Name: Chocolate Reindeer Cupcakes
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 175 g Butter or baking spread (unsalted); 175 g Caster sugar; 3 Eggs (large); 1 tbsp Milk; 150 g Self raising flour; 25 g Cocoa powder; A pinch of Baking powder; 150 g Butter (unsalted, softened); 255 g Icing sugar; 45 g Cocoa powder; 1 1/2 tbsp Milk; 24 Pretzels; 12 Red fondant circles or red sweets; 12 Chocolate buttons; 24 Candy eyes

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These super cute Chocolate Reindeer Cupcakes are perfect for Christmas baking, especially if you want to get the kids involved! They will love creating the cute face of Rudolph, and love eating the chocolate cupcake even more! The cupcake and buttercream are an easy chocolate based recipe, and the decorations for the face are made from pretzels for antlers, candy eyes, chocolate buttons for the snout and red fondant circles for the nose. If you can find any suitable red sweets or candies for the nose you can use those instead. I think Santa would love a Reindeer Cupcake left out for him on Christmas Eve!

Ingredient Tips & Equipment Information

Make sure all your ingredients (particularly the butter and eggs) are at room temperature before you start baking.
I used baking spread for the cupcakes and unsalted butter for the buttercream.
For the reindeers antlers, you can use either a whole pretzel, chocolate matchmakers, or even melt some chocolate, pipe an antler shape onto some baking paper, let it set, then add it to the cupcake.
For the reindeer's eyes I used candy eyes, which are commonly available in most larger supermarkets and online. Instead, you could use some white fondant - roll it into a small ball and flatten it out a little. Then dip a cocktail stick into black food colouring and dot it into the middle of the fondant.
For the reindeer's nose I used some red fondant. You could also use a red sweet like a Smartie or Jelly Tot. Or you can get red sprinkles or chocoballs that would work too (Scrumptious Sprinkles do a large red choco ball that would work really well).
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 Reindeer Cupcakes

Make the cupcakes by mixing together butter and sugar. Then whisk in eggs and milk. Finally mix in cocoa powder and self raising flour.

Divide the mixture between cupcake cases and bake them for 20 minutes, then leave to cool.

To decorate the Reindeer Cupcakes, make a chocolate buttercream and pipe it onto the sponge. Smooth it out using a palette knife, then add pretzels for antlers, candy eyes and a chocolate button and red fondant for the nose.

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 with buttercream only (I do not recommend freezing the antler, eye and nose decorations), 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 appearance of 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 additional 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 Xantham 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 dairy free and gluten free ingredients, for example pretzels usually contain gluten and chocolate buttons contain dairy, so look for free from alternatives.

Are there any alternative ways for creating the reindeer's face?

Yes! As you can see above, for the snout and nose you can also pipe and extra blob of chocolate buttercream on the cupcake for the snout and press a red sweet or sprinkle into it for the nose. If you can't get hold of candy eyes, you can use some white fondant - roll it into a small ball and flatten it out a little. Then dip a cocktail stick into black food colouring and dot it into the middle of the fondant. Other options for the antlers are chocolate matchmakers, or you can pipe an antler shape onto some baking paper, let it set, then add it to the cupcake.

More tips for making the Reindeer Cupcakes:

I made all of my Reindeer Cupcakes into red nosed Rudolphs, he is the best reindeer after all! But you can also make the other reindeer by using brown fondant or a brown sweet for the nose instead.
The pretzels will eventually go soft from being in the buttercream, so if you are making them in advance, wait until you're almost ready to serve before adding the pretzels.

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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