I love lemon cakes, muffins and cupcakes so for a change I decided to add some poppyseeds to the batter. They were really delicious, my friend loved them –  despite not having any dairy and too much sugar! Try making these lemon and poppyseed cupcakes next time you want to bake  –  it’s so easy!

You’ll need:

• 2 cups of self- raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarb
• 2 Tbsp poppy seeds
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• Juice  and grated zest of 1 lemon
• ½ cup sunflower oil
• 1 cup plant-based milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

How to make the cupcakes:

1. Turn the oven on and set the temperature to 180°C.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour & bicarb, then mix in the poppy seeds.
3. In another bowl, beat the eggs, then add the sugar and beat until you get a light cream. Now add the lemon zest & juice, oil, milk & vanilla. Mix well.
4. Add the wet mixture to the flour and combine gently. If the batter is too thick, add some more milk. (the batter should be thick, not runny –  but not dough-like either).
5. Line a muffin tin with paper cases – or put silicon muffin cases on a baking sheet.
6. Fill them with the batter – but only up to ⅔, so that they can rise – then put the baking sheet in the oven.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.
8. Ask an adult to remove the tray. Let the muffins cool, then move them to a wire rack.
9. When they are completely cool, top them to your liking.

Tips

• You can top them with a lemon glaze, buttercream/cream cheese frosting or lemon icing, or just dust them with powdered sugar. I like them plain but made a couple of frosted ones too using vegan (dairy-free) cream-cheese frosting, which were actually really yummy.
• Theselemon and poppyseed cupcakesare perfect for picnics and birthday parties ( you can make mini versions too!). Also, they are ideal for your mum’s birthday or Mother’s day – she’ll love them!