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Cupcake of the Month: Decorate your own Easter cupcakes!

EatPost Category - EatEat - Post Category - CookingCooking

Easter is coming soon and instead of organising an Easter egg hunt for your little ones, why not bake with them and have a go at this month’s Easter cupcake decoration instead? I had so much fun making these Easter cupcakes and I hope you will like the complementary flavours of the freshly squeezed orange juice with the chocolate mini eggs! Happy Easter holiday everyone!

Easter Chocolate & Freshly Squeezed Orange Cupcakes

Total time for baking and making buttercream: 1.5 hours
Makes: 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

113g organic unsalted butter (at room temperature)
130g caster sugar
195g organic plain flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large organic free range eggs (at room temperature)
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons of freshly squeezed orange juice
Zest of 1 orange
60ml whole milk

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 180C and line your cupcake tray with pretty cupcake cases.
  2. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Once this is done, add the orange zest and give it a quick blend.
  3. Add the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition.
  4. Add the vanilla and orange juice and blend well.
  5. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
  6. Using a slow speed on the mixer, add the flour mixture and milk, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  7. Fill the cupcake cases with the cake batter to 2/3 full and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when you insert it into a cupcake as a tester.
  8. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, frost with icing and top it with the Easter cupcake decoration!

Zesty Orange Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

140g organic butter
280g icing sugar (extra for thickening if required)
2–4 teaspoons of freshly squeezed & filtered orange juice
1 teaspoon of freshly grated orange zest

3 simple steps to follow:

  1. Ensure the organic butter is at room temperature. Beat the butter in a large bowl until soft.
  2. Add icing sugar and orange zest and beat until combined.
  3. Using trial and error, add a teaspoon of the freshly squeezed orange juice into the frosting and beat well. Pause in order to taste and texture. Add more orange juice or icing sugar in order to achieve your desired consistency.

Easter Cupcake Toppers

As the weather is getting rather humid in Hong Kong now, I would highly recommend making these cupcake toppers at least a day ahead, so that the fondant has enough time to dry and harden properly.

Easter equipment guideYou will need the following ingredients/equipment:

  • DIY fondant dust: 50:50 mix of corn flour and icing sugar
  • Cadbury’s mini eggs
  • 3–4 inch wide cookie cutter
  • Wilton food colouring in brown
  • Wilton food colouring in green
  • Desiccated coconut
  • Fondant tools as shown in the photo above (alternative substitutes will be recommended later)
  • Rolling pin
  • Ruler
  • 50:50 mix of white gum paste & white fondant (not shown in photo)

The ratio is 50:50 for gum paste and fondant, but if you need more just follow this rule of thumb. The gum paste will help to dry and harden your fondant decorations in this humid weather quicker. Simply combine by pressing both ingredients together and start stretching and pulling the mixture apart. Repeat this action until well mixed.

Divide up this mixture into two different colours: light brown and light green. Simply dip a cocktail stick into the food colouring and then smear onto the fondant, continuing to use the stretch and pull technique as above. Remember you can always add more colour so start with a small amount. TIP: If the heat from your hands is making the fondant too sticky, rub some shortening (butter or grease) in your palms first.

Step-by-step instructions:

Step 1: For the Easter eggs basket, roll out a small ball of brown fondant to about 3cm wide as shown in the photo.

Step 2: Using the smaller end of the round ball fondant tool (alternatively just use the tip of the back of a spoon), gently dig a hole in the middle of the fondant ball until you have achieved a small nest shape.

Step 3: Using your thumb and index finger, gently pinch the edges in order to stretch the fondant into a bowl shape. If required, you can also use a single finger to gently press down the fondant in order to achieve the best shape for your Easter egg nest!

Step 4: Using the blade fondant tool (or the back of a knife), gently mark lines all over the inside, outside and along the edge of the fondant nest to give it the most natural nest effect.

150325-SMHK-MarCupcake-Collage1-v1Step 5: Roll up a small ball of kitchen towel and stuff it in the centre of the fondant nest. Tip it upside down over a baking sheet and let it dry thoroughly in a cool and dry area overnight.

Step 6: Roll out the light green fondant to about 3mm thick. Use the wave pattern side of cookie cutter and cut out small discs to be used as the grass.

Step 7: While the oven is being pre-heated, pour the desiccated coconut into a baking tray and put it in the oven for about 2 minutes, shake it around and then keep toasting it for another 2 minutes until golden brown. Set it aside to cool.

Step 8: When all the fondant decorations are dried properly, pour a teaspoonful of the toasted desiccated coconut into the fondant nest. Add the mini Easter eggs on top. Dab a small amount of water on the light green fondant disc and rest the nest on top for them to stick together.

150325-SMHK-MarCupcake-Collage2-v1

To finish off, Pipe your cupcakes with a generous amount of zesty orange buttercream and place your Easter cupcake decorations on top just before serving! Bon appétit!

Easter-21-last

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