Marshmallow White Chocolate Rocky Road cupcakes

I don't think there's anything quite as good as White chocolate Rocky Road made with macadamia nuts. I first tried this at a little boutique bakery in Double Bay where I worked. If ever I needed an energy fix, a small sweet square of this would do. A square would do but more often than not, more than one square of this was consumed. They would also add Turkish Delight into the mix to give it that wonderful chewy tooth-sticking texture to it.

I sought to recreate something like this but alas I did not have any Turkish Delight. So I had to be satisfied with a white chocolate, macadamia and marshmallow Rocky Road instead. The base of the cake is like a lighter version of a white chocolate mud, sticky with melted marshmallows and digging out the centre and adding a fresh marshmallow and macadamia halves added to its Rocky Road feel. Once you try these with the sticky melted marshmallow, crunchy macadamias and squelchy marshmallow inner and smooth white chocolate ganache you'll be wanting more.

These are my entry for the Cupcake Hero baking challenge-wish me luck!

Marshmallow Rocky Road cupcakes

For the cupcakes (makes 12)

• 125g butter

• 75g white eating chocolate chopped coarsely

• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar

• 1/2 cup (125ml) milk

• 3/4 cup (105g) plain flour

• 1/2 cup (75g) self raising flour

• 1 egg

• 10 large marshmallows chopped into smaller pieces or 36 mini marshmallows

Step 1 - Preheat oven to moderate 170C degrees/150C fan forced. Line 12 hole standard muffin pan with paper cases

Step 2 - Combine butter, chocolate, sugar and milk in a small saucepan, stir over low heat until smooth. Cool 15 minutes.

Step 3 - Transfer mixture to large bowl. Whisk in sifted flours, then egg and stir in chopped up marshmallows. Transfer into a measuring jug for easy pouring and divide mixture among cases.

Step 4 - Bake large cakes for about 30-40 minutes, regular cakes about 20 minutes. Cool in tin for 10 minutes, then turn cakes onto wire rack to cool.

For topping and filling

• 300grams white chocolate chopped in small pieces

• 1/2 cup (125ml) cream

• Rose pink colouring tint

• 6 marshmallows cut in half

• 18 whole macadmias cut in half (3 halves per cupcake or thereabouts)

To decorate

• Marshmallows to decorate

• Chocolate coated coffee beans

• Pink pearl mini cachous

To fill: Cut out centre of the cake and pop in a marshmallow half and 3 macadamia halves. Trim "lid" and replace on top. Cake is ready to ice with ganache.

For ganache: Combine chocolate and cream in a small heatproof bowl; stir with metal spoon over pan of simmering water until melted and smooth. Carefully stir in colouring tint using a restrained hand. Cool in fridge until it reaches a piping consistency and pipe ganache over cupcakes using swirl tip nozzle.

To decorate: cut marshmallows into 4 even pieces using scissors and shape each petal being careful not to pull too hard. The way that you cut the marshmallow really determines the shape so cut evenly and carefully. Sprinkle pearl pink mini cachous on the centre of each petal (handle the edges as centre will be sticky). Place 4 petals on each cupcake, use chocolate coated coffee bean as the centre and sprinkle more cachous in the indentations of the icing.