Do you smell smoke? A flavored oil can seem like a cheat but more often presents a challenge: to find a use at once unexpected and ideal. We let the smoke sing here, in citrus cupcakes with a sweet, crunchy send-off.
Ingredients
Yield: 12 large cupcakes
For the cake:
- 1 + 1/4 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup Red Stick Spice Smoked Olive Oil
- juice and zest from two clementines
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 cups “00” flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 pinch fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
For the topping:
- 8 clementines, sliced 1/2-inch thick and carefully peeled
- 2 tbsp. honey
- 2 tbsp. Smoked Olive Oil
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
- 1/4 cup crushed pistachios
Method
For the cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, juice, zest, eggs, and vanilla extract until fully combined. Stir in flour, baking soda, and sea salt. Then add buttermilk and yogurt.
- Pour batter into greased muffin tins, taking care to fill each mold only halfway. Bake for 20–25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean. Cool pans for five minutes on a wire rack.
For the topping: While cupcakes cool, preheat the broiler. Place clementine slices in a single layer on a greased baking sheet. Brush with honey, then smoked olive oil. Sprinkle with paprika and sea salt. Broil for 5 minutes, until slices are browned. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes.
To plate: Dust the cupcakes with crushed pistachios, then top each with 1 or 2 clementine slices.
