Can I make these without the orange liqueur?

Yes. You can replace the orange liqueur with an equal amount of milk or orange juice for a non-alcoholic version, though the flavor will be less complex.

Do I have to frost the cupcakes?

No. The recipe notes that frosting is optional, and the cupcakes are flavorful enough to serve plain.

What if I only have whole star anise instead of ground?

Use the whole star anise as written in the ingredient line, or grind it finely first if you prefer a smoother crumb and more even spice distribution.

How should I store these cupcakes?

Store unfrosted or frosted cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 days, or refrigerate if your kitchen is warm or if the frosting is very soft.

Can I make the cupcakes smaller or larger?

Yes. The yield depends on cupcake size, so fill the liners accordingly and start checking doneness a few minutes early for smaller cupcakes or a bit later for larger ones.

How do I know when they’re done?

The tops should spring back lightly when touched and a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.

Recipes

Rebekah's Anise and Orange Liqueur Cakes

Name: Rebekah's Anise and Orange Liqueur Cakes
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: ~40 cupcakes
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: CAKES; 2 cups flour; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 cup shortening; 2 eggs; 1 1/2 cups sugar; 1 teaspoon The Spice House vanilla extract; 1 1/4 cup milk; 2 whole or 2 teaspoons The Spice House ground star anise; 1/4 cup orange liqueur; 1/4 teaspoon The Spice House ground nutmeg; FROSTING; 2 cups powdered sugar; 1 tablespoon milk; 2 tablespoons butter; 2 teaspoons The Spice House vanilla; 2 teaspoon The Spice House lemon extract

I made this up myself by looking at a few different from-scratch white cake recipes, piecing together the parts I liked and thought would chemically work, then throwing in my own flavorings.

I do this sometimes and I'm not entirely sure how I get by with it--I haven't had any dramatic failures yet. It's not a good policy unless you know what your ingredients do, and my mother has taught me well on that front. These in particular turned out exceptionally delicious--the perfect thing to have with earl grey tea or hot cider when the cold weather is giving you no incentive to leave the house.

They use some unusual ingredients, but this is the Spice House web site, and don't we all like to experiment here?

Submitted by: Rebekah Yoder from Davenport, Iowa
Yield: ~40 cupcakes for me. Your cupcake size will vary; mine were rather small.

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Ingredients

CAKES
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup milk
2 whole or 2 teaspoons ground star anise
1/4 cup orange liqueur
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
FROSTING
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoon lemon extract

Preparation Instructions:

CAKES
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Mix shortening, eggs, sugar, vanilla, anise, liqueur, and milk. Stop mixer, and add flour, baking powder and salt; mix in evenly. Line a cupcake tin with liners. Use a cookie disher to scoop batter into cupcake liners.
Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes.

FROSTING
Mix all ingredients in a bowl until smooth.
Adjust with milk/powdered sugar until it's a nice consistency and flavor. Frosting is optional with these, as they don't exactly need it. If you really like your liqueur, you can throw a bit of that in as well.

More About This Recipe

A few words about several of the ingredients, and substitutions for them.

*Whole (or broken) star anise is strong stuff, so don't go overboard with it. If you are using aniseed instead of star anise, you will want to use more than the number I gave for ground star anise.

*Orange liqueur is not to be feared; my proportions using this recipe came out fine, although my cupcakes were smaller and therefore had more surface area for the alcohol to dissipate. Orange bitters could be substituted, albeit in much smaller proportions, and it would be much easier to go overboard, so add very carefully. This is a good excuse for tasting your cake batter.

*For vanilla, the recipe assumes you're using single strength. I liked the Madagascar vanilla in them, although Tahitian vanilla wouldn't be out of place. It won't matter terribly; use what you have. Unless what you have is vanilla *flavoring.* Stay away from that sludge; go buy something decent, or leave it out.

<p>If you enjoyed this recipe, check out more <a href=/blogs/recipes/tagged/baking>baking recipes here.</a></p>

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Rebekah's Anise and Orange Liqueur Cakes

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Vanilla Extract, Single Strength Madagascar

Nutmeg, Ground

Extract, Lemon

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Preparation Instructions:

More About This Recipe

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