Magical Food for Muggles

Cauldron Cakes

Have you ever wished you could eat all of the delicious foods from Harry Potter? Now you can! Try this recipe for Cauldron Cakes:

 

Cauldron Cakes 

Ingredients: 

  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour  
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder 
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder 
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt 
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature 
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar 
  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar 
  • 1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil (or melted coconut oil) 
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk, at room temperature   
  • 1 container of white frosting - it can be vanilla, butter cream, cream cheese, whatever your prefer as long as it's white 
  • green food coloring 
  • 12 ounces or 1 1/2 cups of semi sweet or dark chocolate (baking bar or chocolate chips) 
  • optional: extra chocolate chips to make feet for your cauldrons. 
  • One tablespoon of butter at room temperature to grease the baking pan 

Supplies/Tools: 

  • Oven  
  • Muffin Tin 
  • 2 Baking sheets/trays - one large, one small/medium 
  • Oven Mitts 
  • Zip top plastic baggie (snack or sandwich size) 
  • Large, medium and small mixing bowls 
  • whisk 
  • Spatula 
  • spoon 
  • butter knife 
  • parchment paper 
  • measuring spoons and cups 
  • ruler (optional but helpful for making cauldron handles) 

Make the cupcakes: 

  1. Take butter, buttermilk, and eggs out of refrigerator 30 minutes before you plan to begin. 
  2. Preheat oven to 350. 
  3. Gather all ingredients and tools. 
  4. Take your room temperature butter and grease each cavity of your cupcake tin. Add a spoonful of flour to each cavity. 
  5. Shake the pan all around so that the flour coats each cavity. This will prevent the cupcakes from sticking to the pan because we will not be using liners 
  6. In large mixing bowl, whisk together ¾ cup flour, ½ cup cocoa powder, ¾ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda and ¼ teaspoon salt together until combined. 
  7. In medium bowl, whisk 2 eggs, ½ cup white sugar, ½ cup brown sugar 1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil, and 2 teaspoons vanilla together until combined. 
  8. Pour half of the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  
  9. Add half the butter milk (about ¼ cup) into the dry ingredients bowl. 
  10.  Stir a few times using a spatula. 
  11.  Add the rest of the wet ingredients and the buttermilk to the large bowl. Stir until just combined. Do not overmix. Batter will be a little lumpy and that is okay, just make sure there are no large pockets of flour. 
  12. Spoon into muffin tin, filling only halfway. It is very important that you do not fill the batter to the top of each cavity. 
  13.  You will have enough batter for 14 cupcakes. If you have a mini muffin tin, you can make about 6 mini cupcakes in addition to your 12 full size cupcakes.
  14. Bake cupcakes – 18-20 minutes. Mini cupcakes will need 10-12 minutes. 

Make the cauldron handles: 

  1. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. 
  2. Melt ¾ cup chocolate chips or 6 oz baking bar in a microwavable bowl. Heat for 30 second intervals, stirring after each one until melted completely.  
  3. Spoon melted chocolate into plastic baggie and cut off the tip of one corner. 
  4. Pipe U shaped handles on parchment. They should be about 2 inches wide. These will be the handles for the cauldron. Make about 16 handles in case any break. 
  5. Put in freezer to firm up. 

Make green frosting “potion”: 

  1. Spoon about half of the container of frosting into a bowl. 
  2. Add green food coloring until you’ve reached your desired color. 
  3. Spoon frosting into ziplock baggie, cut off tip. Make the hole a little bit larger than the one you made for piping the handles. 

 Assemble cauldrons: 

  1. Remove cupcakes from pan. Place them on large baking sheet lined with parchment. Turn them all upside down. 
  2.  Place cupcakes in fridge for 30 minutes, or let sit on the counter until the chocolate on the bottom has solidified. Enjoy your cauldron cakes! 
  3. If your handles are firm enough, take them out of the freezer and press them into the top of the cupcakes.  
  4. Using the baggie full of frosting, pipe in green frosting to cupcake cavity. 
  5. Rim the top of the cauldron with melted chocolate. Use butter knife to spread the melted chocolate. 
  6. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. 
  7. Dip the bottom of the cupcakes in melted chocolate and press 3 chocolate chips evenly spaced around the bottom to make feet for your cauldron. 
  8. Melt in microwave at 30 second intervals. Stirring after each interval until completely melted. 
  9. Using the same bowl of melted chocolate that you used for the handles, add an additional 1/4 cup or 2 more ounces of chocolate. 
  10.  Using a butter knife, cut out a cavity from the center of each cupcake. Run knife in a circular motion around the cupcake, while always pointing the knife towards the center (this will make the cavity cone shaped). Be careful not to poke through the bottom!  

Recipe adapted from: 

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/super-moist-chocolate-cupcakes/ 

https://www.pastryaffair.com/blog/2011/7/12/cauldron-cakes.html