Buttercups & Unicorns

Ingredients 

For The Cakes

3 mashed bananas (the more ripe the better)

55g Trex 

200g light brown sugar 

250g plain flour

1tsp bicarbonate of soda

1tsp salt

100g walnuts

For The Chocolate Frosting

115g Trex

170g Icing Sugar

1tsp Vanilla Extract

60g Cocoa Powder

To decorate 

Walnuts

Freeze Dried Banana Pieces

Recipe

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/ Fan 350C/ Gas Mark 4 and prepare a 12 hole muffin tin with cupcake cases.

2. Beat the mashed bananas, Trex and sugar together with an electric whisk or mixer 

3. Sieve the flour and add the bicarb and salt in a separate bowl. 

4. Using a food processor (or alternatively your Nutribullet's milling blade) finely chop the walnuts. Add the chopped nuts to the flour mix and stir well. 

5. Slowly add the flour mix to the banana mix. Ensure thorough mixed. I used a stand mixer for this. 

6. Add your mix to the cupcake cases. My trick is to use and ice cream scoop - this ensure the same amount of mix and gives the muffin a nice shape. 

7. Bake for approximately 22-25 minutes and leave to cool on a wire rack. 

8. Whilst the cakes are cooling prepare the chocolate frosting.  Sieve the icing sugar and cocoa powder together in a mixing bowl. 

9. Next add the Trex and vanilla extract to the mix. Using a stand mixer or an electronic whilst beat the ingredients until you have a nice consistency. 

10.Using a star nozzle on your piping bag ice the cooled cakes and add any additional decorations. 

Ingredients

For The Cakes

100g Shelled Pistachios

140g Golden Caster Sugar

140g Softened Unsalted Butter

140g Self Raising Flour 

2 Medium eggs

5tbsp Milk

For The Icing

250g Softened Unsalted Butter

500g  Icing Sugar 

Zest 2 limes

Juice 2 limes

Green Gel Food Colouring

Recipe

1. Preset the oven to 160C/ Fan 140C/ Gas Mark 3

2. Like a 12 hole muffin tin with your cupcake cases. 

3. Use a food processor to finely chop 85g of your pistachios with half of the sugar. I used a Nutribullet with the milling blade attachment for his. 

4. Tip the mix into a large mixing bowl and add the butter, eggs, four, milk and the rest of the sugar. Beat this by hand or using an electronic mixer until the batter is smooth. 

5. Divide the mix between the 12 cupcake cases and bake for 22-25 minutes before taking out the cool on a wire rack. 

6.Add your 250mg of softened butter with the lime zest and juice to your mixing bowl.  Add half of the icing sugar and beat until well mixed and fluffy.

7. Continue to gradually add the remainder of the icing sugar until completely combined. Add a few drops of green colouring and  beat the mix at high speed for approximately 1 minute. 

8. Using a piping bag with a star tip, ice your cooled cupcakes. 

9. Decorate your iced cakes - I used a pieces of dark chocolate which I feel compliments the flavours well. I also added a pistachio too. You could think about using candied lime peel or chocolate sprinkles. 

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/ Fan 180C/ Gas Mark 6

2. Add all the ingredients to a mixing bowl and stir well until thoroughly mixed 

3. Add the contents of the mixing bowl into a small casserole dish. Bake in the oven for approximately 35 minutes or until the top is a nice golden brown

4. Serve with more fresh fruits and yoghurt