Ironcupcake London - December Entry

Tonight was the last round of Ironcupcake London for the year. The theme for this month was 'Christmas' and there were 46 amazing entries - the largest number of entries to date. Everyone went to so much effort - the flavours and decorations were all superb. Here are some photos I took of the night:







So many cupcakes to try!!!

My entry was Spiced Eggnog Cupcakes with Bourbon Buttercream

Here's how to make them:

Ingredients

Eggnog

• 2 large eggs (separated)
• 75g caster sugar
• 100ml bourbon
• 200ml full cream milk
• 150ml whipping cream
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg

Cupcakes

• 1 1/2 cups caster sugar
• 115g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 3/4 cup eggnog
• 1/4 cup bourbon
• 2 1/4 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp all spice
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Bourbon Buttercream

• 2 tbs brown sugar
• 2 tbs whipping cream
• 1 tbs unsalted butter
• pinch salt
• 3 tbs bourbon
• 250g unsalted butter (softened)
• 500g icing sugar

Method

Start by making the eggnog. Whisk egg yolks and caster sugar with an electric beater until the mixture is pale and fluffy. Whisk in boubon gradually and then add the milk. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, then fold it into the egg yolk mixture. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until soft peaks form then fold it into the mixture. Stir the nutmeg through the mixture then leave in the fridge until needed.

To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 175C. Beat caster sugar and butter together until light and fluffy using an electic mixer. Then beat in the eggs until well combined. In a separate bowl, mix eggnog, boubon and vanilla together. In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, all spice and nutmeg. Alternate adding dry ingredients and wet ingredients into the egg mixture until the all combined. Spoon mixture into lined cupcake tins (only fill about 1/2 of the cup) and bake for 20-25 mins. Once cooked, leave the cupcakes to cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the bourbon buttercream, whisk brown sugar, cream, 1 tbs unsalted butter and salt in a saucepan over a medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Pour in bourbon and stir to combine, then remove sauce from heat and allow to cool. Using an electric mixer beat 250g unsalted butter until soft and fluffy then gradually add icing sugar, ensuring it is mixed in well after each addition. Stir through bourbon caramel sauce.

Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, frost them with the buttercream and decorate as desired. I used edible silver balls and sugarpaste snowflakes I made in advance.

Enjoy xx

Christmas Inspirations

On the weekend, I finished making a small sugarpaste flower arrangement of ivy, holly, rosehips and christmas roses. This is the second flower arrangement I have completed now and I must admit, it's very satisfying once all the pieces have been made and the final arrangement is tied together.

I also made a batch of russian doll cookies using a template I created. I am still working on the designs of the dolls, but as a practice run this is what I came up with:

I hope to do a lot more baking over the next few weeks for Christmas, so stay tuned for more updates soon!