Christmas Cake Cupcakes Recipes

Steps:

• Make the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350˚. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper or foil liners. Whisk the flour, malted milk powder and baking soda in a medium bowl.
• Heat the milk until hot but not boiling; pour over the cocoa powder in a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Let cool slightly.
• Whisk the granulated sugar, vegetable oil, egg and vanilla into the cocoa mixture until smooth. Whisk in the flour mixture until just combined.
• Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake until the tops spring back when gently pressed, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool 5 minutes in the pan, then remove the cupcakes to the rack to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, make the frosting: Beat the butter, cream cheese and vanilla in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar on medium-low speed until smooth, then increase the speed to medium high and beat until thick and fluffy, 1 to 2 more minutes.
• Spread the frosting on the cupcakes and sprinkle with white nonpareils. Stick a candy-melt tree into the center of each cupcake.

Steps:

• Tip the sugar, butter, dried fruit, whole cherries, ginger, orange zest and juice into a large pan. Pour over the rum, brandy or juice, then put on the heat and slowly bring to the boil, stirring frequently to melt the butter. Reduce the heat and bubble gently, uncovered for 10 mins, stirring every now and again to make sure the mixture doesn't catch on the bottom of the pan. Set aside for 30 mins to cool.
• Stir the nuts, eggs and ground almonds into the fruit, then sift in the flour, baking powder and spices. Stir everything together gently but thoroughly. Your batter is ready.
• Heat oven to 150C/130C fan/gas 2. Scoop the cake mix into 12 deep muffin cases (an ice-cream scoop works well), then level tops with a spoon dipped in hot water. Bake for 35-45 mins until golden and just firm to touch. A skewer inserted should come out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
• Unravel the marzipan onto a work surface lightly dusted with icing sugar. Stamp out 12 rounds, 6cm across. Brush the cake tops with apricot jam, top with a marzipan round and press down lightly.
• Make up the fondant icing to a spreading consistency, then swirl on top of each cupcake. Decorate with sugared almonds and snowflakes, then leave to set. Will keep in a tin for 3 weeks.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil and eggs with electric mixer on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups (about two-thirds full).
• Bake 14 to 19 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Place candy sprinkles in shallow bowl. Fill 1 large resealable food-storage plastic bag with 1 1/4 cups frosting. Cut off bottom corner. Pipe frosting in a circle one time around outside edge of cupcake. Dip edge of frosting into sprinkles. Reserve remaining frosting in bag for pompoms of hats.
• In 3 small bowls, evenly divide remaining frosting (about 1 1/3 cups each). Tint frosting in bowls with food colors: 1 red, 1 green and 1 blue to desired level of color. Place frosting in 3 resealable food-storage plastic bags. Cut off bottom corner of each bag. Pipe red frosting, starting on inside edge of white frosting and spiraling up toward center to form a hat; continue red piping on 7 additional cupcakes. Repeat piping with green and blue frosting with remaining 16 cupcakes. Pipe a small dab of reserved untinted frosting on top of hat for pompom on each.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Invert two 9 1/2-by-3-inch disposable round foil baking pans. Using a craft knife or a paring knife, cut six X shapes in bottom of each, spacing them evenly, to make 1 1/2-inch openings. Fit a waffle cone snugly into each opening, standing the cones upright. Line each cone with parchment paper, and then place a dried bean or a hazelnut in bottom to prevent batter from leaking. Place pans and cones on parchment-lined baking sheets. Line a 12-cup mini-muffin tin with paper liners.
• Whisk together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla in a medium bowl. With a mixer on low speed, gradually add egg mixture to flour mixture, beating until just combined. Raise speed to medium, and beat for 3 minutes. Carefully pour batter into cones, filling each two-thirds full. Spoon 1 1/2 tablespoons batter into each muffin cup (these will be the tree bases).
• Bake until a skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 15 to 18 minutes for cupcakes and 35 minutes for cones. Let cakes cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove cakes from cones and parchment. Let cool completely on the rack.
• If necessary, use a serrated knife to trim top of each cupcake to create a flat surface. Place a dab of frosting on top of each cupcake, and position a cone cake on top. Place frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a small star tip (such as Ateco #19) and pipe frosting decoratively all over tree. Sprinkle with sanding sugar. Top each tree with a mini gingerbread star, if desired. Trees can be refrigerated, uncovered, for up to 6 hours before serving.