These Easter cupcakes were a lot of fun to make. They are always popular with young and old alike. I tried them out on my daughter and her friends and were a great success.

Chocolate & Hazelnut Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

For the Cupcakes

• 100g 70% cocoa chocolate
• 6 tbsp milk
• 180g butter, softened
• 180g caster sugar
• 4 large eggs
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 50g ground roasted hazelnuts
• 50g chopped roasted hazelnuts

For the Nutella Ganache

• 125g Nutella
• 80ml double cream

For the Chocolate Buttercream

• 100g 70% cocoa chocolate
• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 135g icing sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla essence

For the Vanilla Buttercream

• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 250g icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Green food colouring gel

In Addition

• Chocolate eggs

METHOD

1. To make the cupcakes preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan. Line 2 muffin tins with 14 paper liners.
2. Break the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. Heat the milk to almost boiling and pour over the chocolate. Let it stand for two minutes then stir until smooth.
3. Beat the butter and caster sugar until pale and creamy.
4. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Stir in the flour, baking powder and hazelnuts then stir in the melted chocolate.
6. Divide the mixture between the cupcake cases and bake in the preheated oven for 18 – 20 minutes until firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
7. Leave the cupcakes to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
8. To make the nutella ganache, heat the Nutella slightly until soft, and then stir in the cream.
9. Once the cakes have cooled use an apple corer take a small section out of the centre of each cupcake. Fill each hole with a teaspoon of the nutella ganache.
10. 
11. To make the chocolate buttercream melt the chocolate over water or in the microwave and let it cool to room temperature.
12. Beat the butter and icing sugar until smooth, light and creamy then beat in the vanilla essence. Whisk in the chocolate until smooth.
13. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a small hole nozzle and set aside.
14. To make the vanilla buttercream, beat together the butter, icing sugar and vanilla essence until very light and fluffy. Add some of the green food colouring until you have a green grass shade.
15. Fill a piping bag fitted with a no. 233 nozzle and pipe the ‘grass’ all over the top of the cakes. Alternatively, spread the green icing over the cakes and use a fork to make the grass.
16. 
17. Pipe the chocolate buttercream in circles to make the nests and fill with chocolate eggs of your choice.
18. 
19. Enjoy!