Spider's web cupcakes recipe

Imagine the kids' faces when you hand out these eerie spider's web cupcakes on Halloween night = they're a real treat!

Ingredients

For the

spider's web cupcakes:

• 170g soft liquorice
• 4tbsp water
• 120g unsalted butter, softened
• 120g light brown sugar, packed
• 100g plain flour
• 1tsp baking powder
• ½tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ½tsp salt
• 2 large eggs

For the

buttercream:

• 120g butter, softened
• 200g icing sugar, sifted
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• Black food colouring
• Piping bag

Method

1. For the spider's web cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Line a 12-hole muffin tin with cupcake cases.
2. Gently melt the liquorice on a low-medium heat, in a small pan with 2tbsp of water. Stir occasionally then add the rest of the water. Leave to cool.
3. Sift the flour with the baking powder, soda and salt in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
4. In a separate large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, leaving a min to stir between each addition.
5. Add the liquorice and mix in well.
6. Gently fold in the flour mixture.
7. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake liners, filling ¾ of the way and bake for 18 mins or until a cocktail stick inserted into the centre of each cake comes out clean. Leave to cool on a wire rack.
8. For the buttercream: In a clean, dry mixing bowl, cream the butter until smooth, gradually add the icing sugar and continue to cream until light and fluffy. Mix in the vanilla until combined.
9. Add a few drops of black food colouring to the buttercream and mix until it reaches a mid-grey colour. Spread onto each cupcake using a palette knife. Add a few more drops of black colouring to the remaining buttercream until it reaches the desired shade of black. Spoon into a piping bag and cut the tip off. Pipe the black buttercream onto the cupcakes into a spider's web design.