VANILLA CUPCAKES WITH NUTELLA ICING

I adore cupcakes, especially because of the icing so I decided to come up with my own nutella icing because nutella is amazing. they’re pretty easy to make so enjoy! but please do remember they’re pretty fatty so eat in moderation..I’m kidding. too much of a good thing is awesome :D

MAKES: 16-18

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (do not buy vanilla essence!)
• 1 1/2 cups flour (sifted)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 milk

NUTELLA ICING:

• 1/2 cup of butter
• 1/2 cup icing sugar
• 1/4 cup nutella
• 1 tablespoon of milk

HOW TO DO IT:

1. preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (fan forced) and line cupcake tray with paper liners
2. cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. beat in the vanilla. in a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.
3. with the mixer on low speed, add half of the flour mixture and beat. add milk and continue to beat. add the rest of the flour and mix until well combined.
4. half fill the cupcakes tray with the batter and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until golden brown on top and a skewer inserted into the cupcakes comes out clean. 
5. take the cupcakes out of the tray after they have cooled slightly and place them on a wire rack. cool completely before frosting.
6. for the icing, beat the butter and the icing sugar together, either by hand or with a mixer. slowly add the nutella, making sure the icing doesn’t split and add the milk if necessary for a thinner consistency or more icing sugar for a thicker consistency.
7. frost the cupcakes and enjoy!

SPAGHETTI WITH MUSSELS, TOMATO AND CHILLI ( Adapted Neil Perry Recipe from The Food I Love)

I’m know lots of people don’t seem to like mussels very much..or just the idea of them. I know they heave beards and don’t look all that great on their own, but it’s what’s on the inside that counts! :D you really should try them because they are amazing. they’re an excellent source of protein, they’re low in calories and fat, they’re good for memory, contain a crazy amount of vitamins and minerals (they actually have the most amount minerals out of any type of seafood :O), so they’re really good for you as well :) they should make a lovely Mother’s Day lunch.

MAKES: 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 500g of spaghetti
• 1/2 cup (or 125mL) of dry white wine
• 1kg of cleaned mussels (scrubbed and debearded)
• handful of basil leaves, torn
• salt and pepper

TOMATO AND CHILLI SAUCE:

• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 5 large chillies, deseeded and chopped (he says 10-12 chillies, so it just depends on how spicy you want it to be, just remember to taste your chillies beforehand)
• sea salt
• 1/4 cup (or 60mL) extra virgin olive oil
• 5 tomatoes, deseeded and chopped (you can use canned tomatoes if need be, but fresh tomatoes are always better)

HOW TO DO IT:

1. place the garlic, chilli, some sea salt and olive oil in a pan on medium heat. cook until garlic and chilli just start to soften. add the tomato, sauté for a few minutes and then remove from heat.
2. pour the wine into a large pot over medium heat and then add the mussels. cover and steam the mussels for 5 minutes until most of them are open. remove them from the pan. (if some mussels are still not often after this time, discard them). strain off the mussel juice and reserve it for later. remove the mussels from their shells and discard the shells (or you can keep the shells if they’re cleaned properly, it’s completely up to you).
3. return the tomato and garlic sauce to the hear, and add the reserved mussel juice and mussels to the sauce.
4. cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water for around 8 minutes, or just follow the instructions from the packet. 
5. drain the pasta and mix through the mussel and tomato sauce. make sure to check the seasoning and add as much salt and pepper as necessary! add the basil.
6. spoon the pasta into four bowls and serve immediately! :)