Bat cakes

Ingredients:

Basic buttercream:

• 2 cups (500g) softened butter
• 4 cups (520g) sifted icing sugar
• 1 tsp (5ml) vanilla essence 
• Food colouring of choice
  

Bat cakes:

• 1 batch chocolate cupcakes (or store bought)
• Chocolate sandwich biscuits, for serving
• Chocolate covered raisins, for serving

Method:

1. For buttercream, whisk softened butter with an electric beater until pale and fluffy
2. Add sifted icing sugar in two batches to ensure the mixture is lump-free.                              
3. Add vanilla essence and food colouring, if you like, mixing thoroughly.                      
4. Cover with clingfilm and store at room temperature.             
5. Add a splash of hot water if buttercream has hardened or is too thick to spread.
6. For bat cakes, top 8 chocolate cupcakes with ½ portion buttercream.
7. Separate one chocolate sandwich biscuit into 2 discs.
8. Using butterceam, secure 2 chocolate-covered raisins on one disc to form eyes.         
9. Add a splash of boiling water to ¼ cup (60g) buttercream to soften and place in a piping bag.
10. Pipe fangs onto bats using remaining buttercream.      
11. Slice the remaining disc in half and secure with buttercream to create wings.                        
12. Repeat until you have 8 bats.
13. Place bats on cupcakes.