Spring Chick Cupcakes
- Ready In:
- 1hr 20mins
- Ingredients:
- 17
- Serves:
-
20
ingredients
-
Vanilla Cupcakes
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3⁄4 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1⁄2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 1⁄4 cups milk
-
Buttercream Frosting
- 1 1⁄2 cups sugar
- 6 large egg whites
- 2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
- 4 cups sweetened flaked coconut, toasted
- 1 piece black licorice, lace cut into 40 (1/3-inch)
- 20 whole almonds
- 140 pieces , red candy-coated licorice pastels or 1 piece , snipped red licorice laces
directions
- DIRECTIONS FOR CUPCAKES:.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until incorporated; scrape down sides of bowl, and beat in vanilla.
- Add flour mixture and milk alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.
- Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about three-quarters full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan, and let cool completely on wire rack.
- DIRECTIONS FOR FROSTING:.
- In a heatproof bowl set over simmering water, whisk sugar and egg whites until warm and sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Beat mixture on medium speed until completely cooled and stiff peaks have formed, about 10 minutes.
- Add butter, a few tablespoons at a time; beat until combined. Add vanilla and salt; beat on low speed until smooth, about 5 minutes.
- After cupcakes have cooled completely, turn upside-down. Each cupcake becomes the body of a chick. Spread buttercream frosting on a cupcake to anchor it to the serving plate while you are working. Use a small offset spatula to coat the sides thickly with frosting, and then mound more on top to create a dome shape.
- Press toasted shredded coconut into the frosting -- it stands in for fuzzy feathers. Hold the plate at an angle while applying the coconut so the excess falls back into the bowl.
- Place eyes (made from snipped black licorice laces) on chicks using tweezers. Use a whole almond for the beak and red licorice for the feet and comb; both can be pushed into the frosting by hand.
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