Shopping list
250g butter
250g caster sugar
1 sachet vanilla flavoured sugar
3 free range eggs
250g self-raising flour
4 tablespoons of milk
marzipan, red
icing fondant, pink
food paint, gold
sugar pearls, silver
smarties
Today is the start of the Chinese New Year therefore we bake beautiful Chinese cupcakes. We use red, hot pink and gold, those are lucky colours in China.
How to make the cupcakes
Preheat the oven to 170° C.
Place butter, sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl.
Keep mixing until the mixture is creamy and fluffy.
Add the eggs one by one and beat them into the butter mixture.
Beat the milk into the butter mixture as well.
Add the flour in three portions, sieved.
Fold the flour quickly into the butter mixture.
Scrape the flour from the edges of the bowl.
Place paper cases into the cupcake tin.
Put in the batter with an ice cream scoop.
Bake the cupcakes for 20-25 minutes.
Let the cupcakes cool 5 min. in the tin, then on a rack.
Cupcake 1 has the character Nian (year). The cut out fondant icing stripes are stuck on with water and painted with gold food paint.
On Cupcake 2 is twofold character Hao (good) directly written on the marzipan. Paint a gold rim with 2x3 smarties along the edge.
Cupcake 3 has firecrackers. Cut out a red cirkel and a pink flower. Stick the pink beneath the firecrackers because they are red as well.
How to make the firecrackers
- Roll a snake from red marzipan and cut off 6 little pieces. Make the cutting edges smooth with the knife.
- Paint golden stripes on the fireworks.
- Roll another 3 snakes from black marzipan and braid a plait.
- Stick the braid onto the cupcake and stick the fireworks on the braid.
When they are ready the cupcakes look really beautiful on Grandma's antique platter!