Sweet Kitchen Cravings

Chocolate Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and the sugar until fluffy and light in color, about 3-4 minutes.

Slowly add the eggs and vanilla, combining well after each addition. Scrape the bowl well with a rubber spatula then add the cocoa powder. Mix on low just until combined and scrape the bowl again. Mix on high for about 10-15 seconds until well combined.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Add half of these dry ingredients to the bowl and mix on low speed. Slowly stream in about half the water. Mix just until combined then scrape the bowl well. Add the remaining flour and slowly stream in the remaining water with the mixer on low, just until combined. Scrape the bowl again and give the mixture a few final folds to ensure everything is incorporated.

Use a cookie scoop to divide the batter among the prepared muffin pan. Bake for 20-22 minutes, until the cupcakes spring back to the touch (or a toothpick comes out mostly clean). Allow to cool completely before decorating.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, salt, and heavy cream to the bowl. Start mixing on low speed until the ingredients are combined, so the powdered sugar doesn’t spill out. Scrape the bowl well with a rubber spatula.

Mix on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. The frosting should be completely smooth and creamy.

Decorating: Color about ½ cup of the buttercream green then divide the remaining buttercream in half, coloring half of it light pink and half of it darker pink.

In a piping bag fitted with a number 80 piping tip, use a small spatula to add a strip of the darker pink buttercream to the bag then fill the bag about ⅔ full with the lighter pink color. In a piping bag fitted with a number 352 piping tip, fill it about ⅔ full with the green buttercream

Hold the pink mum tip (tip 80) with the rounded part facing down (so it looks like a smile) at about a 45° angle. Working with one cupcake at a time, pipe a ring of petals around the outer edge of the cupcake, placing one petal right next to the last. Use a turntable or turn the cupcake with your free hand after each petal. Continue piping about 1 or 2 more rings of petals, then shift the piping tip to a 90° angle as you continue piping rings and get closer to the center until you have filled the center with petals and covered the cupcake.

Hold the leaf tip (tip 352) at a 45° angle, with the two points lined up vertically and the openings on either side. Pipe leaves around the outer edge of the cupcake, under the outer mum petals.

Repeat the same process for each cupcake then serve these beauties and enjoy!