28 November 2014

Christmas Cupcakes

With December on the doorstep, there is no way to ignore that Christmas is right around the corner. We're starting to feel the festive spirit and are looking forward to enjoying the season of goodwill, good food and good company!

These Christmas cupcakes we discovered online are adorable! We think we will defiantly be making them over the coming weeks, to share some Christmas treats with our friends and family.

Whilst these festive cupcake designs look very professional, they are actually really easy to create! We've put together a quick tutorial and recipe to show you how to make these festive treats yourself once Christmas arrives!

Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe

Ingredients
Cupcake:                                         Icing:
110g Softened Butter                   140g Softened Butter
120g Caster Sugar                         280g Icing Sugar
110g Self Raising Flour                1-2 tbsp Milk
2 Lightly Beaten Eggs                   Green Food Colouring
1-2 tbsp Milk                                 White Milk Chocolate
1tsp Vanilla Extract                       Edible Decorations

Recipe
1. Preheat oven to 180ÂșC.
2. Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl.
3. Beat in the eggs a little at a time.
4. Fold in the sifted flour. Adding a dash of milk until the right consistency is achieved.
5. Spoon into cupcake cases lining a muffin tin and bake for 10-15 minutes (or until a knife comes out clean after begin inserted into the centre of a cake).
6. Allow to cool on a wire rack.
7. For the buttercream icing, beat the butter in a large bowl until soft.
8. Slowly add the sugar whist beating, adding a dash of milk until smooth and creamy.
9. Mix in a few drops of food colouring until a even colour is achieved.
10. Spoon icing into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe in a spiralling motion onto the cooled cupcakes to create the Christmas tree effect on half the cakes.
11. Decorate the trees with a few edible sugar balls and a star to top of the creation!
12. To create the modern chocolate tree design, use a clean knife to spread an even layer of butter icing on the remaining cupcakes.
13. Melt the white chocolate in a bowl over a simmering saucepan.
14. Use a spoon to drizzle some melted chocolate onto a flat sheet of greaseproof paper in a zip zag shape about 2 inches tall.
15. Carefully place some edible sugar balls into the chocolate and allow to cool.
16. Once completely cooled, carefully remove from the paper and stick upright into the layer of icing on the last batch of cupcakes. 

Then your Christmas cupcakes are complete! Display on a cupcake stand to present them to your friends and family before they get gobbled up!

Will you be baking festive cupcakes this Christmas?