Day 21: Baking with Bugs

I made a batch of cricket flour cupcakes today, using the same 1:5 ratio I used for my crêpes to see how the flour would effect the rise of the cupcakes if at all. I did notice that they seemed to bake a small bit quicker then before when I had used the same recipe without the flour, but I’ll have to check and see if these results are consistent the next time I try it. I have to say I didn’t notice much of a difference in their taste, probably because the sweetness of the cupcakes overpowered the mild nutty flavor of the crickets. Texture-wise they definitely felt a bit heavier than before, although they were still quite fluffy on the inside with a speckled and slightly darker color (Although I usually use white caster sugar so I’d have to see if it would affect the color of brown sugar cupcakes.

I added a cheeky sprinkle of flour to the cupcakes I had iced and whipped up a nutella icing to compliment the it’s natural nutty flavor. I placed a roasted cricket on top for decoration (and also as a warning to my brother who is vegetarian) and to my surprise, my parents went right to devouring the cupcakes without the crickets on top. This was proof that most people are happy to eat any food that tastes good and more importantly, looks familiar. Similarly to how people will gladly grab a burger to go but would hesitate at receiving their meat straight from the slaughterhouse, the fact that the insects are processed makes it so that many people won’t mind if there is more than a cricket’s worth of flour in their cupcake as long as they can’t see it. I believe this might be an effective way to introduce people to the concept of eating insects in Ireland and I’ll try to experiment with more recipes to see just how versatile it could be.