Valentine Special: Red Velvet Cupcakes

Hello All,
Valentine's day is just around the corner and as usual the colour red is popping up everywhere you turn.  Want to show that special person just how much they mean to you? Instead of ordering a cake why not bake something special for that lovely lady in your life?  Oh so you think he's the bees knees? why not go the extra mile to bake him something to show him that he means the world to you.

Since red is the colour of love why not surprise him/her with a dozen red roses and a dozen red velvet cupcakes topped with white cream frosting? Imagine the surprise when she/he bites into it and discovers the moist redness of the cake even more surprise when you tell him/her you baked it all by yourself!

Come on....lets bake some!

INGREDIENTS

150g Self-Raising Flour

150g Caster Sugar

60g Butter (room temperature)

1 Large Egg

10g Cocoa Powder

40ml Red Food Colouring

120ml Buttermilk (to make buttermilk at home just add 1 tbsp of white vinegar to 1 cup of whole milk, stir and allow to sit for at least 5 minutes)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract



METHOD

Preheat oven to 180C and line a 12-hole baking tin with cupcake paper cases.


1. In a large bowl beat the butter and sugar together till it becomes soft and fluffy (if using a mixer beat for like 5 minutes)

scrape sides with a rubber spatula and get at the extra bits sticking to the bowl

2.  Gradually add eggs and beat some more till it's well mixed

mixture should look something like this, don't forget to scrape the sides

3.  In a small bowl combine the cocoa powder, vanilla extract and red food colouring to make a paste

combo of red food colouring, cocoa powder and vanilla extract

4.  Add paste to the butter and sugar mixture and mix till the batter is evenly mixed with the red paste

5.  With the mixer in slow speed gradually pour in half of the buttermilk and add half of the flour, mix for like a full minute and then add the rest of the buttermilk and then the rest of the flour and mix everything till well mixed. Give a final 3 minutes mixing with your mixer on high speed.

6.  Fill each cupcake case with the batter till two-thirds full and pop into the pre-heated oven to bake for like 15-20 minutes

7.  After the time elapses poke one cupcake with a toothpick to see if it comes out clean or gently press a finger against one cupcake to see if it's firm and springs back. If either of these happens then you know your baking is done.

8.  Leave the cupcakes to cool down in the baking tin for like 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

TO MAKE FROSTING
In a bowl beat 90g of butter till it becomes fluffy and add 160g of sifted icing sugar with a tablespoon of water or milk. Beat the mixture till it achieves the consistency you want, if it's too thin add more icing sugar.  If mixture is too thick simply add half a tablespoon of water or milk.

When the cupcakes have cooled down, put the butter icing in a piping bag and decorate each cupcake.  You can add colour to the frosting or leave it bare.  Decorate further with coloured sprinklers like mine and add a cherry on top for more effect!