Ingredients:
30g Sweet Cicely leaves
250g butter, softened
400g caster sugar, divided
250g self-raising flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten
finely-grated zest and juice of 3 lemons
Method:
Pre-heat your oven to 160C (140C fan/Gas Mark 3) then line a muffin tin with 12 paper cases. Set aside 12 small sprigs of the sweet cicely for decoration.
Finely chop the remaining sweet cicely then set aside.
Cream together the butter and 250g of the sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly to combine after each addition. Now beat in half the chopped sweet cicely, then sift over the flour and add the juice of 1 lemon. Mix until just combined then spoon into the prepared cases, filling them no more than half full.
Transfer to the centre of your pre-heated oven and bake for 30 minutes, until well risen and golden on top. When done, a skewer inserted into the centre of a cupcake will emerge cleanly. If ready, allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, if not, return to the oven for 5 minutes more.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Combine the lemon juice and zest, the remaining sugar and the remaining sweet cicely in a pan. Heat gently and cook, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved. Poke 3 or 4 holes in the tops of the cooled cupcakes with a skewer then spoon over the sweet cicely syrup. Garnish with a sprig of sweet cicely and wait until the syrup has cooled before serving.
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