Christmas cupcakes

Almost time to put your feet up...with some good food.


Heat oven to 200c!



Here are most of the things you need to make these yummy cupcakes


Sift 3 cups of flour into a bowl


add baking soda (1t)..


and baking powder (2t)


I'm showing off my new measuring spoons...


Add to this some mixed spice (2t) and a pinch of salt (I didn't cause I'm using salted butter)


Mix it all together! Leave it to one side.


Next in a mediumish pot add the following:

dark choc (150g) (I used ghana dark choc, yum)...


then add Instant coffee (1/4c) and boiling water (1c) to the pot too.
Keep stirring on a low heat until it has combined, then take off element to cool.

Next we do the buttery stuff.

Soften butter (200g) DO NOT OVER SOFTEN. It will ruin it. The butter should be on the firmer side of soft, not the nearing melted side. This is important, so the cupcakes are the right consistency. (I freq muck up my softening butter and have to refrigerate/start over it again.) Cream the butter for a good 2 mins.


Next measure out the brown sugar (1 & 1/2c)


Add half to the butter, cream it for 2mins then add the other half creaming for another 2 mins.


Now we add the eggs one at a time... beating for 1min after each addition.


Add 4 eggs in total.

(Why all this mixing? Well we must think of baking as a science. The mixing is important to add the air into the cupcake mix, making sure that the will cook properly and end up light and fluffy. Cupcakes aren't meant to be dense. You may not care, but I do, I'm a perfectionist!)


Now add the vanilla (1t) the mix it in.


Now mix in a 1/3rd of the flour mixture, and beat until combined.


Measure out sour cream (1/2c) and add half of this to the mixture, beating it in.


Repeat these last two steps. Then add the last of the flour, combine it, but don't over mix!


Next pour in the cooled choc mix... fold it in gently. Combine it all, but once again, don't over mix it!


Mmmm yummy.


Put cool cupcake cases in the trays. Depending on the size of your cases it will make varying amounts of cupcakes. Mine filled 36. The cook time will vary slightly as well.


Fill the cases about 2/3rds full.


Cook for 15ish mins. Keep an eye on them, cause they may be ready sooner. The aim is to have them a bit gooey inside still. Take them out of the baking tray as soon as pos, transferring them to a cooling rack.


Once cool, ice them! I made a red butter cream icing and piped it onto the middle of the cakes. (Too much icing can be sickly)
I made some fondant too and cut out wee flower shapes, putting them on top.


Then I dotted some glitter gel in the middle


and added a silver ball to each.


All finished!


I took them around to a christmas party. They tasted sooo good... a perfect mix of christmasy flavours.


You really should try making them!

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