Christmas Tree Cupcakes

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Line a muffin tray with cupcake cases.
• Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder in a large mixing basin. Place aside.
• Whisk the butter and sugar together until light and creamy.
• Combine the milk and vanilla essence in a mixing bowl.
• Mix in one egg and one spoonful of the flour mixture until well-integrated.
• Mix in the second egg and one tablespoon of the flour mixture until well combined.
• Fold in the remaining flour mixture until fully combined.
• Divide the mixture among the cupcake covers using an ice cream scoop.
• Bake for 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of a cupcake comes out clean.
• Allow cooling for a few minutes on the tray before transferring to a wire rack to cool fully before frosting.

For the Frosting

• Beat the butter until soft, about 2 minutes, with an electric hand whisk or stand mixer.
• Combine the icing sugar, vanilla extract, milk, and food coloring in a mixing bowl. Mix in all of the ingredients, starting on low and gradually rising to medium-high speed. This should just take around 2 minutes.
• Fill a piping bag with frosting and a big star pipe tip (I use the Wilton 1M).
• Starting on the edge of the cupcake, pipe the frosting around and in towards the center, working your way up to make a Christmas tree shape.
• To make the baubles, top each cupcake with a sugar star and sugar balls.