Vanilla cupcakes with rosewater icing

I finally watched “Alice in Wonderland”, but can’t say I liked it... I found it too busy, hysterical, even for Burton.

The highlights of the movie to me were Alan Rickman as the Blue Caterpillar – gotta love that man’s voice – and Helena Bonham Carter; even though I used rather fair roses in these cupcakes I find the Red Queen and her obsession for red roses much more fun. :)

Vanilla cupcakes with rosewater icing
from Donna Hay magazine

250g unsalted butter, softened
1 ¼ cups + 2 tablespoons (274g) caster sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped, or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
4 eggs
2 ¼ cups + 2 tablespoons (335g) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup (240ml) whole milk

Rosewater icing:
1 cup + 1 ½ tablespoons (218g) caster sugar
¼ cup (60ml) water
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon rosewater
3 egg whites
2-3 drops rose pink food coloring
24 sugared flower cake decorations or crystallized rose petals*, to top the cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Place the butter, sugar and vanilla seeds/paste in the bowl o an electric mixer and beat until light and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat well. Sift over the flour and baking powder and beat until combined. Fold through the milk and spoon the mixture into two 12-hole ½ cup capacity muffin pans lined with paper cases. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden and cooked when tested with a skewer. Cool on wire racks.
To make the rosewater icing, place the sugar, water, cream of tartar and rosewater in a saucepan over high heat and stir just until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil – at this point, do not stir – reduce the heat to low and simmer for 3 minutes. Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the large bowl of an electric mixer and beat until soft peaks form. While the motor is running, gradually add the sugar mixture to the whites and beat until slightly cooler, thick and glossy. Stir in the food coloring until well combined.
Spread the icing over the cupcakes with a palette knife and top with a sugared flower decoration/crystallized rose petal.

*to crystallize the petals: place an egg white in a small bowl and beat it lightly with a fork. Brush the clean, dry petals with the egg white and cover with caster sugar, shaking to remove any excess. Set aside to dry. Make sure you use unsprayed flowers

Makes 24 – I got 5 cupcakes making ¼ of the cake recipe above, using 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity muffin pans and 1/3 of the icing recipe