As it will be my mother’s birthday next week, and mother’s day on Sunday, I wanted to bake her something special, as it is a double celebration. I was having a think about what I could bake. I made some jam last year and I still have jar of blackberry jam left. I wanted to use it up with these cupcakes.

I had a look for cupcake recipes for inspirations in my cookbook collection, and I stumbled across a recipe in Nigella Lawson’s Domestic Goddess. She has a recipe for chocolate and cherry cupcakes. I decided to adapted this recipe using my jam and gluten free flour. I also used coconut sugar instead of caster sugar. It works brilliantly!

I love using this book. There was something so special adapting this recipe,because when I was younger this was the book me and mum would bake from.

I love it when you can get inspiration for new bakes from recipe books you have had for years.

My chocolate and blackberry cupcakes.

Ingredients for cupcakes:

• 125g unsalted butter
• 100g dark chocolate
• 300g blackberry jam
• 150g coconut sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 large eggs
• 150g gluten free self-raising flour

For the chocolate ganache icing:

• 100g dark chocolate
• 100ml of double cream

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 170 fan / gas mark 4. Line a large muffin tin with 12 muffin cases.

2. Put the butter in a large pan on the heat to melt. When the butter is almost melted, stir in the chocolate. Leave for a moment until the chocolate has started to melt.

3. Take the pan off the heat. Stir with a wooden spoon until the butter and chocolate are smooth and melted. Stir in the jam, sugar and eggs with a wooden spoon. Once the mixture is well mixed stir in the flour and salt. Make sure the flour is mixed in well.

4. Pour the mixture into 12 muffin cases. Bake for 25 mins. They should be done once a cake skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring onto a cooling rack.

5. While the cakes are cooling make the icing. Break the chocolate into a bowl. Bring the cream up to the boil. Once the cream is up to the boil, take off the heat and add the chocolate stirring to get a smooth ganache.

6. Finally spoon the ganache onto the cupcakes.

Enjoy!