Preheat the oven to 180ºc/160ºc fan and line a 12-hole muffin tray with cases.
Beat together the unsalted butter & light brown sugar until creamy and smooth.
Add in the self raising flour, eggs & vanilla extract, and mix on a medium speed (I use my KitchenAid, but any electric mixer will do!) until combined. Try not to mix more than necessary!
Scoop the mixture into the cupcake cases (just over half full) and bake in the oven for 17-20 minutes until slightly golden on top and a skewer poked into one of them comes out clean.
Remove from the trays and leave to cool fully on a wire rack.
Once completely cooled, cut out a hole in the middle of the cupcake (like you would a butterfly cupcake!) and fill with Carnations caramel.
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Beat the unsalted butter with an electric mixer for a couple of minutes to loosen it, then gradually beat in the icing sugar until well combined.
Then add the cocoa powder and beat for 5 minutes until a silky lovely buttercream texture is produced. If the mixture is a little stiff, add 1 tbsp of boiling water at a time until you reach the consistency you want!
Decoration
I used a 2D closed star nozzle to decorate my cakes, but you can do whatever you like! Add in a shortbread cookie, or crumble it over the top and enjoy!
Notes
I used a basic sponge recipe, but you can easily change the sponge to be a chocolate one as well if you're craving even more chocolate goodness.
These will last in an airtight container for 3-4 days (if they last that long!), or you can freeze them for up to 3 months!
I used pre-made shortbread as I was being particularly lazy and I had some leftover, but you can use my Shortbread Hearts to make your own if you want to!