Making Dandelion Flower syrup is an easy and delicious way to enjoy these wild flowers. If you haven’t tried it yet, it tastes just like honey!
I have been trying new ways to use the leftover petal pulp, which worked beautifully in the Dandelion Drop Scones. So I made Dandelion cupcakes, which after some trial and error, were delicious!
Vegan Buttercream:
Recently, I promised to start including my failures. So here is the first attempt at buttercream for this recipe; It went horribly wrong as you can see!
As I prefer not to bother with measurements, sometimes it does backfire on me. I tried adding cacao butter and emulsifiers. I whipped it for ages. Eventually I had to admit defeat.
I ended up adapting the recipe I have always had success with, from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World*
Luckily there are some much better alternatives to dairy butter coming onto the market but if you want to make your own butter, I highly recommend this recipe.
Dandelion Drizzle Cupcake Recipe:
Ingredients:
- Plain Flour 1 +1/4 cups/250g
- 3/4 cup sugar/150g
- 3 Tbs Cocoa Powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- pinch salt
- Dandelion Pulp 5-6 Tbs*
- 3/4 cup water/190ml
- 2 Tbs Dandelion Syrup (approx)
- 1/4 cup oil/75ml
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Essence
- 1 Tbs Apple Cider Vinegar (opt?)*
Frosting Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup non dairy spread
- 1/4 cup shortening *
- 1+3/4 cup icing sugar
- 2-3 Tbs Dandelion syrup (plus extra for drizzling)
Method:
Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
Mix the pulp with the wet ingredients.
Combine the two mixes and divide into prepared cake or muffin cases (I made 12 cupcakes and 6 muffins).
Bake in a preheated oven 190c for 10-20 minutes.
We used the curdled buttercream in the muffins. It tasted better than it looked!
Dandelion Drizzle Frosting:
While the cakes are cooling, make the buttercream by whipping the fats together. Add the syrup and gradually mix in the icing sugar, a little at a time.
If you need to add more liquid, use more syrup or a little non dairy milk.
Another little experiment I tried was adding hot water to fresh Dandelion petals and a few strands of Saffron to add colour to the frosting. I haven’t included this in the recipe as I’m not sure if it contributed to the curdling. But go ahead and add colour at your own risk!
Assembling The Cupcakes
If you now have successful cupcakes and buttercream, congratulations! Time for the fun part; Decorating!
I piped the icing and then gently drizzled a little of the syrup over before sprinkling Dandelion Petals and garnishing with pansies.
There are loads of edible flowers you could use, so get creative or just use Dandelions if you prefer.
The Best Part: Eating The Cupcakes!
nom..
Om nom nom..
I hope you are inspired to try these cupcakes! Let me know in the comments how they turn out and share any tips, what kind of flowers you used etc.
*Notes:
It’s not necessary to be exact with the pulp, just use whatever you have available.
I always add vinegar to my sponge recipes, as I believed that it was needed to react with the bicarb, however I somehow forgot to add it, and to my surprise and relief they rose perfectly without it!
Shortening can be any solid oil, you can find products especially for baking in the chilled section, most are not healthy and usually contain Palm oil. Coconut oil is a better option but use refined if you don’t want the coconut flavour.
Thanks For Reading!
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