From a Pot: Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemon Curd

Vanilla cupcakes

• Flour: 150 g

• Salt: 0.5 tsp

• Baking powder: 1.5 teaspoon

• Vanilla extract: 1 tsp

• Sugar: 150 g

• Egg: 2

• Oil: 10 ml

• Milk: 120 ml

• Butter: 70 g

Lemon curd

• Egg: 3

• Sugar: 115 g

• Lemon juice: 60 ml

• Lemon peel: 1 lemon

• Butter: 40 g

Italian meringue

• Sugar: 130 g

• Water: 25 ml

• Egg: 2

• Salt: 0.5 tsp

• Vanilla extract: 0.5 tsp

1. Sift flour, salt and baking powder together through a strainer.
2. Mix the sugar and eggs together with an electric mixer to double their volume. Mix it for about 5 minutes, the cream will turn to light yellowish almost white color.
3. Add flour, salt, and baking powder to the eggs and sugar mixture. Stir for about 10 seconds, just enough to incorporate all the ingredients.
4. Heat milk with butter until the butter melts, then wait for it to cool to room temperature before adding to the batter.
5. Mix all the ingredients on low speed to get a smooth mixture. Be careful not to over mix. Mix just for about 10 - 20 seconds.
6. Fill cupcakes liners with batter up to about ¼ cup.
7. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for about 20 - 25 minutes. Cupcakes are done when you pierce them with a toothpick and there is no more batter on it. Wait for them to cool.

1. Zest your lemon and juice your lemons.
2. Separate egg yolks from egg whites, then add sugar to egg yolks and mix with a whisk to get a smooth texture.
3. Add in the lemon juice and zest. Then place on a medium heat, and whisk until the curd starts to thicken and bubbling just a little. It will take about 10 to 20 minutes to get to this state. Do not turn the heat up or the eggs will scramble, and don’t stop mixing, or the eggs will also scramble.
4. Remove the pot from heat and add in the butter, then mix it until it melts and incorporate.
5. Strain the curd into a jar and place a plastic wrap on top of it so that it touches the curd. It takes about 3 hours to cool completely.

1. Separate egg yolks from egg whites.
2. Add salt to the egg whites and start mixing them at low speed, then slowly go to high speed, add in 130 g of sugar and keep mixing until soft peaks form.
3. In a bowl, slowly heat 130 g of sugar and 50 ml of water. Stir constantly and heat until it reaches 115 degrees Celsius. I use a food thermometer to check the temperature. If you don't have a thermometer, the temperature is just right when the syrup starts to boil slightly.
4. Pure the syrup into the egg whites while mixing.
5. Add in vanilla extract and mix on high speed until the meringue thickens and cools to room temperature (about 3 minutes).

1. Using a knife or a spoon, dig a hole into the center of a cupcake.
2. Fill the cupcakes with lemon curd, and if desired, cover them again with a biscuit that you scrape out.
3. Decorate them with Italian meringue. I “burn” the meringue a bit with a gas burner, but you can also use some sprinkles or raspberries to decorate.