These Cauldron Cakes are the ultimate Harry Potter eye candy. They are easy to make, fun to eat, and, above all, delicious. Though the steps may appear long or complicated from a quick glance at the recipe below, I assure you they aren't. In less than an hour, you can have one of these cauldron cakes in your belly. By simply flipping a cupcake over, it opens a whole new world of possibilities. These cauldron cakes consist of devil's food cake cupcakes dipped into a rich chocolate glaze and filled to the brim with marshmallow filling. Chocolate chips form the cauldron feet, which not only keep these cauldrons looking more authentic, but stop the cauldrons from rolling around. I like to think the edible gold glitter means these cauldrons are filled with a little Felix Felicis (or "liquid luck").

These cupcakes would also make a perfect Halloween treat!

One Year Ago: Chocolate Chip Raisin Cookies

Cauldron Cakes

Inspired by Bakingdom

Yields 12 cauldrons

12 devil's food cupcakes

1 recipe for Chocolate Glaze (below)

1 recipe for Marshmallow Filling (below)

Approximately 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Edible gold glitter

Chocolate Glaze

6 ounces (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate chips

4 tablespoons butter

In a double boiler, melt together the chocolate and butter, stirring until smooth. Glaze will be relatively thick. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes before use. If chocolate thickens too much, return to heat and stir until smooth and melted once more.

Marshmallow Filling

1 cup Marshmallow Fluff (or prepared marshmallow cream)

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

1/2 cup confectioners sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, beat together the marshmallow fluff, shortening, sugar, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.

To assemble

Using a cupcake corer or sharp knife, cut out a cavity in the bottom of the cupcake. When using a knife, I run it in a circular motion around the cupcake, while always pointing the knife towards the center (this will make the cavity cone shaped).

Dip the top of the cupcake into the chocolate glaze. Flip the cupcakes right side up and let rest until the chocolate sets, about 30 minutes. To speed up the process, place cupcakes in the refrigerator.

To make the cauldron feet, take 3 chocolate chips and form a small triangle, placing each chocolate chip roughly an inch from the others. Place the top of a cupcake onto the chocolate chips and push down ever so slightly so the chocolate chips will stick into the chocolate glaze. Repeat for the rest of the cupcakes.

Place remaining chocolate glaze into a piping bag and pipe a chocolate rim around the edge of the opening to the cauldron. If chocolate is too thick to pipe, heat chocolate glaze up until warm and allow to sit until glaze thickens slightly. If chocolate glaze is too runny to pipe, wait a few minutes until the glaze thickens to a pipe-able consistency. Alternatively, you could use a knife to spread the glaze around the edge of the cupcake.

Fill a pastry bag with marshmallow filling and pipe into the cavity of the cupcakes. Garnish the top with edible gold glitter.

To make cauldron handle, melt the remaining chocolate chips, stir until smooth, and place into a pastry bag. You don't need a special tip for this step; I simply cut off the very end of the pastry bag which was sufficient. On a non-stick mat or wax paper, pipe out the handles (feel free to use any pattern you'd like). I recommend measuring the cupcakes with a ruler to determine how wide you need to make the handles before piping. Let the chocolate set until hardened, approximately 30 minutes, before very carefully peeling off of the non-stick surface and placing into the top of each cupcake.

And you're done! Eat and enjoy.