Ideal for afternoon tea: pumpkin and walnut cupcakes

makes / 12 prep / 1 hour cook / 20 minutes

Ingredients

2 eggs 60ml (1⁄4 cup) milk 100g (1⁄2 cup) brown sugar, firmly packed or rapadura sugar 125ml (1⁄2 cup) extra-virgin olive oil (or walnut oil) 125g (1 cup) pumpkin, coarsely grated 55g (1⁄2 cup) almond meal 45g (1⁄3 cup) walnuts, chopped (optional) 160g (1 cup) wholemeal self-raising flour

1⁄2 tsp ground cinnamon, or ground cardamom, or a mixture of both 1 lemon, zested

LEMON CREAM CHEESE ICING: 150g cream cheese, at room temperature 60g (1⁄3 cup) icing sugar, sifted 2-4 tsp lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan-forced. Line twelve 80ml (1⁄3 cup) muffin pans with paper cases.

2. Whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar and oil in a large bowl. Stir in the grated pumpkin, almond meal and chopped walnuts, if using. Add the wholemeal flour and spice and stir until just combined.

3. Divide the mixture among the prepared pans and bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Set aside for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

4. For the icing, use electric beaters to beat the cream cheese, icing sugar and 2 tsp of the lemon juice in a bowl until well combined and smooth. Add the remaining lemon juice until smooth and to taste.

5. Use a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain piping nozzle to pipe icing over the cupcakes. Sprinkle with zest.

TIPS:

For a nut-free version, omit the walnuts (the mixture will make 11 cupcakes) and replace the almonds with a ground seed mix, such as a mix of ground pepitas, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. These cupcakes can be stored, uniced, in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or iced for 2 days in an airtight container in the fridge. You can make these cupcakes and freeze, un-iced, in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Wait until completely thawed before icing.