Baking Hack : Heart Shaped Cupcake

Do you remember last year when I made my Cookie Pizza Pie, all in aid of Sport Relief and HomeSense? It was such a success that this year I am working with them again, but this time it was to share with you a simple recipe and baking hack, which they would film in my home. Even though I find video incredibly scary to do, I couldn’t resist taking part because its a fantastic cause.  Did you know that all the money raised by the public through Sport Relief, 50% is used to make a difference, right here at home, in the UK. The other 50% goes towards transforming lives across the world’s poorest communities.

So what’s a backing hack?  Well its something that is a game changer in the world of baking, a cheat or much simpler way of completing a task that is usually seen as time-consuming or difficult.  Well I have always wanted to try making heart-shaped cupcakes and I knew the perfect hack to achieve them, watch the video that I made, and see what you think :

So if you fancy giving them a try, you will need :

• 12 Marbles

• 110g/4oz butter at room temperature
• 110g/4oz caster sugar
• 2 free-range eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or bean paste
• 110g/4oz self-raising flour
• 1-2 tbsp milk
• 12 cupcake paper cases

The method is so simple.

1. Preheat the oven to 180C and line a 12-hole (or 2 x 6 hole) muffin tin with paper cases.

2. Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until pale.

3. Beat in the already lightly beaten eggs, a little at a time and stir in the vanilla extract/bean paste.

4. Fold in the flour using a large metal spoon, adding a little milk until the mixture is of a dropping consistency. Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until they are half full.

   ANA TIP : Don’t over fill the case, or the cupcake won’t make a recognisable heart shape.

Now here comes the hack:

5. Place a marble in-between the paper case and the tin

 

Making sure that the marble is pushed in to the very base of the tin.

6.     Now bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until golden-brown on top.  Set aside to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack.

You can decorate them as you wish, but if you are hosting a coffee morning like me, I bake them whilst all of my friends are around, and eat them warm, straight out of the oven with ice cream and fresh fruit. AMAZING!

If you want to help raise money for Sport Relief then you can pop into your local HomeSense or TK Maxx store to pick up your very own and exclusive Orla Keily apron or buy it online here. All profits from the sale go to Sport Relief.