Avatar: The Last Airbender Cakes
Easy and fun coconut flavoured cupcakes decorated with American buttercream and tempered white chocolate designs representing the four element insignias, celebrating Nickelodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
- 100 g [3.5 oz] unsalted butter
- 100 g [½ cup] caster sugar
- 2 eggs
- 100 g [½ cup + 2 tbsp] self-raising flour
- 1 level tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp natural coconut flavouring
Decoration:
- 100 g [3.5 oz] unsalted butter room temperature
- 250 g [1½ + 3 tbsp] icing [confectioners] sugar
- 200 g [1 cup] white chocolate chopped
- Baby blue food colouring
- Green food colouring
- Red food colouring
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200°C [350°F] or 180°C fan and prepare your muffin tray by placing cupcake cases in each designated space.
- Soften the butter then add the sugar and cream together until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time and beat again until fully incorporated.
- Add the coconut flavouring.
- Sieve the flour and baking powder over your cake batter and then mix until evenly combined. Be careful not to over mix!
- Divide the batter equally into your cupcake cases.
- Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, until golden brown and a cocktail stick comes out clean. Leave the cakes to cool fully on a wire rack.
- While your cakes are cooling, make your buttercream.
- Beat the butter to loosen it, then add the icing [confectioners] sugar ⅓ at a time, beating in between.
- Add the blue food colouring until you get the right tone of blue.
- Once the cakes are cool, pipe the buttercream on top of each one in whatever pattern you fancy.
- Set the cakes aside and start on the chocolate decorations.
- Prepare two or three baking trays by lining them with greaseproof paper or baking parchment.
- To temper the chocolate, melt ⅔s of the chocolate in a bain marie (bowl set over a pan of water that has been brought to the boil), stirring continuously. Using a thermometer to measure the temperature, melt the chocolate and stir until it reaches 43°C (110°F).
- Take off the heat and “seed” in the remaining chocolate a handful at a time to bring the temperature down to 29°C (84°F), stirring continuously. This may take some time but be patient!
- Place the bowl back onto the heat (the pan) for about 10 seconds, stirring non-stop to inject some heat back into the chocolate. Take the chocolate back off the heat and stir, then place it back over the heat again. Repeat this process until the temperature of the chocolate has reached 32°C (89°F). Do not leave the chocolate over the heat the whole time and do not let the chocolate exceed 33°C (91°F).
- When the chocolate has reached the correct temperature, it is now ready to work with. Split it into 4 quarters, with 3 of the quarters in 3 bowls and add the three colour dyes into the individual bowls, leaving the last quarter in the original bowl without dye (this will be for your Air decorations). The measurements don’t need to be exact.
- Add each quarter to a piping bag and pipe the Insignia decorations for each element onto your greased and lined baking trays using the chocolate.
- Place in the fridge or freezer for around 15 minutes or until set. Due to the tempering, it doesn’t take long at all for the chocolate to harden and be ready for decoration!
- Arrange your cupcakes and prepare to decorate. If the buttercream seems a little hard or stiff on the outside, use a knife to make a thin indentation in the centre of each one, just deep enough for the chocolate decorations to be able to sit in without snapping.
- The colder the chocolate is, the easier it is to handle when decorating. When the chocolate is set (and cold), sit the chocolate Insignias into each cupcake.
Notes
These moreish Avatar: The Last Airbender cakes will last for around 4 days in an airtight container but chances are, they won’t last that long! If you’re having an Avatar: The Last Airbender viewing party (or marathon session) then I truly hope you love both the show and the cupcakes!