forth of July cupcakes

Forth of July swril cupcakes

Ingredients

Makes: 12

Prep time: 35 mins

Cooking time: 30 mins

Total time: 1 hr 5 mins

Skill level: Easy peasy

Costs: Cheap as chips

150g unsalted butter (room temperature)
150g golden caster sugar
130g self-raising flour
20g cornflour
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk (room temperature)
3 eggs
Golden syrup, to drizzle
For the buttercream
400g icing sugar
200g unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 tbsp milk
red extra and navy blue paste food colourings
You will also need
Muffin tray
12 cupcake cases
4 piping bags
Large open star nozzle

Method

• Preheat your oven to 160°C/320°F/Gas Mark 3. Line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases.
• Beat the sugar and butter with the vanilla extract until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add 1 egg, 1/3 of the flour and cornflour and 1/3 of the milk. Beat until just combined then repeat twice more until all the eggs, flour and milk have been added.
• Divide the batter between the 12 cases and bake for 20-25 minutes. Drizzle about a teaspoon of golden syrup over the hot cakes and cool on a wire rack.
• To make the buttercream, place the icing sugar, butter and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl. Mix with an electric mixer for about 5 minutes until soft, smooth and creamy, adding a little milk only if the mixture is too stiff. 
• Divide the icing into 3 equal portions and colour 1/3 red, 1/3 navy and leave 1/3 white.
• To decorate, place the star nozzle in one of the piping bags and put to one side.
• Spoon each of the 3 icings into separate piping bags, pushing all the air out as you squeeze the icing to the end of the bags. Snip the end of each bag and place all 3 bags into the fourth piping bag with the nozzle.Twist all 4 bags at the top of the icing.
• Pipe a star in the centre of one cake then pipe around the star to form a swirl. To finish push down slightly then pull up quickly. Repeat with the remaining cakes.