NEMO! That's a Nice Name.

Disney/Pixar # 5 - Finding Nemo

I think that as this project progresses, I'm becoming much more crazy inventive with my ideas. For Finding Nemo, I really wanted to bake cupcakes that tasted like the sea. The best I could come up with was to incorporate seaweed into the cakes, so that's what I did.

I picked up some dried seaweed from a Korean supermarket near me, and was a little disappointed to find that it didn't really taste of sea - in fact, it didn't really taste of anything. Still, I had committed to the idea so I had to see it through. I started to think of other flavours that might compliment the seaweed, and settled on peanut butter and caramel - yummy!

I just made this one up as I went along - so give it a try! The caramel recipe I used was the one on the back of the tin of Carnation Condensed Milk. Of course you could make it easier on yourself and just buy their ready made caramel!

Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the Caramel (if making yourself)
100g slightly salted butter
100g dark brown soft sugar
 397g tin of Condensed Milk

For the cupcakes:
75g crunchy peanut butter
75g margarine
100g golden caster sugar
1 medium egg
100g self-raising flour
10g seaweed

For the frosting:
150g shortening
300g icing sugar
130g caramel (made using ingredients above)

1. If you're making your own caramel, you'll want to start with this as it will take a while to cool and set. Using a thick-based pan over a low heat, melt the butter and sugar together until the butter has melted and the sugar completely dissolved. Add the condensed milk and increase the heat slightly. Stir continuously until the mixture is thick and golden brown, then tip into a glass bowl. Leave to cool completely before placing into the fridge until needed.
2. Preheat the oven to gas mark 5 and line a bun try was paper cases.
3. To make the cupcakes, beat the peanut butter, margarine and sugar in a large bowl until creamy. 
4. Beat in the egg, then sift and fold in the flour until just combined. 
5. Chop the seaweed into small pieces. Place a tablespoon of the chopped seaweed to one side to use as decoration, and add the rest to the cake batter. Spoon a tablespoon of the mixture into each cupcake case then bake for 15 minute, until golden brown and firm to touch. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin slightly before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Once the cakes have cooled, prepare the frosting. Place the shortening, icing sugar, and 100g of the caramel into a bowl and beat until the ingredients combine into a smooth and creamy frosting. Spread a little of the remaining caramel over the top of each cupcake, then pipe on the caramel frosting. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped seaweed to decorate and serve.

Next time it's The Incredibles, and I'll be making some incredible red velvet muffins!

Happy Thoughts
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