakes are fabulous too and unique!!! Have a wonderful weekend. I hope to see you many more times!!!
Apricots are a fruit I’ve under utilized, but your pictures make it look so easy and nummy, perhaps I will make these one day soon. loved the nut cookies. Will the apricots help keep the muffins moist? Whenever I make cupcakes or muffins they always seem to dry out so quickly. Any tips?
Hi and thank you so much for always being here for me. I really appreciate your smile and visits. All the muffins, cupcakes I have made always stay moist, just make sure you don’t leave them in open air, once they cool down after removing from the oven. I use a plastic cake cover from Ikea with little holes at the top (they have to breathe a little). Before eating a cake that has been there for more than 12 hours just pop it into the microwave for a few seconds, perhaps not more than 10 seconds. Tastes really good. Did you make the cookies? I shall be visiting your blog in a short while, hope you have a new post. Take care and Happy Mothers Day.
Thank you Liz! Your blog site always looks dee-licious! Thank you for the tips! I did make the cookies and mine were a tad dry but I still enjoyed them. I’m thinking maybe my oven is too hot??? I am going to make the apricot cupcakes. I will let you know how they turn out. Happy mothers day to you and hope you have a lovely weekend.
Yes the oven does really matter, you have to learn your oven too, oven temperatures can vary a great deal based on age, type, make etc so the given temperatures are a guideline only (you may have to add/reduce) when using yours. My apricot cupcakes baked at 400F so this means anywhere between 370-425F depending on your oven. I hope they will be okay, please let me know the outcome. Have a lovely weekend and thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate you, always. Take care!!!!
I definitely need to start cooking….compliments to the chef!
The chef is just a mum of four trying to cook, but I love every moment of it (thanks for the compliments). Keep me posted on your run for the Marathon. I’m your supporter. Have a great weekend.
Those look very tasty and I love apricots.
Thanks for stopping by. I have just been roaming your blog. I saw some delicious foods, I haven’t had breakfast and I felt really hungry just looking at the food. Thanks and have a great weekend!
These look amazing! Will definitely give them a go!
Just one question – is it dried or fresh apricots you use?
Hi Jess, I have just been gawking your Nigerian Bean Stew. I added dried apricots, in the recipe as well as for decoration. I think I should specify this. Thanks for asking and thanks for stopping by. Have a great weekend!!!