Celebration cupcakes

My daughter Tasha had her first exhibition at uni and had to put on a show. Being students it had to be something sweet washed down with plenty of alcohol so cupcakes and vino were requested. Of course the cupcakes had to be red velvet or a variation of…

I tried out several recipes – most of which seemed to contain mainly sugar and red food colouring (I found them totally revolting and seemed to me something like the devil may have whipped up… although to be fair I haven’t got much of a sweet tooth!)
After several attempts I opted for a light chocolate sponge recipe laced with cochineal, topped with a classic cream cheese icing. I then went overboard with the decoration. Little roses made of icing and chocolate sprinkles aplenty!

The cakes were a huge success and quite a lot were wolfed down by the students before the public arrived. It just goes to show that you can’t go far wrong with students when free food is around!