How to Make Easy 'Bloody' Surprise Halloween Cupcakes

This CRAZY delicious Halloween cupcakes recipe has a gory surprise twist – they’re filled with BLOOD!! Haha, not really, it just looks like blood. Which is kinda cool and delicious too! There’s tons of over complicated Halloween cupcake recipes out there but this one has a singular purpose – that they can be easily made and still spook the bejesus out of your unsuspecting guests! Exactly like my spider web tart Halloween dessert.

Here is what you will need to make 16 – 20 cupcakes.

For the Sponge

• 80g (1/3 Cup) Unsalted Butter, room temp
• 280g (1 + 1/3 Cup) Golden Caster Sugar
• 240g (2 Cups) Plain Flour
• 1 tbsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 240ml (1 Cup) Milk, room temp
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 Eggs, room temp

For the Filling

• 300g (1 + 1/4 Cups) Lemon Curd
• Red Food Colouring Gel

For the Icing/Decoration

• 500g (4 Cups) Icing Sugar
• 250g (1 + 1/8 Cup) Unsalted Butter, room temp
• 2-3 tbsp Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• Halloween Themes Sugar Sprinkles

Essential Equipment

• 12 Hole Cupcake Tin
• 16-20 Foil Cupcake Cases
• Apple Corer
• 2 x Piping Bags
• Open Star Piping Nozzle

Step 1: How to Make the Cupcake Sponge

First up – preheat your oven to 170°C/Fan 160°C and line your cupcake tin with cases.

To make the sponge beat together the butter (80g |1/3 Cup), caster sugar (280g | 1 + 1/3 Cup), flour (240g | 2 Cups), baking powder (1 tbsp) and salt (1/4 tsp) in either an electric stand mixer or a large bowl with an electric hand whisk. Keep going until it’s sandy in texture but don’t worry too much if there’s a couple of lumps of butter.

Step 2: How to Make the Cupcake Sponge Continued...

Next, measure out the milk (240ml |1 Cup) into a jug. Then beat in the vanilla (1 tsp) and the eggs (x 2) with a fork until blended. Pour half this mixture into the dry ingredients and beat until it becomes smooth, then pour in the remaining mixture and beat until it’s smooth once again.

Step 3: How to Make the Cupcake Sponge Continued...

See how easy that was?! Now half fill each cupcake case with the batter. If you have leftover batter, don’t top up those ones just make more cakes! Use a second 12 hole cupcake tin if you need to or simply wait until the first batch is cooked and repeat.

Bake on the bottom shelf in the preheated (170°C/Fan 160°C) oven for 12-14 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle of 2 or 3 of them comes out clean. (If it still has cake batter on it when you pull it out, pop them back in for another couple of minutes then check again.)

When you can handle the heat, remove them from the tin and put them straight onto a cooling rack to cool completely before attempting to decorate.

Step 4: To Make the 'Blood' Filling

Pour the lemon curd (300g | 1 + 1/4 Cups) into a small bowl.

Now, a little at a time, add red food colouring gel and mix until it’s the colour that you want. Oooh that looks great doesn’t it?!

Step 5: How to Make the Buttercream Frosting

To make your buttercream frosting, sift the icing sugar (500g | 4 Cups) into a bowl. Next, beat the butter (250g |1 + 1/8 Cup) in an electric stand mixer or a large bowl with an electric hand whisk until it’s really soft.

Step 6: How to Make the Buttercream Frosting Continued...

Then add half the sifted icing sugar and start to mix on a slow speed. (Just trust me here or you will end up in a mushroom cloud of icing sugar!) Once it’s come together, gradually add the remaining icing sugar until it’s all used up and the mixture has blended together.

Step 7: How to Make the Buttercream Frosting Continued...

Now you need to add in a little milk (2-3 tbsp) and the vanilla extract. Beat the buttercream on a medium/high speed until it’s really soft and smooth. Remember that you can always add more milk but you can’t take it out so go easy! It should be a nice ‘pipeable’ consistency.

Step 8: How to Assemble Your Cupcakes

Now for the fun bit – assembly. Take an apple corer and carefully ‘core’ the middle of each cupcake. Don’t go all the way to the bottom or your filling will literally ooze out. We want it to stay a surprise not become a nasty clean up haha!

Step 9: How to Assemble Your Cupcakes Continued...

Now pour your lemon curd into a piping bag and snip the end. Fill each hole with your delicious ‘blood’ whilst having a secret dark and evil laugh to yourself…

Step 10: How to Assemble Your Cupcakes Continued...

Now we’ve sorted the surprise element, let’s hide it! Load another piping bag with your favourite piping nozzle (I used a 2M open star nozzle) and fill it with your beautiful vanilla buttercream frosting.

Working from the outside in – pipe swirls over the top of each cupcake, making sure you cover the blood filled holes.

Step 11: How to Decorate Your Cupcakes

Finally, while the frosting is still moist, sprinkle over some Halloween coloured/themed sprinkles, strands or decorations to finish.

Step 12: Surprise Your Friends and Family!

And there you have it! Your bloody surprise Halloween cupcakes are all ready to spook your friends and family. YUM!

If you’re not going to inhale them immediately, I recommend storing your finished cupcakes in a metal container. Plastic tubs tend to make sugar sweat which never really ends well so I always stick with metal. Alternatively, you can find cardboard cupcake boxes in lots of high street shops now which also work very well. Consume your cakes within 3-4 days.

Check out more awesome step by step picture recipes at www.kitchenmason.com