Delicate Rose Cupcakes
Rose cupcakes are one of the illustrations of the skill set and artistry of the pastry chef.
Pastry chefs are not only expected to create delicious desserts, but they are counted upon to create something of beauty.
As a chef and pastry chef I definitely consider myself an artist and food is my medium of expression.
We eat with our eyes before our mouths so it makes so much sense to make things we are going to eat beautiful.
Taking the time to put love and creativity into a dish is a message to the person eating it that you love what you do.
And you are passing that love and care on to the people enjoying the food.
This reminds me of a wonderful film called “Like Water for Chocolate” which if you have not seen you should.
It is not a new film but it looks at how emotion can be passed on through food.
I like to think that that is true and we feel the feelings people put into food as it’s being cooked.
That is why mass produced foods lack any kind ‘feeling’ to them, they just seem sterile.
As a pastry chef you have a whole arsenal of tools at your disposal for decorating and beautifying your desserts.
Having the right tools is of course the best kept secret of making beautiful food.
There is a tool for just about everything, but that does not mean that the chef can do these things without talent.
Experience, again like with most things, is the bank of skills that have been built up over years and years of practice.
The number one ability you need to have when making or decorating desserts the ability not to be afraid.
Not to be afraid to try new things, and not worry if you fail.
The only way forward is to try, and failure is part of success, in fact success is usually built on a pile of failures.
There is no shame at all in trying new things, innovating new things, creating is what it is about.
I share this because so many people are afraid to try when it comes to experimenting with food.
But in order to decorate these roses you will need to have the right tools and you will need to practice.
Before you know it you will be making the most beautifully decorated cakes and desserts.
Using different tips you can try making different kinds of rose petals or look at making twice as many petals.
A rose is a rose by any number of petals it has.
What are Rose Cupcakes?
Once you have made your favorite cupcakes and cooled them to room temperature it is then time to frost them.
Anything from vanilla cupcakes to chocolate cupcakes and anything in between.
First you will need to make the white buttercream or a meringue buttercream.
For a simple buttercream beat the butter in the large bowl of a mixer using the paddle attachment.
Add the confectioner sugar, vanilla extract, food coloring and mix well until you have the color you are looking for.
Maybe for Valentine’s day you will make a vanilla cupcake recipe with a light pink buttercream.
The frosting will go into a pastry bag with a piping tip for piping the roses.
To make buttercream roses, start in the center of the cupcake and work your way out making rows of petals.
Around and around until you have your beautiful rose cupcakes.
Frosting the Cupcakes
This process is one of having the right tip on the pastry bag, and there is a special rose petal tip.
Starting in the middle of the cupcake we pipe the center of the rose which is kind of a rose bud.
From there we add petal after petal in small movements as we turn the cupcake.
We go from one end of a petal to the end of the next petal as we are layering our rose.
It is important to keep the temperature and consistency of the buttercream in mind.
If the frosting becomes too warm then your petals will turn into a bunch of blobs instead.
Maybe you will create a different kind of flower that you might like better, decision is yours!
You must be sure the buttercream has enough confectioner sugar so that it has the right consistency and remains stiff.
Once you get this process down, you will always want to be making rose muffins.
Rose Cupcakes Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 1⅓ cup Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- ¼ tsp Salt
- ½ cup Butter
- 1 cup Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 1 tsp Rose Water
- ½ cup Milk
For the Buttercream
- 1 cup Butter
- 5 cups Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 3 tbsp Heavy Cream
- ½ tsp Red Food Coloring
Instructions
For the Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (175ºC). Grease a muffin tin, or line with cupcake molds.
- Whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.
- In a stand mixer cream the butter and the sugar together until well incorporated.
- Add eggs one at a time, mix well.
- Add rose water, and half the milk.
- Add half the dry mixture - mix well.
- Add remaining milk.
- Add remaining dry ingredients.
- Equally divide batter into cupcake tin.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
For the Buttercream
- Cream butter in the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Add confectioner sugar ½ cup at a time.
- Add vanilla.
- Add cream, and food color.
- Cool in the fridge if necessary.
Video
Notes
- Add more sugar to your buttercream mixture if you want it to be stiffer.
