White Chocolate & Pistachio Cupcakes

Technically, white chocolate is not a chocolate, but it tastes just as decadent! Macadamia nuts also work well and give a creamier flavour than pistachios.

Ingredients

225 g	Butter, softened
200 g	Caster sugar
2 ½ tsp	Baking powder
4	Eggs, large
225 g	Plain flour (Main)
1 tsp	Vanilla extract
100 g	Chocolate chips, white (Main)

Frosting

5 Tbsp	Milk
165 g	Icing sugar, sifted
200 g	Chocolate chips, white
3 Tbsp	Pistachio nuts, toasted, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 160 degC. Place 18 paper baking cups in muffin pans.
2. Combine all the cupcake ingredients, except the choco­late chips, in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and pale - about 2-3 minutes.
3. Stir in the chocolate chips. Spoon the batter into the cups.
4. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and cool for 5 minutes.
5. Then remove the cupcakes and cool on a rack.
6. To make the frosting, heat the chocolate and milk in a double boiler, stirring frequently, until the chocolate has melted.
7. Remove from the heat and beat in the icing sugar until smooth. Spread over the cupcakes and sprinkle with the nuts.