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Sorting Hat Cupcakes
Packed with chocolate and fun, these cupcakes will sort you into the house of your dreams - or not!
Course: Dessert
Servings: 18 cupcakes
Author: Cristina
Ingredients
Chocolate Cupcakes
  • 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour or 2 cups cake flour
  • 1 1/2 cups white sugar
  • 2/3 cups cocoa
  • 1/2 cups vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk (OR 2 Tbsp vinegar in 1 1/2 cups milk)
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
Chocolate Buttercream
  • 1 cup unsalted butter , room temperature
  • 3-4 cups sifted powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 2-3 Tbsp heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder
  • OPTIONAL: black gel food colouring
Other Ingredients
  • 3/4 cup each red , green, blue, and yellow jelly beans
  • OPTIONAL: pop rocks for fun!
Instructions
For the Cupcakes
  1. Preheat oven to 350°, and put your cupcake liners in their tins.
  2. Mix all of the cupcake ingredients together in the order they're listed on medium speed first, scraping the sides occasionally. Then turn it up to high and let it go for 3 minutes, scraping occasionally (I make sure to have my guards on, or put a towel over the mixer or else it goes EVERYWHERE)
  3. Spoon the batter into the cupcake tins, about 3/4 of the way full, and pop in the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before putting them on a cooling rack.
  4. Let cool completely.
For the Buttercream
  1. Mix the butter, powdered sugar, salt, vanilla and cocoa powder together, scraping the sides occasionally. Slowly add in the cream, continuing to mix and scrape and it should come to a very smooth, easy to spread frosting. We want it to be quite soft for this, but still able to hold its shape.
  2. The amounts to bring it to the correct consistency will be different for everyone depending on many factors, so if it's too stiff, add a tablespoon of cream, if it's too runny, add a little more icing sugar.
  3. Beat until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes on high or until everything is incorporated and the buttercream becomes lighter in colour.
  4. OPTIONAL: Add the black gel food colouring a little bit at a time until it becomes grey. Black food colouring develops over time, so you will need less than you think!
Assembly
  1. Make sure that your cupcakes are completely cool. Scoop out the centre with a spoon or cookie scooper.
  2. Put 5-6 jelly beans in the hole in each cupcake, red for Gryffindor, green for Slytherin, blue for Ravenclaw and yellow for Hufflepuff. For an added surprise, add some pop-rocks in with them!
  3. Scoop your buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a medium-sized petal tip (like Wilton 104). With the larger end facing out, pipe in a circle around the cupcake, making sure to overlap the liner for that 'hat' effect. The more bumpy and weird it looks, the better!
  4. Switch your piping tips and use a medium round tip (like Wilton 12). Pipe in circles around and around, creating a lumpy, bulbous old wizard's hat. Again, doesn't have to be perfect! Pull away at the top so it has a crooked point.