Dragons and White Mice

Today I saw How To Train Your Dragon for the third time. I have a serious love for this film, it makes me want a dragon of my on so very badly. The scenes where Toothless is zooming about through the sky reminds me of the behaviours at SeaWorld and it makes me pine for that dream job.
I love Toothless. I think my favourite scene is where he watches Hiccup drawing the portrait of him in the dirt, and he mimicks drawing with that huge branch.

So cute.

Anyway, I've also been baking today. I used some of my favourite confectionary of all time, white chocolate mice, to top them with. I used a basic vanilla sponge for the cupcakes and vanilla buttercream for the icing.

Ingredients: (as usual, everything is best used at room temp.)

• 110g unsalted butter
• 225g caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 150g self raising flour
• 125g plain flour
• 120ml milk
• 1tsp vanilla extract

The method for making these cupcakes is essentially the same as for the peanut butter ones I posted in my first blog. Obviously, just skip putting in the peanut butter.

They bake in the oven at 160C(fan)/180C/gas mark 4, for 25 minutes. When they're done they have the most gorgeous warm, vanillarey cake smell. Mmmmmm. Now leave them to cool on a wire rack, then it's time for icing!


For the icing, I used a simple vanilla buttercream. This is a very versatile icing and can be coloured with a few drops of food colouring, although I just left mine as it is. It can be used to ice a number of flavoured cakes, and this is a good recipe to have on hand for different occasions.

Ingredients:

• 75g unsalted butter
• 40ml milk
• 1.5 tsps vanilla extract
• 400g icing sugar

In a large bowl, beat the butter, milk, vanilla and half the icing sugar until smooth. Gradually begin adding the rest of the icing sugar, beating with the electric hand whisk over a few minutes.


Keep beating until the icing is smooth and creamy. If, after beating for a few minutes, it is too runny to ice with, add a little more icing sugar.

Use a butter knife to spread the icing onto the cakes, using the flat of the knife around the edges and pointing it at the top to achieve a pretty swirl effect.


Now that's done, you can decorate them with whatever you like! I used yellow and purple sugr stars to start off with. I love that combinaion of colours together, and I think it looks even better with those bright cake cases.


After a while I managed to convince myself to stop eating the white chocolate mice and use them on the cakes. After popping them on the top I was very pleased with how they looked, the colours complimen eachother really well and the mice just add that little bit of nostalgic cuteness that works so brilliantly with cakes. Delicious no matter what your age.