Honey and rosemary cakes

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC and grease the muffin tins with a little of the butter.

2. Place the rest of the butter, along with the sugar, honey and 1tbsp water, into the saucepan. Heat gently, stirring only once, until the butter is melted and the sugar dissolved. It will look like it’s separated, but don’t stress, this is normal. Set aside to cool.

3. Sift the flour, baking powder and cinnamon together, and add the finely chopped rosemary. When the honey mixture is cool, stir in the beaten eggs. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until the mixture is smooth. Divide the mixture between the well-greased tins, making sure they are all around two-thirds full.

4. Bake for around 25 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the tins, then turn out and transfer to a wire rack.

5. Whisk the cream cheese until light and airy. Sift the icing sugar and beat it into the cheese, to create a smooth and creamy icing that holds its shape. When the cakes are completely cold, ice them using a palette knife to drop the icing onto the cake, then round it off at the edges.

6. To make the rosemary honey drizzle, put the honey in a saucepan with the rosemary leaves and bring to the boil. As soon as the honey starts bubbling, turn off the heat and allow the flavours to infuse for at least 20 minutes. Pour the mixture into a jar — it will keep for a good few weeks, and tastes wonderful on roasted carrots as well as cakes. To serve, warm the rosemary honey in the saucepan and spoon over an iced cake. Eat immediately.
   This recipe is from The Little Library Cookbook by Kate Young, published by Anima, an imprint of Head of Zeus.