Chocolate Cupcakes with Flaming Strawberries

To make the cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 175°C.

2. Line muffin tin with cupcake papers and set aside.

3. Sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add eggs, water, cream, oil and vanilla. Mix with a hand held mixer until smooth.

4. Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each half full. Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool before frosting.

To make the frosting:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, cream together sugar, cocoa and butter; beginning on low speed then increase to high. Beat until fluffy and lightened in colour. Transfer mixture to a piping bag fitted with a decorative tip. Frost cupcakes.

For the strawberries:

1. Hollow the strawberries carefully. If you pierce the side of the strawberry accidentally, start with a new one. Since you'll be setting the alcohol aflame, it is very important that the strawberry is leak-proof.

2. Set one strawberry atop each frosted cupcake. Fill strawberries with liquor just before lighting. If you need to light them all at once, (say, for a party) use a turkey baster to quickly fill all the strawberries and a grill lighter in lieu of matches.

Find tips on how to light the strawberries

Recipe courtesy of Heather Baird, author of SprinkleBakes.