Saturday 24 March 2012

Malteser Bunny Cupcakes - Alphabakes


Last week I ran another cupcake stall at the spring market at my Uni, it was slightly less attended than the one I did at Christmas but fun all the same! If your definition of fun is 14 hours straight of baking :)

So over the next few weeks I will show you the Easter-y delights that I baked up for the occasion!
Starting with my favourite of the bunch - the Malteser Bunny Cupcake! 

I am obsessed with Malteser Bunnies, when that time rolls around each year that they start popping out on Supermarket shelves I can't help but buy one...every single time I go to the supermarket! Literally, I can't walk by them and not pick them up! It's not a good habit for my wallet or my waist line.  Luckily I have a rather fantastic mom who likes to supplement my addiction by posting me packages of the little guys, even when I'm not even living in the same country (that is if she can hold off eating them until my package is posted - the addiction must run in my family!)  In a package she sent me a few weeks back filled with baking goodies, cupcake magazines, cake stands etc... I called her and told her the one thing I was most excited about was the Malteser Bunny she had included.  She guiltily asked how many Malteser Bunnies I had received, so I told her just the one, to which she shamefully replied that she had bought a whole bundle but by the time it came round to post my package only one remained!  She felt so bad that she promptly sent me a new package the next day filled with bags and bags of mini Malteser Bunnies! Yes you heard me right - mini's!
When my mom first told me she'd been snacking on mini ones I thought she was making it up, I had looked all over in the supermarkets up here and not seen any mini ones, it seems they were rather scarce! but I knew if they were creating mini ones then they would just be called out to be used as cupcake toppers! and so that is exactly what I did.


I baked up a malt cupcake base, the most amazingly delicious chocolate malt frosting that you seriously need to have in your life, and then topped the regular cupcakes with the mini bunnies and the mini cupcakes with regular Maltesers! and a couple of sprinkles never hurt anyone.


I am entering these into the Alphabakes Challenge this month because the theme is 'M' based bakes.  It is hosted by Caroline Makes this month, and will be hosted by Baking Addict next month.


Malt Cupcakes:
Makes 12 regular cupcakes and 24 mini's

165g unsalted butter, at room temperature
180g light soft brown sugar
150g golden caster sugar
3 large eggs
187g self raising flour, sifted
90g plain flour, sifted
75g Ovaltine (malted drink) powder
187ml semi-skimmed milk, at room temperature
3/4 tsp good quality vanilla extract (I use Nielsen-Massey)
11/2 tbsp sour cream

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
Line the cupcake trays with cupcake cases.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars until pale and smooth, which should take about 3-5 minutes using an electric mixer.  Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing for a few minutes after each addition.

Combine the flours and Ovaltine in a separate bowl.  Mix the milk, vanilla extract and sour cream in a jug.  Add one-third of the flour and Ovaltine mixture to the creamed mixture and beat well.  Pour in one-third of the milk and beat again.  Repeat these steps until all the flour mixture and milk have been added.

Fill the cupcake cases 2/3 full and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes until slightly raised and golden brown.  If a skewer inserted into the middle of one cupcake comes out clean then they are done.

Remove fromt he oven and leave in the cake tins to cool for about 10 minutes before carefully placing on a wire rack to cool completely.

Malted Belgian Chocolate Frosting:
Makes enough to frost 50 cupcakes and to have plenty leftover!

500g icing sugar
450g unsalted butter
3 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup Ovaltine powder
250g Callebaut* Chocolate (I used 200g Callebaut and 50g Milk chocolate)
1/2 cup double cream

In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine half the icing sugar and butter and beat on low speed for one minute.  While that is mixing, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, and set aside to cool. Add the rest of the icing sugar and butter to the stand mixer and mix on medium speed until completely combined (I do it in two stages so as not to completely cover my kitchen in icing sugar).

Add vanilla and Ovaltine, and beat on low speed until well combined.

Add the melted, cooled chocolate and beat on medium speed until smooth (about 2 minutes). Add double cream and beat on high speed for one minute.

The recipe recommends using it straight away, which I did to frost the cupcakes.  I also refrigerated the leftovers and iced some sugar cookies with it a few days later and it was still delicious.  I just left it to get up to room temperature and then whipped it up in my KitchenAid again before using it.

*Baker's note: Callebaut is a brand of Belgian chocolate - which is the reason the recipe title is Belgian chocolate frosting.  It is good quality chocolate with 70% cocoa solids.  You can just as easily make it with Green and Black's or any other high cocoa solid content chocolate...but if you want to make it with the real deal you can buy it from here.

17 comments:

  1. These are really cute and very in season!
    Hmmm all these packages make me very suspicious about who the favourite is. I haven't had ONE all year!

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    1. Haha as if you were ever in any doubt - I'm obvs the fave! Remember you don't need them as much as I do - I live in North Wales!!

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  2. I love Malteasers...but sadly I've given up eating chocolate so I've never had a Malteaser bunny...I feel I'm missing out...and they look so cute on your cakes! :-)

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  3. They are just adorable. Those bunnies make the perfect toppers.

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  4. What a fantastic Easter-rific Cupcake! I'm sure they were a huge hit at the fair... I saw the mini versions in a large Tesco the other day-to-day they did indeed seem perfect Easter decorations!

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  5. Thank you so much for entering these to AlphaBakes. I love Maltesers and I've not seen the mini bunnies - so cute!! 14 hours of baking sounds like my kind of fun but hardly ever happens. I wish I could bake all the time. I was just wondering if it's too early to start Easter baking but clearly not! Have a brilliant idea for this year which I can't wait to share with everyone :)

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    1. I had some great Easter baking planned but am now away over Easter on a hen night that I'm not 100% looking forward to... oh well!

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  6. I love malteasers bunnies - so excited to hear about minis! I must find them. Cupcakes sound yummy - looking forward to the others!

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  7. These look soooo cute, thanks for entering them in Alphabakes! I will have to look out for those mini bunnies :-)

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  8. These cupcakes with the Malteser Bunnies are really cute! Love Maltesers but I don't think we have the Easter Bunny version here :-( That chocolate malt frosting looks so delicious; have to try that someday!

    And 14 hours of baking: wow! You must have had a good night's sleep after all that baking ;-)

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  9. Not meaning to sound stupid, but what is in Malteser bunnies that makes them so wonderful? I've never heard of them, but now I'm very curious. By the way, your cupcakes look adorable!

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    1. Well, I'm assuming you've heard of Maltesers - in case you're from the US they're the same as your whoppers. So Malteser bunnies are filled with a malted mousse with tiny bits of actual maltesers to give added crunch and I'm not sure what it is about that filling that makes them so addictive but it's just creamy, smooth and delicious and I've yet to find anyone that doesn't like them :)

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  10. Oh, they sound wonderful!!! Yes, I'm from the U.S. and LOVE Whoppers. It's probably a good thing I can't get them here. :-) Thanks for explaining that!

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  11. Oh my, they sound wonderful!!!!! It's probably a good thing I haven't seen them here in the States. :-) Thank you for explaining that.

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  12. Wow! these Malteser cupcakes look so adorable! I really must try this recipe! Looks so tempting! Yummilicious!

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  13. These look great! I made similar cupcakes a few weeks ago and I agree they taste amazing my post also talked about whoopers / malteasers - what a small world! I have not got round to posting it yet! Good luck with the competition.

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  14. WOW that's impressive! 14 hours of non-stop baking WOW! I've never made more than a batch of cupcakes I can't imagine making so many lol I would definitely buy so many of your cupcakes if I went to your Uni hehe
    Ohhh I've seen these Malterser Bunners before :) they're everywhere in HK hehe ~

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