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Christmas Flower Cup Cakes Recipe

A different take on Christmas cake - mini fruit cupcakes topped with a cream cheese vanilla frosting. Hydrangeas are also known as the Christmas flower in South Africa as they bloom at Christmastime.

Difficulty

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cooking Time

30 minutes

Serves

Makes 12

Recipe Ingredients

  • 250 ml SPAR mixed nuts, chopped
  • 125 ml SPAR glace cherries, halved
  • 125 ml sultanas
  • 125 ml raisins
  • 125 ml chopped dates
  • 50 ml brandy
  • 150 g SPAR margarine
  • 125 ml SPAR brown sugar
  • 2 SPAR eggs (white or milk chocolate)
  • 125 ml SPAR cake wheat flour
  • 5 ml baking powder
  • 5 ml mixed spice
  • 3 ml ginger

Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing

  • 125 g SPAR butter at room temp
  • 240 g SPAR cream cheese
  • 5 ml vanilla essence
  • 1000 ml SPAR icing sugar

Recipe Method

  1. Preheat oven to 160℃.
  2. Line muffin pan with paper cases.
  3. Combine nuts, fruit and brandy.
  4. Let the mix stand for 10 minutes.
  5. Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy.
  6. Beat eggs one at a time.
  7. Fold into fruit mixture with flour, baking powder, mixed spice and ginger. Spoon into lined muffin pan.
  8. Bake 25 - 35 minutes until cooked
  9. Cool in pan before turning out.
  10. For the icing: Place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add cream cheese and blend until fully combined and smooth, about 30 seconds.
  11. Add vanilla essence and icing sugar and blend on low speed until combined.
  12. Colour one half of the icing blue and one half purple. Fill a piping bag fitted with a large star shaped nozzle with these two colours, side by side without mixing them.
  13. Pipe little stars on each cupcake to form the hydrangea head.

Hints & Tips

You can experiment when icing the cupcakes by adding pink as a third colour.
If you feel like something different, try making mini carrot cakes instead. They will work beautifully with the cream cheese icing.