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I tried a chocolate cupcake recipe from Queen Elizabeth's pastry chefs and it resulted in a royal baking fail

Talia LakritzMay 1, 2020, 21:11 IST
I tried a chocolate cupcake recipe from Queen Elizabeth's pastry chefs and it resulted in a royal baking fail

Nailed it.Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

  • Queen Elizabeth's royal pastry chefs shared a chocolate cupcake recipe from the palace kitchens in honor of her 94th birthday.
  • I tried making the cupcakes, but some important details about the ingredients got lost in translation.
  • After the first batch came out crumbly and deflated, we discovered that British "self-raising flour" and American "self-rising flour" aren't the same thing.
  • We tried the recipe again with a few tweaks, and the cupcakes came out perfectly.
  • Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Queen Elizabeth is known for having a sweet tooth — especially for chocolate.

Darren McGrady, who worked as a personal chef for the royal family for 15 years, previously told Insider that the Queen loves chocolate and takes a slice of chocolate biscuit cake with her when she travels.

In honor of her 94th birthday on April 21, royal pastry chefs shared a recipe for chocolate cupcakes from the palace kitchen.

Since everyone seems to be baking to pass the time while social distancing, I decided to give the recipe a try with some help from my family.

Read the original article on Insider

It's amazing the difference a few small tweaks can make.

It's amazing the difference a few small tweaks can make.
Both sets of cupcakes. The second batch is on the left. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

If you're going to make this recipe yourself, here's what I'd recommend:

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, not 302.
  • Make your own self-raising flour by adding two teaspoons of baking powder to each cup.
  • Pulse granulated sugar in a blender to make caster sugar.
  • Coat the white chocolate chips in flour to prevent them from sinking.
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We decorated the second batch of cupcakes with chocolate frosting and sprinkles.

We decorated the second batch of cupcakes with chocolate frosting and sprinkles.
Decorating the cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

They didn't look as perfect as the photos from the royal pastry chefs, but we used edible glitter to give them a majestic touch.

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The cupcakes also held their shape when we took them out of the tins.

The cupcakes also held their shape when we took them out of the tins.
These cupcakes came out well. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

I was glad we redeemed ourselves — and had even more delicious cupcakes to eat.

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The second time around, the cupcakes came out perfectly.

The second time around, the cupcakes came out perfectly.
Success! Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

They puffed up nicely, and the white chocolate chips didn't sink to the bottom.

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We also preheated the oven to a standard 350 degrees instead of the 302 as the recipe instructed.

We also preheated the oven to a standard 350 degrees instead of the 302 as the recipe instructed.
Filling the cupcake tins with the improved batter. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

My mom said that 302 degrees sounded too low, so we decided to tweak that, too.

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To prevent the white chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom again, we coated them in flour — a trick another one of my sisters picked up from watching Ina Garten on the Food Network.

To prevent the white chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom again, we coated them in flour — a trick another one of my sisters picked up from watching Ina Garten on the Food Network.
White chocolate chips. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

"That's what she does in her brownie recipe," my sister said. "The Queen's pastry chef got nothing on the Barefoot Contessa. You can quote me on that."

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I was ready to admit defeat, but one of my sisters insisted on trying the recipe again and incorporating our newfound information.

I was ready to admit defeat, but one of my sisters insisted on trying the recipe again and incorporating our newfound information.
Take two. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

We made our own version of British self-raising flour by adding two teaspoons of baking powder to every cup of flour, and pulsed granulated sugar in a blender to make caster sugar.

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As we retraced our steps, we realized that a few important details about the ingredients got lost in translation.

As we retraced our steps, we realized that a few important details about the ingredients got lost in translation.
The ugly cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

I went through each ingredient, thinking that I might have miscalculated the amounts as I was converting them from the metric system, but the math checked out.

As I was reviewing the flour, I discovered that British "self-raising flour" and American "self-rising flour" aren't the same thing. British self-raising flour has a half teaspoon more baking powder per cup than the American counterpart, according to the food blog Deliberate Fare. Since the chocolate cupcake recipe had two cups of flour, that meant we'd inadvertently left out a full teaspoon of baking powder.

I also discovered that "caster sugar" is not, in fact, just a British name for regular sugar. It's finer than granulated sugar, but not quite powdered. A recipe we found on the food blog Eugenie Kitchen said you can make your own by pulsing granulated sugar in a blender 15 times.

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It didn't help much.

It didn't help much.
The finished cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The cupcakes looked like they were from an episode of Netflix's "Nailed It!"

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We tried to salvage the cupcakes by frosting them with the royal pastry chefs' buttercream icing recipe and decorating them with sprinkles.

We tried to salvage the cupcakes by frosting them with the royal pastry chefs' buttercream icing recipe and decorating them with sprinkles.
Decorating the cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The buttercream recipe consisted of:

  • 90g (about 1/3 cup) high percentage dark chocolate
  • 100g (1/2 cup) butter
  • 125g (1 and 1/4 cup) powdered sugar
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My family agreed that even though they tasted fine, something had clearly gone wrong.

My family agreed that even though they tasted fine, something had clearly gone wrong.
My brother tries a cupcake. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

My mom, who is an excellent baker, didn't want me to publish pictures of the results. Sorry, mom.

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Despite their disfigurements, they tasted delicious.

Despite their disfigurements, they tasted delicious.
Trying the cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The desserts had a rich, smooth chocolate flavor that wasn't overpowering or too sweet. Much better than a mix.

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The chocolate chips had also sunk to the bottom of the cupcakes.

The chocolate chips had also sunk to the bottom of the cupcakes.
The white chocolate chips sank. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

They were supposed to be evenly distributed throughout. Instead, they settled at the bottom.

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Our fears were confirmed when we took them out of the oven.

Our fears were confirmed when we took them out of the oven.
The finished cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The tops of the cupcakes had caved inwards instead of rising, and they crumbled whenever we handled them.

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As they were baking, something didn't look right.

As they were baking, something didn't look right.
The cupcakes in the oven. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The recipe says to bake them for 15 to 18 minutes until they're springy to the touch, but the cupcakes didn't look like they were rising.

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After adding the white chocolate chips, he spooned the batter into cupcake tins.

After adding the white chocolate chips, he spooned the batter into cupcake tins.
Making cupcakes. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The recipe says you can also use nuts or dried fruit instead of chocolate chips.

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My nephew, who loves baking, helped combine the wet ingredients with the dry ones.

My nephew, who loves baking, helped combine the wet ingredients with the dry ones.
Mixing the wet and dry ingredients. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The recipe says to "slowly add the wet mixture into the dry mixture, little by little," to ensure that the batter doesn't get lumpy.

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We started by measuring out the dry ingredients.

We started by measuring out the dry ingredients.
The dry ingredients in a bowl. Courtesy of Saraleah Lakritz

The recipe also says to preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius, which is 302 degrees Fahrenheit.

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The royal family posted the cupcake recipe on social media, along with pictures of the finished product.

The royal family posted the cupcake recipe on social media, along with pictures of the finished product.
Cupcakes fit for a queen. theroyalfamily/Instagram

If you're not used to baking in the metric system, here are my measurement conversions:

  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 and 1/2 cups milk
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 4 tablespoons butter (melted and cool)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups self-raising flour
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 and 1/2 cups caster sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 cup white chocolate chips

You can find the full recipe here.

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