4th July Mini Cupcakes

Today is American Independence Day and over the past few days lots of red, white and blue themed treats and snacks have been appearing on blogs. I know we don’t celebrate it here in the UK, but that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy getting in the spirit of things and baking some red, white and blue mini cupcakes, in honour of my American friends.

These are simple, all-in-one, mini vanilla cupcakes that I tinted red with a few pin-pricks of food dye. I then made a quick butter and icing sugar frosting which I tinted blue before topping them with a teeny-weeny white sugar star. You can go from raw ingredients to finished cupcakes in only 30minutes. Cute, bite-sized and delicious!

4^th July Mini Cupcakes

Cupcakes

60g GF self raising flour

60g butter

60g caster sugar

1 egg

½ tsp vanilla

½ tsp GF baking powder

Red food paste

Icing

70g butter

140g icing sugar

2-3 tsp milk

Blue food paste

Decoration

Mini white sugar stars or fondant stars

Mini Cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 170C. Line a mini cupcake tin with 24 paper cases.

Make sure the butter is very soft. Mix all the ingredients, except the food dye, together until smooth and beat until light and fluffy.

Add a tiny amount of food paste using the tip of a cocktail stick. Mix to combine, adding more food dye if necessary.

Divide the batter between the paper cases using a teaspoon.

Bake for 13-15 minutes until springy to the touch.

Allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Icing

Make sure the butter is soft and beat until soft and fluffy. Add the icing sugar and blend until well incorporated.

Add the milk and mix to create a smooth thick frosting. Add a tiny amount of food paste using the tip of a cocktail stick. Mix to combine, adding more food dye if necessary.

Pipe on top of the cooled mini cupcakes using a large star nozzle.

Decorate with white sugar stars or cut a small white star out of fondant icing

Makes 24 mini cupcakes