Custard Cream Cupcakes!
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A cupcake twist on a classic biscuit – the custard cream cupcake. Custard flavoured cupcakes, vanilla custard frosting, and a custard cream biscuit to boot
Cupcakes
Cupcakes are what started my baking addiction, they are just the classic bake that all children I knew used to learn to bake before anything else. I adore cupcakes for that reason, and I have SO many cupcake recipes now across my book and my blog.
Some of my most popular recipes for cupcakes across my blog include my biscoff cupcakes and my oreo cupcakes, so this got me thinking that I should do a cupcake version of one of my favourite recipes, the custard cream.
Custard creams
I LOVE biscuits out of the packet, they’re built for being dunked into a hot drink and I will happily sit there an eat an entire packet of my favourite biscuit during a film. No judging. However, when you want to bake with them, no-one will be complaining.
Custard creams are such a popular and iconic biscuit – they are timeless and I adore them. If I could eat them every day, I would. My third book, Everyday, featured my classic homemade custard cream recipe which you can definitely use with this recipe if you wish, just to fuel the love even more.
I loved making these cupcakes custard cream themed, so much so I experimented with the custard cream theme a little further! I have added a custard cream cheesecake, custard cream blondies and even a custard cream sandwich cake to my website – DELICIOUS!
Custard cream cupcakes
I was asked by one of my most avid and lovely readers to create a custard cream recipe, and I decided on cupcakes as I love and adore them, and other people seem to love them too! I know that these cupcakes will be a success because they are now one of my favourites.
The cupcakes start off with a standard cupcake recipe of butter, sugar, eggs and flour, but to change it up enough I used custard powder in my cupcakes as I wanted to have a hint of flavour there, and change the colour slightly so they don’t just look like vanilla cupcakes.
It’s a simple mixture where I typically beat my sugar and butter together first to make sure that there are no buttery lumps in the mixture, and then I add in the flour, eggs and custard powder on this occasion. It beats to a lovely thick mixture that is perfect to split between the cases.
I use these really cute white and gold baking cases in this recipe as I think they suit the theme of the bake so well, and I also just love them.
Decoration
For the frosting, I used custard powder, because again I wanted it to have a lovely and delicious custard flavour, but you could also make it just vanilla if you wanted. I always use the birds custard powder because its my favourite, but what brand you can buy may depend on where you are in the world.
It’s super important to use block butter and not a baking spread for the frosting to make sure that it stays really thick and pipes really well. I beat the butter on its own first and then add the icing sugar and the custard powder.
As always, I used my favourite 2D closed star piping tip – I know my cupcakes often look similar but its just because I love the design so much – the swirl always looks like an ice cream and it suits a cupcake so well.
Recipe Update
Sometimes, I like to update blog posts so that they are more in keeping with my up-t0 date knowledge of a bake, and what I prefer to do. However, I will always list the original recipe just in case you adore it:
- The original recipe’s ingredients were: 225g unsalted butter, 225g golden caster sugar, 4 medium eggs, beaten, 200g self raising flour, 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 100g custard powder (I used Birds!), 50ml whole milk
- Follow the same recipe method, but it makes 14-16 cupcakes, and add the bicarbonate in with the flour!
Tips & Tricks
- These cupcakes will last for 3-4+ days at room temperature
- You can freeze these cupcakes for 3+ months
- I use these white and gold baking cases in this recipe
- I used my favourite 2D closed star piping tip
Custard Cream Cupcakes!
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 175 g unsalted butter/baking spread
- 175 g white/golden caster sugar
- 3 medium eggs
- 135 g self raising flour
- 65 g custard powder (I used birds)
- 50 ml whole milk (optional)
Buttercream
- 150 g unsalted butter (room temp)
- 300 g icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 25 g custard powder
Decoration
- 12 custard creams
- Custard cream crumbs
- Sprinkles
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 180ºc/160ºc fan and prep 12 cupcakes cases.
- Beat together the unsalted butter and golden caster sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add in the eggs, self raising flour, custard powder and beat again.
- If the mixture is thick, add the milk and beat again.
- Split the mixture between the 12 cases and bake in the oven for 17-20 minuets, or until baked through.
- Leave the cupcakes to cool fully on a wire rack.
Butttercream
- Beat the unsalted butter on its own for a few minutes to loosen it.
- Add the icing sugar, custard powder and vanilla and beat again for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy.
- If the mixture is really thick, add 1/2 tbsp of boiling water at a time until smooth.
Decoration
- Decorate the cupcakes with your favourite piping tip, and add on a custard cream.
- Sprinkle on any biscuit crumbs or sprinkles if you fancy. Enjoy!
Notes
- These cupcakes will last for 3-4+ days at room temperature
- You can freeze these cupcakes for 3+ months
- I use these white and gold baking cases in this recipe
- I used my favourite 2D closed star piping tip
ENJOY!
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J x
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Hi, I make lots of your cake recipes and love them. I found my cakes on this one a little bit dense/heavy, would you have a thought on what that might be please? Thank you so much.
Dense/heavy cakes can come from over mixing, using cold ingredients such as cold eggs, or even being slightly underbaked so it’s hard to tell for sure xx
These look incredible. 😍. I’m always up for trying new recipes and can’t wait to try these. My taste tester aka my friend who insists on trying everything I make (which is great, she gives honest and often great feedback), is obsessed with custard creams so she’ll be eager for these.
To add another level to the cupcake, so you think I could add some chopped up custard cream biscuits to the cupcake?
Hi Jane
These look lovely, wanting to buy one of your recipe books, which one is this recipe in?
Thank you
Hi team jane
I need to make many of you cupcake recipes
Custard cream
White chic raspberry
Lemon
Vanilla
Chocolate
Can these be made ahead of time and frozen if so would you freeze prior to decorating/icing
Thank you
Hiya, just wondering, in the buttercream it says to use custard cream, so you mean custard powder? Thank you 😊
Hiya! Sorry about this – as you can see in the ingredients list and step 2 of the decoration it is custard powder, custard creams in the decorations! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane, I want to try this recipe, could I bake the cupcakes, store them & then ice them the following day? Many thanks x
Hiya! Yes absolutely you can! Hope this helps x
I really want to try these but just make around 6?? What measurements would I need please??
The best thing to do is to bake 4 or 8 as its easiest to base it around the amount of eggs you use! x
This is going to sound really silly but what would all the measurements be for 4 and 8? As im not that good qt the measurement side to things. Thankyou!
This recipe looks amazing! But I only have large eggs. Can you use large eggs in this / how many should I use?
I would use 3 large, and make the rest of the ingredients 175g if that makes sense!
Hi Jane,
Loving all of your recipes! Just wondering how I could adapt this recipe to suit a gluten free diet? If I used gluten free self Raising flour would I need to make any alterations to the original recepie?
Thanks :). X
So you would have to check every ingredient (custard creams aren’t gluten free so you’d need GF ones!) but otherwise that should be it! x
Hi. What measurements wudl I need to use if I wanted to bake this as a cake rather than muffins and also how long should I bake it for please?
I usually say one batch of cupcakes like this is one layer of an 8″ cake – so double for a two-layer and split between two 8″ tins. Baking time is probably about 35 minutes!
Hi! Can you use normal caster sugar or does it have to be golden, also what is the difference? Thanks xx
Golden caster sugar is a more caramel flavour basically, but they are interchangeable!
Could I use either normal caster sugar or golden granulated sugar to replace golden caster sugar in the cupcakes?
I would use normal caster sugar..
How do you make moist cupcakes?
I find that most that ive tasted are either caky crumbly or dry….
And do you have tips on how to prolong the shelf life of cupcakes?
Ive eaten lavender cupcakes before…and its my top choice eversince
Don’t overbake, and store at room temperature, not in the fridge!
These look amazing, I think I will cook these for MacMillian Coffee Morning this Friday. Can I freeze the mixture uncooked?
I’m afraid I’ve never frozen cupcake mixture before baking, I’ve only ever put the cupcakes in the freezer (which is fine to do) x
hi! just a question…..wont the frosting would have taste of uncooked custard powder or it would be fine….?
It tastes good, don’t worry! x
I found the texture to feel a bit ‘powdery which I presume is due to the cornflour in the custard powder. Tastes lovely tho lol