Romilda Vane’s Spiked Cauldron Cakes

 

Romilda Vane's Spiked Cauldron Cakes

Fiona McTaggart
Have you ever wanted to take a leaf out of Romilda Vane’s book and sneak a little Amortentia to someone in your life? While we can’t guarantee these cauldron cakes will send anyone to Slughorn’s office for an ill-fated cure, your crush may just love them so much they’ll snog you anyway.
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Course Desserts
Servings 12 cauldrons

Ingredients
  

Cakes

  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 3/4 tsp. baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 egg large
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 3 Tbsp. canola oil
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Ganache

  • 1 cup chocolate dark
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream

Filling

  • 8 oz. cream cheese
  • 1/2 cup butter unsalted
  • 5 drops food coloring red
  • 4 Tbsp. cinnamon whisky
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 2 cups powdered sugar

Decorations

  • 1/3 cup dark chocolate
  • sprinkles red (optional)

Instructions
 

Cakes

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with muffin liners and set aside.
  • In one bowl, mix together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
  • Mix in eggs, milk, canola oil, and vanilla extract.
  • Divide batter evenly among muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • Remove muffins from tins and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Decorations

  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Take ⅓ cup dark chocolate and place in a microwavable bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals until smooth.
  • Use a spoon or piping bag to create 24 U shapes for cauldron handles on the parchment. Then, create 35 small dots of chocolate on the parchment for the feet of the cauldron.

Filling

  • Combine cream cheese, butter, cinnamon whisky, vanilla, and powdered sugar in a mixer. Add powdered sugar if necessary. Add five drops of red food coloring and mix well.
  • Transfer pink filling to Ziploc bag or piping bag and set aside.

Ganache

  • Heat the heavy cream until it is almost at a boil. Pour cream over the remaining 1 cup of dark chocolate and let sit for five minutes. Whisk ganache until smooth.
  • Begin assembly immediately.

Assembly

  • Remove paper lining from cooled cupcakes. Turn upside down and use knife to cut out a hollow in bottom of each cupcake.
  • Dip cupcake tops in warm ganache. Press three chocolate dots (cauldron feet) to bottom and set aside to cool.
  • Add two handles to each cauldron when ganache is partially cooled but not set. Allow the whole thing to set until hard to the touch.
  • Pipe filling into each cupcake cavity. Top with red sprinkles.
  • Transfer remaining ganache into piping bag. Snip off tip of bag and pipe a circle of thick ganache around lip of each cauldron, creating a rim around the pink icing.

Notes

  • If you’re finding some of the ganache won’t melt, place it in the microwave or on a double boiler until smooth.
  • This recipe was adapted from Pastry Affair.