In the kitchen with Elisa
Bloody Halloween Cupcakes
Delicious cream cheese cupcakes Halloween style
What a delicious mess this was.. :)​
​
Who is super excited about Halloween? :) Yes, yes, I am, but what about you? :) I love this time of the year and getting creative with different ideas for spooky but delicious dishes. Sometimes I also like to make some cute creations with a Halloween theme for a change, so not only spooky stuff :D You can find some more inspiration here.
​​
When it comes to themed recipes I always feel challenged by making the creation look fitting to the theme, but also making it delicious. It would be easy to just take some fondant and go with it, making some cool looking decorations. But that would be too easy :D So I always try to push it to the limit and make sure the taste is the main thing. That is also what this recipe is about, it is all about that combination of a chocolate cupcake with cherries and cream cheese frosting. It reminds me a little of black forest cake. I loved this combination of flavours, it is truly perfect :) And my boyfriend loved these even more than I did, as I barely could save one for myself to show in my video tutorial how the fake blood looks if you pour it on the cupcakes and serve on the next day :D I would not recommetd to make it that way as the blood will fade out an soak into the cupcake due to the moisture in the cream cheese frosting. Make the cupcake ready and decorate with the fake blood just before serving. That is how you ensure the best look for the cupcakes.
​
I also had a fun idea for serving these cupcakes on a Halloween party by making the blood ready and allowing each guest to decorate their cupcake themselves :) It will be fun and everyone can get a little creative :) ​
​
Before I go, remeber to use gloves when working with food colour and also cover all the surfaces that might get in contact with it as it will stain and it is hard to clean afterwards. You can thank me later :)
​
Happy Baking Lovelies & Happy Halloween!
Step by Step Video
RECIPE
Bloody Halloween Cupcakes
Delicious cream cheese cupcakes Halloween style
​INGREDIENTS
​
-
85g butter at room temperature
-
170g sugar
-
2 medium eggs
-
190g flour
-
20g cacao (unsweetened)
-
1 ½ tsp baking powder
-
100ml kefir or buttermilk
-
black food colour (optional)
​
-
200g frozen cherries
-
50-100g sugar
​
-
400g cream cheese natural flavour
-
100g powder sugar
-
1tsp vanilla paste/extract
​
-
powder sugar
-
cherry jam
-
water
-
red & blue food colour
​​
​
DIRECTIONS
​
-
Beat the soft butter and sugar with a hand mixer or a standing mixer until pale and creamy, for about 3-5 minutes.
-
Add eggs one at a time and mix well after each addition for about half a minute.
-
Sift flour, cacao and baking powder in a separate bowl. Combine kefir/buttermilk and vanilla extract.
-
Turn the mixer to low. Add one third of the dry ingredients into the eggs and butter and mix shortly. Add half of the kefir/buttermilk and mix again shortly. Repeat until you have added everything.
-
Line a muffin tray with 12 paper cupcake cases. Spoon the batter into the cupcake cases evenly with an ice cream scooper or a tablespoon.
-
Bake the cupcakes in 180°C (355°F) bottom top heat at the middle shelf of the oven for about 25 minutes. Test if the cupcakes are baked through with a wooden skewer. If the skewer comes out clean the cupcakes are ready. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
-
To make the cherry jam measure the cherries with the sugar into a small pot and leave aside for an hour. Bring to boil, turn down the heat and allow to simmer on low until the liquid starts to thicken. Once thickened enough, remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
-
To make the cream cheese frosting, fold in the cream cheese, the vanilla paste and the powder sugar in a medium bowl with a spatula just until combined. Pop back into the fridge for a little.
-
Punch a hole in the middle of the cooled cupcakes with a cupcake hole puncher or with the end of a piping tip (see video) and fill the hole with some cherry jam. Cover with the cut out piece.
-
Make the fake blood just before assembling the cupcakes. Mix some cherry jam (no fruit) with some powder sugar (2-3tsp) and a little water if needed to make it runnier (see video). You want to reach thick pourable consistency. If the fake blood looks too thick add a little extra water and if it is too thin add some more powder sugar. Once you are happy with the consistency, colour with a little red food colour and a very little blue food colour (see video).
-
Mix through the cold cream cheese shortly and transfer it into a piping bag with a piping tip and pipe over the cupcakes. Lastly using a teaspoon pour over a little of the fake blood.
-
Serve right away.
​
​
TIP. If you want to serve the cupcakes later, make everything else ready apart from the fake blood. Prepare the fake blood just before serving and decorate as close to serving as possible. This will ensure the best look for the cupcakes. Due to the moisture in the cream cheese the fake blood will fade away pretty fast and soak into the cupcake.
