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Mint and chocolate are a match made in heaven! I love how fresh mint cuts through the sweetness of chocolate, it's a yummy combination for sure. These Mint Chocolate Aero Cupcakes are a mint chocolate lover's dream cupcake. They have a mint chocolate sponge and are topped with a two toned mix of green mint buttercream and chocolate buttercream. I've decorated them with Aero chocolate, but you could use any mint chocolate on top. These mint chocolate cupcakes are easy to make with an impressive and tasty result. You can make them for any occassion, like a party or birthday, or with their green buttercream you could even make these cupcakes for St Patrick's Day!

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Ingredient Tips & Equipment Information

Make sure all your ingredients (particularly the butter and eggs) are at room temperature before you start baking.
I used a baking spread for the cupcakes and unsalted butter for the buttercream.
I recommend using a good quality peppermint extract for the perfect minty flavour. And you don't need a lot of it to get the right balance of mint versus chocolate. Remember that with peppermint, a little goes a long way!
You can decorate the cupcakes with any mint chocolate sweet, I chose Aero but other yummy options include After Eights, Mint Matchmakers or Bendicks.
The two toned buttercream is also optional. If you want all chocolate or all mint buttercream, just double the ingredients for your buttercream of choice.
For the green buttercream I used a professional grade food colouring. These types of food colouring not only provide excellent colour results, but they are gel based so they do not make the buttercream sloppy. They are also easily available for purchase online. My favourite brands are Pro Gel and Sugarflair. Other good quality brands are Colour Mill and Americolor.
Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50) .
For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

How to make Mint Chocolate Aero Cupcakes

To make the cupcakes, whisk the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Then add the eggs, peppermint extract and milk and whisk in well. Gently mix in the self raising flour, baking powder and cocoa powder until everything is combined.

Divide the mixture between the cupcake cases and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a thin skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Make the mint green buttercream by mixing together butter, icing sugar, peppermint extract, milk and green food colouring. Make the chocolate buttercream by mixing together butter, icing sugar, cocoa powder and milk. Put both buttercreams into a piping bag on opposite sides. Pipe the buttercream onto the cupcakes and decorate with Aero bubbles and chunks of Aero bar.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

How long do the cupcakes last for and can they be frozen?

The cupcakes will last for 2-3 days in an airtight container in a cool place. You can freeze both the cupcakes and the buttercream. To freeze them separately, wrap the cupcakes well in cling film or put them in an airtight container. The buttercream can be frozen in a sealed tub. To freeze them decorated, freeze the cupcakes on a plate until frozen solid, then carefully wrap in cling film. Remove the clingfilm when you take the cupcakes out of the freezer to defrost, as if they defrost with it still on it could damage the buttercream.

Can you make the cupcakes with plain/all purpose flour?

Self raising flour, which is very commonly used in the UK where I am based, already contains a raising agent and a little salt too. Therefore if you want to swap it for plain or all purpose flour, you will need to add some baking powder and also a little salt if you like. Some people like to add salt to cake recipes and some don't, so I'll leave that up to you as it won't affect the bake. The general advice is to add 2 teaspoons baking powder (a measuring teaspoon, not the kind you stir your coffee with) per every 200g plain or all purpose flour. So for this recipe you'd need to add 1 + ½ teaspoons baking powder. Please note, I have not tested this recipe using plain or all purpose flour.

Can the cupcakes be made gluten or dairy free?

Yes! For gluten free you can replace the self raising flour with a gluten free self raising flour blend. If you only have a gluten free plain flour blend, you will need to add baking powder. The general advice is to add 2 tsp baking powder per 200g flour, so for this recipe you'd need to add 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder. You may also like to add ¼ tsp xanthan gum for better texture. For a dairy free version, use a dairy free baking spread and dairy free milk for the cupcakes and the buttercream. You will also need to decorate the cupcakes with a dairy free mint chocolate alternative to Aero. Please do check the labels for everything you use to make the cake if you are serving it to someone with an allergy or intolerance.

Do you need an electric mixer to make this recipe?

While you can absolutely make this recipe with a wooden spoon and some elbow grease, I do recommend using an electric mixer for the best results. The cupcakes will be lighter and fluffier when made with an electric mixer. The buttercream will also be smoother. You don't have to use an expensive stand mixer either, you can get electric hand whisks for as little as £10!

Can this recipe be made into a larger cake?

If you'd like to make a bigger version of this cake, check out my Chocolate Mint Cake recipe for details!

Do you have to decorate with two toned buttercream?

No, while the two toned buttercream looks very effective and is simple to do, if you are short on time just double either the green buttercream or chocolate buttercream amounts and decorate the cupcakes with one solid colour.

More tips for making the Mint Chocolate Aero Cupcakes:

I used a Wilton 2D piping nozzle for these cupcakes.
You can spread the buttercream onto the cupcakes with a spoon if you don’t want to pipe it.

Troubleshooting

If you have any questions about this recipe, or if something went wrong and you need help, please use the comment form below and I will get back to you. You can also get in touch with me on my Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. I'd love to hear from you!

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