Say ‘I love you’ to mum with these delish cupcakes.
Say ‘I love you’ to mum with these delish cupcakes.
PREP 1 hour COOK 1 hour 10 mins MAKES 24.
3 cups caster sugar 375 g butter, softened 7 eggs 2 tsps vanilla extract 4½ cups plain flour 1½ tsps baking powder 1½ cups milk, plus ½ cup extra 2 tbsps red food colouring ½ tsp strawberry essence ¼ cup cocoa powder ¼ cup just-boiled water.
MARSHMALLOW FROSTING.
85 g pack strawberry jelly crystals ²/³ cup caster sugar 1 egg-white 1 tsp vanilla essence ½ cup just-boiled water.
1 Preheat oven to moderate, 180 C. Lightly grease and line a 20-cm square cake pan. In a bowl, beat sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla. Mix in sifted flour and baking powder alternately with milk on low.
2 Divide ¹/³ mixture into a small bowl, beat in red colouring and essence until well combined.
3 Pour into pan and bake 30 to 35 mins until cooked when tested. Cool in pan 10 mins. Turn onto wire rack. When cool, cut out 24 shapes using a 3-cm heart-shaped cutter.
4 Whisk cocoa into just-boiled water. Beat into remaining butter until well combined.
5 Mark 24 muffin cases on two opposite sides with a pencil. Line two 12-hole muffin trays with cases, aligning marks.
6 Spoon 1 tbsp batter into each case. Dip hearts in extra milk then press into centre, upright and in line with pencil marks. Spoon remaining mixture over hearts. Bake 30 to 35 mins until cooked when tested.
7 MARSHMALLOW FROSTIN G In a bowl, beat jelly crystals, sugar, egg-white and vanilla. Increase speed to high. With motor running, gradually beat in justboiled water in steady stream. Beat on high until mixture is
8 Spoon frosting into a piping bag with a large, plain pipe. Hold tip 1 cm from edge of cake. To pipe a small peak, apply pressure from base of bag, press tip down slightly then sharply lift up. Pipe 4 to 5 peaks around edge and 1 in centre. Repeat with remaining cakes. W
Photos: Rob Shaw/bauersyndication.com.au.
