Triple Chocolate Cookies Recipe

So today I really fancied some home made cookies, and decided to go all out and make triple chocolate cookies! If you're going to eat cookies and be unhealthy you might as well go all the way and put as much chocolate as possible in them, right?

Valentines Day Cupcakes

Want to impress your other half with some amazingggg tasting cupcakes? This is the perfect recipe; it's easy, look good and taste even better!

What you'll need:

For the cakes:

A baking tray lined with 12 cupcake cases

100g Butter (at room temperature)

100g Caster Sugar

2 Eggs

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

100g Self Raising Flour

1  Tbsp Milk

For the Buttercream:

150g Un-Salted Butter (at room temperature)

300g Sieved Icing Sugar

1 Tsp Vanilla Extract

Red or Pink Food Colouring

1 tbsp milk

A piping bag and round tip nozzle

For Decorating:

White Fondant Icing

A Small Heart-shaped cutter

Letter Icing Stamps

Now you've got everything you need let's get started!

Pre-heat your oven to 190 degrees

Firstly, either using a hand held mixer or an electric stand mixer, cream together the sugar and butter until it is light and fluffy:

Then add the eggs, milk and the vanilla extract and whisk again:

Until it looks like this:

Then add in the flour and fold it in using a large spoon:

Divide evenly between the cupcake cases

bake in the oven for 15-20minutes (when they are done if you gently press the top of one it will bounce back up)

While They're cooling, we can start to make the Buttercream

An electric Mixer is best for this as by hand will take a lot longer and a lot of arm strength!

Place the butter in the mixer and mix for 5 minutes until it is light in colour and really soft:

Then add a small amount of the icing sugar and mix again for a few minutes:

Keep adding small amounts at a time and mixing in-between, and add the vanilla extract, milk and colouring with the last bit of icing sugar.

Mix for a further 2 minutes making sure to stop to scrape down the sides every now and again so that it all gets mixed up together:

Put your round tip nozzle into your piping bag and the spoon in your buttercream, pushing it down so it is right at the tip and then twist the top to stop it coming out.

Keep you piping bag vertically upright, and starting at the outside of the cupcake squeeze the buttercream on going round and then into the centre then do a final squeeze, release the pressure then pull away from the cupcake. This will create a nice round swirl on top of you cake.

Then take your fondant icing and place of a surface that is dusted with flour, dust your rolling pin aswell and roll out the icing to the thickness of a pound coin.

Using your letter stamps, stamp 12 XOs onto your fondant icing

Take your heart shaped cutter and cut around each XO

Then place these on top of each cupcake and that's it, your cupcakes are ready to share with your loved one this Valentines Day!

Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

Vanilla Cupcakes can be the basis of any amazing decoration or flavoured buttercream or icing. They are a fabulous starting point for any baker. So I wanted to share with you all my recipe for vanilla cupcakes which I swear by.

 This recipe makes 12 cupcakes.

What you'll need:

A whisk (electric or hand)

100g Margarine (room temperature)

100g Caster Sugar

100g Self Raising Flour (sieved)

2 eggs

2 tsps Vanilla Extract

A Baking Tray

12 Cupcake Cases

Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees.

Whisk the margarine and sugar together till you get a light and fluffy mixture.

Add the eggs and vanilla extract and whisk again.

Fold in the flour to the mixture using a spoon. 

Divide the mixture between the cupcake cases and bake in the over for 15-20 minutes. When they are done you'll be able to tough the top and it will bounce back up. 

Leave to cool before decorating.

I'll soon be posting some of my favourite ways to decorate cupcakes, but in the mean time let me know what your favourite ways to decorate are in the comments. If you have any styles or flavours you want a recipe for then ask in the comments and I shall post a recipe!