Smiley face cupcakes

If every smile makes you day younger, then these smiley face cupcakes will take you right back to your childhood. A perfect little treat to make with the kids, these cupcakes are simple to make and you’ll have so much fun creating all sorts of faces…even grumpy ones.

  • Prep Time

    40 Minutes
  • Cook Time

    15 Minutes
  • Makes

    12 Cupcakes

Ingredients

For the sponge

  • 100g self-raising flour, sifted
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 100g butter, softened
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 small pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the icing

  • 2 cups icing sugar mixture, sifted
  • 100g butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • assorted food colours

To decorate

  • 100s and 1000’s

You'll Need

  • Multix Large Patty Pans – we used spotted ones
  • Multix Piping Bags

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 170°C.
  2. Line a 12 hole patty pan tin with Multix coloured paper patty pans.

For the sponge

  1. In a stand mixer, with the whisk attachment, add the softened butter and caster sugar, then process until light and fluffy. Add the salt, vanilla extract, one of the eggs and half the sifted flour, beating until well combined. Now add the second egg and the remaining flour and continuing beating until you have a smooth batter, remembering to scrape down the mixer bowl during this process.
  2. Using 2 dessert spoons, divide the batter evenly between the 12 patty pans, filling each to about half way. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen, golden and cooked through. To check this, insert either a metal skewer or thin knife and if it comes out clean the cupcakes are ready. Remove from the oven and allow to cool totally before icing.

For the icing

  1. In a stand mixer, add 100g of softened butter, vanilla extract and the sifted icing sugar mixture, then process until light and fluffy. Transfer 2 tablespoons of butter icing to 2 separate small bowls, add a little food colouring (we used brown and pink) to make the icing for the mouth and eyes.
  2. Using a knife or spatula smooth the uncoloured butter icing on the top of each of the cupcakes. Place the 100s and 1000’s in a small bowl and dip the iced cupcakes in the bowl so half the cake is coated making the ‘hair’.
  3. Transfer the pink butter icing to a Multix Piping Bag, using scissors cut a tiny hole in the end of the bag. Pipe a smiley mouth on the plain iced side of each cupcake. Repeat with the brown icing and pipe the eyes. You will find that each little cake seems to have it’s own personality and you will have fun making each one a little different.