Happy Valentines/ Galentines Day!
Yes, I know, a recipe on Monday and not Wednesday! Shock! But it's valentines and I'm feeling generous. I wanted to get this one to you just in time to make it for your Valentine/ Galentine.
My recipe for Red Velvet Santa Hat Cupcakes is one of the most popular on the blog. So, it seemed fitting that for Valentine's Day I'd mark it with a Pink Velvet version. Hey, give the people what they want right?!
As Leslie Knope would say;
"What’s Galentine’s Day? Oh, it’s only the best day of the year."
(Side note: if you're not aware of the incomparable Leslie Knope, you've got some research to do my friend!)
Yes, lovely people, it's Valentines/ Galentines Day. A day full of love and love-themed food. I'm obsessed with the love-themed food!
And what better way love-themed food than pink velvet cupcakes filled with pink heart sprinkles and finished with white roses.
As you'll know if you saw my Red Velvet blog, dark cocoa powder, buttermilk, and white wine vinegar are integral to creating that delicious unique red velvet cupcake. The combination of these flavours creates a completely delicious sponge that will leave you wanting to gobble up the whole batch.
These ones are dyed pink in honour of love and all that shebang! I then filled mine with a tonne of heart shaped sprinkles for a delightful surprise. Be sure to double check the sprinkles are gluten free because then can be a sneaky gluten culprit!
Roses are a surprisingly easy flower to replicate in buttercream. A fantastic tip to elevate your frosting flowers simply and easily is to invest a couple of pounds in a leaf piping tip. It will immediately enhance your frosting from 'swirly flower' to 'instantly recognizable rose'!
You can see how easily I pulled it off in the video above.
I hope you have a glorious and love-filled day with your Valentine/ Galentine.
Let's get Caking It!
Recipe
180C (170C fan)
Yield: 12 cupcakes
Prep: 10 mins
Bake: 18 mins
Assembly: 10 minutes
Ingredients
Sponge
150g unsalted butter
150g caster sugar
3 medium eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tube pink food gel
150g gluten free self-raising flour
10g cocoa powder
1/2 tsp gluten free baking powder
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp xanthan gum
100ml buttermilk
Frosting
80g unsalted butter
120g cream cheese
400g icing sugar
Pink heart sprinkles
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Method: Sponge
Don't forget to wait until all the ingredients are room temperature before starting.
Preheat oven to 180C. Fill 12 muffin holes with cases.
Cream the butter until pale, then add the sugar and cream together until fully incorporated.
Add the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla, vinegar, and food colouring mixing with an electric whisk between each addition.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, bicarb, and xanthan gum with a fork, and then add this to the mixture, mixing until fully incorporated.
Spoon in the buttermilk and mix until combined.
Spoon 2 tbsp of the mixture into each muffin case and let sit for 18 minutes before placing in an oven for 18 minutes. A skewer or toothpick inserted into the cupcakes should come out clean.
Method: Cream cheese frosting
This cream cheese frosting is slightly thicker than the frosting for my carrot cupcakes and pipes beautiful roses.
While they are cooling, move onto the cream cheese frosting. Cream the butter and cream cheese together, and gradually add in the icing sugar until it is all incorporated. You can do this either with a standing mixer, an electric hand whisk, or a fork.
Assembly
Making sure the sponges are completely cool, scoop out the middle of the cupcake with an apple corer, taking care not to go right down to the bottom.
Spoon your sprinkles into each cupcake hole for a sweet surprise.
With a flower piping tip of your choice, pipe a rose onto each cupcake. If you're feeling really fancy, use leftover frosting and it dye green to make some leaves.
Enjoy