Prep time:

25 min

Cook time:

50 min

Serves:

Approx 15

Ingredients

For the giant cupcake:

• 250g self-raising flour
• ½tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 3tbsp cocoa powder
• 220g caster sugar
• 220ml vegetable oil
• 220ml milk
• 3 medium eggs
• 3tbsp golden syrup

For the buttercream:

• 160g unsalted butter softened
• 500g icing sugar, sifted
• 2tsp vanilla extract
• 3tbsp milk

For the ganache:

• 150g dark chocolate
• 150ml double cream

To decorate:

• Mars Planets (optional)
• cocoa powder

Equipment needed:
Giant cupcake mould

Method

Preheat the oven to Fan 160°C and grease the inside of your giant cupcake mould with vegetable oil.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cocoa powder. Stir through the caster sugar until evenly combined. Mix together the liquids: oil, milk, beaten eggs and golden syrup. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.
Using an electric hand whisk, beat together the wet and dry ingredients until evenly blended and smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. Once smooth, pour the batter into the greased mould so that it fills about 3/4 of the way up the mould. Secure the filling insert on top of the bottom half.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes until well risen and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. The time will completely vary on your oven so after 45 minutes, keep checking every 5 minutes until it is cooked through.
Once cooked, cool on a wire rack for 5-10 minutes before removing the silicone mould and leaving to cool completely on the rack.

For the buttercream:

Meanwhile, cream together the butter, icing sugar and vanilla until combined. Add the milk a tablespoon at a time and continue beating for a few minutes until the buttercream reaches a light and fluffy consistency.

For the ganache:

Chop the chocolate into small chunks and place in a medium sized bowl. In a small saucepan bring the cream to the boil before whisking onto the chocolate. Continue whisking until all the chocolate is melted and you have a smooth silky ganache.
Once the cake is cooled, you can begin to assemble it. Start by trimming the bottom side of the top half so that it is flat and will sit flush on top of the bottom half.
Place a blob of ganache on a cake board and place the bottom half of the giant cupcake on top. This will glue the cake to the board.
Once the ganache has cooled to a spreading consistency, spread it onto the bottom half of the cupcake using a palette knife.
Now spread a thick layer of ganache on top of the bottom half as the first layer of filling. Place a handful of Mars planets (optional) on top of this followed by piping a layer of the buttercream.
Now place the top half of the giant cupcake on top of the filling.
Take the remaining buttercream and starting from the bottom where the two layers meet, begin to pipe the buttercream around the cupcake in a continuous swirl as you would ice a normal sized cupcake, finishing at the peak. Put the cake in the fridge for 5 minutes to harden slightly.
Dip the bottom of the ganache bowl into some hot water to loosen it and whisk until you have a thick pouring consistency. Remove the cake from the fridge and pour the remaining ganache over the top of the cupcake to provide your mudslide.
Decorate with as many Mars Planets or other chocolate bites as you desire and finish with a generous dusting of cocoa powder.

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