These cupcakes have a hidden centre of Nutella ganache. I have made small cupcakes here but you could make them full size. I also added some blue food colouring, as I made them for a new mum of a baby boy, and a little bit of pink sparkle sugar to some of them for baby’s big sister.

Chocolate & Vanilla Cupcake

INGREDIENTS

For the Cupcakes

• 150g caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 100ml sunflower oil
• 55ml buttermilk
• 100g self-raising flour
• 30g cocoa powder

For the Hazelnut Ganache Core

• 100g Nutella
• 60ml double cream

For the Swiss Buttercream

• 2 egg whites, about 80ml
• 165g caster sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1½ tsp vanilla essence
• 200g unsalted butter, cubed and softened

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan. Line two muffin trays with 16 small cupcake liners.
2. For the cupcakes place the eggs and sugar into the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk until pale and fluffy.
3. In a jug beat together the oil and buttermilk and slowly beat into the egg mixture until combined.
4. Sift over the flour and cocoa powder and fold into the batter with a large wire whisk until just incorporated. To keep the cakes light try not to over mix.
5. Divide the mixture between the cases filling them about two thirds full.
6. Bake the cakes in the preheated oven for 16 – 18 minutes, until well risen and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
7. Leave to cool for about 5 minutes before transferring the cakes to a cooling rack to cool completely.
8. To make the filling, heat the Nutella in a microwavable bowl until warm and liquid. Stir in the cream and leave to cool.
9. Using an apple corer, remove a small plug from the centre of each cake. Spoon or pipe the Nutella ganache into each hole and replacing some of the removed cake to form a lid.
10. 
11. To make the Frosting, place the egg whites into a large heatproof bowl and suspend the bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Be careful not to let the bowl touch the water.
12. Add the sugar and a pinch of salt and using an electric hand whisk, whisk the mixture until hot to the touch and a sugar thermometer reads 60C.
13. Remove form the heat and continue whisking the mixture until it becomes thick and glossy then whisk in the vanilla essence.
14. Slowly add the butter cubes whisking all the time. Don’t worry if the mixture seems to collapse.
15. Continue whisking on full speed until fully combined and you have a fluffy buttercream. If the frosting is too soft, chill the mixture until it begins to firm up before whisking again until light and fluffy.
16. Spoon the butter cream into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle and pipe onto each cake. Refrigerate the cakes for 10 minutes before serving.

Tip: You can add a little food colouring to the frosting or let a little colour run down the sides of the piping bag before adding the frosting for a pretty effect.