Name: Pumpkin Monster Cupcakes
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Yield: Serves 12
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups plain flour; 2 tsp McKenzie's Baking Powder; 1/4 tsp McKenzie's Bi-Carb Soda; 2 eggs, whisked; 1 cup icing sugar; 1/2 cup vegetable oil; 1 tsp orange essence (optional); 3/4 cup orange juice, with pulp; 1 tbs grated orange zest; Few drops orange food colour; 125g unsalted butter, softened; 2 cups icing sugar; 3/4 tsp orange essence or vanilla extract; 2-3 tbs orange juice; 1 tsp grated orange zest; 2-3 drops orange food colour; 6 chocolate coated finger biscuits, halved; 30 tic tacs; 24 candy eyes

Step 1

Preheat oven to 180ºC and place patty pans into a 2 x 12 hole pans. In a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and bi-carb soda. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, icing sugar, oil, orange essence and food colour. Mix well.

Step 2

Add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients in two batches, mixing well in between. Add the orange juice and the zest. Mix well by hand.

Step 3

Fill patty pans to 1/2 to 3/4 full and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

Step 4

To make the frosting: In a small mixing bowl, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the icing sugar, orange zest and extract. Add enough orange juice to achieve a frosting consistency (a little on the firm side so that it holds the weight of another cupcake when assembling your monsters).

Step 5

Spread frosting on top of cupcake and then top with another upside-down cupcake. Add the tic tacs for teeth and candy eyes, using a little extra frosting as glue if required. Insert chocolate stick through the top cupcake.

Pumpkin Monster Cupcakes