Winter Tales Recipe and Tutorial: Chilli Chocolate Log Cabin Cupcakes

What better way to warm up during the cold autumn and winter months than with a little hint of chilli in your home baking! Paired with rich and creamy dark chocolate the dash of chilli essence adds a wonderful tingle of heat to your taste buds; perfect for the adventurous at heart. With the addition of a picturesque edible log cabin, just like Little Red Riding Hood’s unfortunate grandmother’s, and charming hand piped chocolate trees, both dusted with icing sugar snow, these Chilli Chocolate Log Cabin Cupcakes make a delightful winter treat for everyone! Why not set them lovingly inside Christmas themed cupcake boxes and surprise your loved ones! Be warned, however, you’ll find them such a hit with everyone that you may need to bake them again and again!

Chocolate Cupcake Recipe (makes approx. 12 cupcakes)

226g self raising flour
226 butter
226g caster sugar
2-3 tablespoons of cocoa powder mixed into a paste with boiling water
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs

Pre-heat your oven to Gas Mark 3 / 160C / 325F and line a cupcake pan with cupcake cases. Cream your butter and sugar first. When creamy add your eggs and combine together with the flour. Mix well until silky and add in the cocoa powder paste and baking powder, mix again and fill your cases with the batter. Bake for around 20 minutes to 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean when tested.

Chilli Chocolate Ganache Filling

100g dark chocolate callets, chips or buttons
6-12 drops of natural chilli essence
50ml double cream

In a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering hot water on medium heat melt the chocolate with the double cream. Whisk every few minutes until fully melted and add in the natural chilli essence to taste. Remove from the heat and whisk for around 2 minutes before chilling for 10-15 minutes in a freezer. Repeat the whisking and chilling process until your ganache is the consistency of thick peanut butter. Once ready use a good cupcake corer to remove the centres of your cakes and fill with your delicious chilli chocolate ganache! Once filled set these aside and begin making your delicious chilli chocolate buttercream.

Chilli Chocolate Buttercream Recipe

250g butter
250-300g icing sugar (keep testing when adding to make sure it is the consistency and sweetness you are comfortable with)
6-12 drops of natural chilli essence
100g melted dark chocolate callets, buttons or chips
1-2 tablespoons of cocoa powder
808 or 809 plain round piping tip
Disposable piping bag

Dice the butter and add to your mixer to cream. Then gradually add icing sugar and the remaining butter (cut into cubes) until you get a smooth, creamy texture. Add the cocoa powder, melted chocolate and chilli essence.

For more hints and tips see our tutorial on how to make buttercream here.

Once your buttercream is ready fill up a disposable piping bag fitted with a piping tip (we used a plain round tip such as an 808 or 809 tip) and generously swirl your ganache filled cupcakes! Now set aside to create your little log cabins!

How to Make the Miniature Edible Log Cabins and Trees

You will need…

Pretzel sticks (if in the UK try the Polish or World foods aisle of your supermarket)
Candy melts
Disposable piping bag
Dutch waffles (aka stroopwafels) OR pieces of ‘wheaties’ cereal for the roof
Icing sugar
White nonpareil sprinkles (optional)

Step one: Carefully cut down your pretzel sticks to around 2.5cm in length. You’ll need quite a few of these so prepare a lot. If you have any leftovers save them in an airtight container for snacks later on.

Step two: Begin ‘glueing’ your log cabin together by carefully piping a thin line of candy melt atop of each pretzel ‘log’ as you go. For extra support you can ‘glue’ small vertical pretzel sticks into the inside along the ‘log wall’.

Step three: To create the roof pitch shape of the house cut down some sticks into descending sizes. Stick these together using the method in step two to create a triangle. Candy melt this to your log cabin wall.

Step four: Cut out some squares of your caramel stroopwafels the size of each side of the roof.

Step five: Using a blade tool carefully punch a hole in one of the roof sides, fill with a little candy melt and angle in a small piece of pretzel stick for a chimney. ‘Glue’ the sides to your house.

Step six: To add windows and doors simply draw them on using a black edible ink pen and a steady hand! (optional)

Step seven: Added some little candy trees made from coloured candy melts. To create these yourself see our Peppermint Forest cupcake recipe and tutorial!

Step eight: Nestle your adorable log cabin atop your cupcake and dust with a sprinkling of icing/confectioner’s sugar to create a festive snowy scene!

Hurrah! Now it’s time to really see your cupcakes come together! Pop your adorable little log cabins atop a generously swirled cupcake, stick your hand piped trees around your cabin and dust with icing sugar through a sieve for a lovely snowy scene!