RECIPE: UNION JACK RED VELVET CUPCAKES

Cupcakes have become a quintessential British party food and I fully approve. I’ve never quite lost the childlike desire and delight for the eye-catching candy colours and thick delicious icing. Let alone the sweet moist, plump sponge. More cupcakes all round I say.

So what better way to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III then to bake up a batch of the delicious red velvet variety decorated with the patriotic red, white and blue. Find my recipe below.

Ingredients

150g plain flour

1 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

50g softened butter

145g caster sugar

1 large egg, beaten

1 tsp vanilla extract

100ml of kefir

50ml vegetable oil

1 tsp white wine vinegar

1 tbsp red gel food colouring

For the icing

100g salted butter, softened

220g icing sugar

100g full fat cream cheese, stirred to loosen

Red and blue icing pens

Step 1

Place 12 cupcake cases in a cupcake tin and put to one side. Preheat the oven to 180°C /160°C fan, or gas mark 4. Then sieve your flour, bicarb, cocoa and a pinch of salt into your bowl and mix really well.

Step 2

Take an electric hand whisk and beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Then add the egg, beating it in gently. Next mix in the vanilla, kefir, oil and vinegar until it’s really well blended. Now mix in the red food colouring until you have a deep red batter – I like the red food colouring by Sugarflair for a really punchy red. Be careful not to over-mix your batter as this can ruin the fluffiness of your sponge.

Step 3

Divide the batter between the cupcake cases and bake for 15 mins, or until a knife poked into the centre of a cake comes out clean.

Step 4

While the cakes are cooling, make the icing. Beat together the butter and icing sugar using an electric whisk or by hand until pale and fluffy, about 3 mins, then beat in the cream cheese for a further 1-2 mins until well combined.

Step 5

Once the cakes are nicely cooled, use a piping bag if you have one or just a good old fork will do otherwise and cover the cakes with the cream cheese icing.

Step 6

Take your icing pens, whack on the national anthem and enjoy decorating your coronation cupcakes.