Sugar Plum Fairy Cakes Food

SUGAR PLUM FAIRY CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Line a second pan with 2-3 liners - this recipe makes 14-15 cupcakes. Set aside.
• Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt together. Set aside.
• Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamed, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the egg whites on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, slowly pour and mix in the milk *just* until combined. Do not overmix.
• Pour/spoon the batter into the liners. Fill only 2/3 full to avoid baking over the sides. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. For around 35 mini cupcakes, bake for about 11-13 minutes, same oven temperature. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before filling and frosting.
• Watch video above for a visual of this step. Using a sharp knife, cut a circle/hole into the center of the cooled cupcakes to create a little pocket about 1 inch deep. The piece you removed will be the shape of a cone. Spoon jam inside each carved out cupcake. Use as much jam that will fit. Slice off the pointy end of the "cone" piece you removed so that it can fit on top of the filling. Place on top of the filling.
• With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add 4 and 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 3 full minutes. Add up to 1/2 cup more confectioners' sugar if frosting is too thin or another Tablespoon of cream if frosting is too thick. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. (I add 1/8 teaspoon salt.) If desired, tint the buttercream with gel food coloring. I colored half of it with mauve gel food coloring from this gel food coloring set and swirled it with the white buttercream. Watch video in the blog post for a quick tutorial.
• Frost cooled cupcakes. I used Wilton 8B piping tip, as shown in the video. Decorate with garnishes and candies.
• Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

SUGAR PLUM FAIRY CAKES

Steps:

• For the génoise fairy cakes, line a mini-muffin tray with 12 fairy cake cases and preheat the oven to 170C/150C(fan)/Gas 5.
• Warm the bowl of a free-standing mixer by pouring in some boiling water and drying it with a tea towel.
• Place the sugar and eggs in the warmed bowl and whisk at full speed for several minutes, or until the mixture is pale and doubled in volume.
• While the mixture is whisking, melt the butter in a small saucepan. Sift the flour and mixed spice into a bowl.
• Carefully add the melted butter around the edge of the mixture while still whisking.
• Remove the bowl from the mixer and place on a tea towel, then sift and gently fold in the flour and mixed spice in two batches.
• Transfer the mixture to a piping bag and carefully pipe into the cake cases. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden-brown and springy to the touch.
• Remove the cakes from the tins and cool on a wire rack. Peel the paper cases off the cakes when cooled.
• For the plums, marinade the chopped plums in the orange liqueur in a small bowl. Set aside.
• For the edible fairy cake cases, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl placed over a pan of simmering water. Set 12 more fairy cake cases in the mini-muffin tins.
• Once melted, paint the chocolate inside the fairy cake cases and press the cooled genoise fairy cakes into each one, so the chocolate lines and coats the side of the cakes. Leave to set completely, then remove from the tins and remove the papers from the chocolate-lined cakes.
• For the French meringue buttercream, combine the egg white and sugar in a medium-sized heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water.
• Beat continuously with an electric hand-held whisk until the mixture is thick and glossy and all the sugar has dissolved.
• Remove from the heat and continue to whisk until the mixture has cooled and is thick enough to hold its shape.
• Beat the butter to a soft consistency and start adding small lumps of it to the meringue, a little at a time, whisking well after each addition.
• Beat in the orange liqueur, orange extract and zest. Transfer the meringue buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle and pipe it onto the cupcakes.
• Drain the plums of their liqueur and carefully top each fairy cake with a plum piece and a sprinkling of edible gold glitter.

SUGAR PLUM CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat the sugar, baby food, oil and eggs until well blended. Combine the flour, cinnamon and cloves; gradually beat into plum mixture until blended. Stir in pecans. , Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. tube pan. Bake at 350° for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. , In a small bowl, combine glaze ingredients until smooth. Drizzle over top and sides of cake.