Mother's Day Bouquet of Flowers Cake

by Marina D. Sharif
(Malaysia)

Mothers Day Bouquet of Flowers

Mother's Day Bouquet of Flowers

I had received a special order from my cousin to prepare something extra ordinary for her on Mother's Day. Here is what I prepared for her for her mother's day function.

INGREDIENTS:

* 250 gms self raising flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 220 gms castor sugar
* 250 gms unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 2 teaspoons vanilla
* 4 large eggs

Mix all of these and leave soak overnight:
* 1/2 cup orange juice
* Grated rind of 1 orange.
* 2 teasp of liquid glucose
* 1/2 cup red cherries , finely chopped
* 1/2 cup green cherries, finely chopped
* 1/2 cup dried apricots, finely chopped
* 1/2 cup sultanas , coarsely chopped
* 1 cup chopped pecans / almonds

Method for cake making :

Preheat oven to 180 C . Line Muffin tray or cupcake baking tray with paper cases.

Beat sugar and butter with a pinch of salt till light and fluffy. Scrape mixing bowl sides now and then, beat in 1 egg at a time on medium speed.

Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Reserve about 1-2 tablespoons of the flour and fold in the balance of the flour into the butter mixture, blend to evenly combine dry ingredients with the butter and sugar mixture, add in the vanilla .

Sprinkle the reserved 2 tablespoons of flour over the ingredients and lightly coat the fruits/ nuts in the flour and using a metal spoon, gently fold in the fruits and nuts mixture. In case mixture is a bit thick, it is perfectly fine to add in some milk to get a soft sort of pouring consistency mixture.

In lined muffin baking tray / cupcake baking tray or if used individual tart molds lined with cupcake paper cases, pour in the cake batter not more than 1/2 full, place in center of preheated oven and bake for about 25 or 30 minutes until cakes are done . Cool for a few minutes. Then remove from baking tins and cool totally before icing and decorating

Buttercream Icing

150 gms butter
250 gms icing sugar

1 tabsp milk or as required
Drop or 2 of vanilla

METHOD : Beat together butter and icing sugar till light and fluffy.

Beat until a thick consistency is acquired. Cover and keep aside till required. When using, just beat it with a spoon to smoothen it , color and use as required.

Other requirements:

Ready to roll Fondant (Wilton brand)

Colors for the fondant( yellow/ orange/ pink / green etc)

Flower cutters,

Pre Prepared ready to royal icing .

Disposable piping bags.

Medium leave tip

Rolling pin icing sugar for dusting

To decorate the cupcakes:

When cooled, coat the top of the cupcakes with a thin layer of butter cream, leave aside.

Use white ready to use fondant and roll out to 1/8 inch thickness , using a round or fluted cutter as large as the cupcake surface, cut out rounds and cover the top of the cupcakes with these rounds of fondant. Firmly pressing to cover the whole top surface to the cake neatly, leave to set the fondant.

Now take some fondant and color it according to your choice of color, roll out the colored fondant and using flower cutter, cut out small/medium sized flowers . Leave cut out flowers to set and dry out. Prepare in the same way more flowers using different colored fondant. Leave flowers to dry.

Now color some royal icing with leaf green color paste , using a writing tip attached to a piping bag, and filled with green royal icing, pipe out stalk for the flowers . You will about 8 small flowers for each cupcake, then place the flowers randomly over the stalk to resemble a small cute bouquet of flowers (as in my picture attached). Then using same green royal icing, pipe leaves on the stalks, and around the flowers.

Finally but not least, using a contrasting color and color some royal purple or some other color, then pipe out ribbons or bows to tie up the stalks of flowers. Viola your pretty cute Mother's day bouquets are ready.

Don't forget the cleaning up process.

Marina D. Sharif

Malaysia.

Note: These lovely cupcakes can also be used as party cupcakes, for birthday set.