Email to Stella      

Cupcakes: The Cutest Cupcakes Ever

Source of Recipe

Good Housekeeping


Recipe Introduction

http://magazines.ivillage.com/goodhousekeeping/print/0,,573274,00.html

List of Ingredients

Click on link above to see photos of The Cutest Cupcakes Ever!


Recipe

SPOTTED PUPPY
Use white frosting to pipe 1/4-inch beads to cover top of cupcake. Use chocolate frosting to pipe ears, spots and mouth. Attach small red candy heart for nose and mini M&M's for eyes. Attach 2-inch piece red shoestring licorice for collar.

HENS & CHICKS
For hen, frost 2 1/2-inch cupcake with thin layer white frosting. Arrange chow mein noodles around outer edge to resemble nest. Pipe mounds of white frosting for hen's body and spikes for wings and tail. Use chocolate frosting to pipe eyes. Cut gumdrop for beak and red fruit leather for comb; attach. For chicks, pipe mounds of yellow frosting to cover tops of mini cupcakes for chicks' bodies. Dip 2 sides of each chick in yellow sugar crystals for wings. Pipe chocolate eyes and cut gumdrop pieces for beaks.

PURPLE MONSTER
Spoon purple frosting into decorating bag fitted with small star tip. Starting at outer edge of cupcake, pipe spikes of frosting in concentric circles to completely cover top. Attach round white candies for eyes and mini M&M's for pupils, small red candy for nose and black shoestring licorice for hair.


Natural Beauties
Our Special Cupcakes:
Step-by-Step Instructions

SHINING SUN
Frost cupcake with bright orange frosting; sprinkle top with orange sugar. Dip wide end of each cone-shaped corn snack into frosting and attach around outer edge. Pipe chocolate frosting smile and attach mini M&M's for eyes.

FESTIVE FLOWERS
Melt choice of colored candy melts with vegetable shortening (1 tablespoon shortening per 1 cup candy). Spread melted candy evenly on sheet of waxed paper to 1/8-inch thickness. Place on cookie sheet and refrigerate 5 minutes. Place 1-inch metal flower-shaped cookie cutter in small bowl of hot water to warm up. Remove cutter and wipe dry; use to cut out flowers. Frost cupcake with green frosting. Arrange flowers on top; use dots of frosting to attach M&M's as centers.

DEEP-SEA FISH
Frost 3 cupcakes with bright blue frosting; roll edges in blue sugar crystals. For each fish, assemble 3 cupcakes lengthwise, side by side. Starting from tail end of fish, arrange variety of colored M&M candies for fish scales. From green fruit leather cut fins, tail and 2-inch semicircle for fish head; attach. Pipe red mouth and add a small brown candy for eye.


Adorable Objects
Our Special Cupcakes:
Step-by-Step Instructions

STOP SIGN
Melt red candy melts with vegetable shortening (1 tablespoon shortening per 1 cup candy). Spread melted candy evenly on sheet of waxed paper to 1/8-inch thickness. Place on cookie sheet and refrigerate 5 minutes. Cut 2 1/2-inch octagonal template from cardboard. Place tip of small knife in small bowl of hot water to warm up. Remove knife and wipe dry; use to cut out candy octagon. Frost cupcake with chocolate frosting; roll edge in crushed chocolate wafers. Attach candy octagon to top of cupcake. Use white frosting to pipe word STOP on octagon and to outline sign.

ICE CREAM CONE
Frost cupcake with white frosting; roll edges in clear sugar crystals. Trim vanilla wafer to make 2-inch triangle; press wafer triangle onto cupcake, allowing point to overhang cupcake edge. Use pink frosting to pipe ice cream on cone and cupcake. Sprinkle ice cream with multicolor decors; top with a small red candy.

GUMBALL MACHINE
Frost cupcake with yellow frosting. Pipe white frosting to cover half of mini vanilla wafer. Sprinkle frosted half of wafer with multicolor decors. Attach wafer to center of cupcake. Frost remaining half of wafer, then pipe line of frosting around edge of wafer. Trim red fruit leather into 1" by 1/2" semicircle and 1-inch square. Attach semicircle at top, slipping just under wafer for cap, and square at bottom, slipping just under wafer as base of gumball machine. Use melted chocolate to pipe outline on semicircle and square; pipe opening on base for gumballs to come out. Attach small red candy to top.


Traveling Treats
Our Special Cupcakes:
Step-by-Step Instructions

HOT-AIR BALLOON
For balloon, frost 2 1/2-inch cupcake with yellow frosting. Use purple, red and chocolate frosting to pipe lines and decorations on top of balloon. Make a small flag from red fruit leather wrapped around a piece of black shoestring licorice; secure at top of balloon. For balloon basket, frost mini cupcake with chocolate frosting. Trim sugar wafer cookie to 1 1/2" by 1" rectangle and attach to top of mini cupcake; decorate with purple frosting and orange decors. Connect basket to balloon with pieces of black shoestring licorice.

BICYCLE
Frost 2 cupcakes with white frosting. For each bicycle, pipe chocolate frosting spokes on both cupcakes, then outline edges of wheels. Attach one blue M&M candy to center of each wheel. Using 3 (3-inch-long) chocolate-coated cookie sticks, cut one into 2 1/2-inch piece, cut next into 1 1/2-inch piece and leave the third uncut. With dot of melted chocolate, attach 1 1/2-inch piece to top of 2 1/2-inch piece for handlebar assembly; refrigerate until set. Attach gumdrop or trimmed Mexican hat candy to uncut stick for seat. Attach stick with seat on an angle connecting the 2 cupcakes, then attach handlebar piece.

BABY BUGGY
Frost three-fourths of each cupcake with pink frosting; frost remaining fourth with white frosting. Attach 2 mini vanilla wafers to bottom of pink frosting for wheels; cut off one-fourth of a third mini wafer and attach to white frosting for baby's head. Pipe yellow frosting lines for top of buggy; attach white flower-shaped decors for ruffles along buggy top. Pipe white spokes on buggy wheels and attach mini M&M's for hubcaps. Decorate baby's face.