There’s nothing more romantic then a bunch of red roses – so why not make these special rich chocolate cupcakes topped with romantic flowers to show someone you care this Valentine’s Day?
Ingredients
- 110g butter
- 110g 48% dark chocolate
- 10g coffee granules
- 60g self raising flour
- 60g plain flour
- 10g cornflour
- 25g cocoa powder
- ⅓
- tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 240g caster sugar
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 3
- ½
- tsp vegetable oil or olive oil (not virgin oil)
- 50ml buttermilk
- 80ml of water
- For the icing
- :
- 110g butter
- 400g icing sugar
- 2 tbls milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp poppy red colouring
- ½ tsp ruby red colouring
- For the leaves
- :
- 50g flower paste
- Green colouring
- 1 small rose leaf cutter
- You will also need
- :
- Muffin trays
- 12 cases
- Wilton 1B tip
- Large piping bag
- Household sponge
Method
To make the leaves
- Colour the flower paste with the holly-green colouring. Roll thinly, 1/8th of an inch thick, cut 12 leaves and place on a sponge to dry.
To make the cakes
- Preheat the oven to 160°C/320°F/Gas Mark 3 and line a 12-hole muffin tray with cupcake cases.
- Place butter, chopped chocolate, coffee granules and water in a large bowl over a pan of boiling water, stir gently until melted then remove from the heat and allow to cool.
- Sift the flour, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar and make a well in the centre. Add the beaten eggs, oil and buttermilk and the chocolate mixture, stirring with a large spoon until completely combined.
- Fill cupcake cases to 2/3 full and bake for 30 minutes. Remove and cool in the tins for 10 minutes before cooling on a wire rack ready for icing.
To make the icing
- Add butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl, then beat for about 5 minutes with an electric whisk until smooth. Add the red colouring and beat again. Pour the milk gradually, if you need to loosen the mixture.
- Pipe roses onto your cakes. Watch our step-by-step video to see how to ice cupcake roses.
Top tip for making Red rose cupcakes
Victoria says: "Use mini cupcake cases to make 20 small red rose cupcakes"
