Cappuccino Cupcakes

I came across this beautiful photo today and it made me crave a cappuccino.  I wanted to drink this cupcake and then look in the mirror to see my white icing moustache....that is the essence of art. 

  Tlemetry

(Flickr photostream)

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates men and women who died while in military service to the United States.  First enacted to honor Union and Confederate soldiers following the Civil War, it was extended after World War I to honor Americans who have died in all wars.

A national moment of remembrance takes place at 3 pm local time.  Please honor those who have given their lives for our freedom and thank those who are currently serving. 

GinaMig

via Google Search

Recipe of the Week: White Chocolate Mud Cupcakes

This yummy recipe will go with whatever you are serving this holiday weekend.  It includes how to make the chocolate curls to garnish your creations.

White Chocolate Mud Cupcakes

Cupcake Recipes

Free Cupcake Recipes - Gourmet & Specialty

Crunch-A-Bunch Cupcakes

These cupcakes are actually Rice Krispie treats molded into cupcakes! 

Kellog's Rice Krispies

Crunch-A-Bunch Cupcake Recipe

Hockey Cupcake Wrappers

The playoffs are in full swing and Lord Stanley's cup will soon be awarded.  Cupcakes would make an excellent game-day snack and these cupcake wrappers from Dress My Cupcake will make your playoff cupcake display more festive.

(Congrats to the Sharks for a great season...get ready to play for the cup next year!)

Dress My Cupcake

12 wrappers for $9.99

More Snow at Lake Tahoe

OK...I love the snow but Puh-Leez can we have some warm weather soon?  It snowed 4 inches this afternoon at my house.  The good news is that plowing was not required, but it is cold and windy.  I would eat two dozen cupcakes if only I could walk around in some flip-flops!  (I would eat cupcakes anyway of course)

from the photostream of

be cheery

They're Always After Me Lucky Charms!

My brother and his wife are leaving on a trip to Ireland today to celebrate their 30th anniversary. 

Dan & Lane...wishing you safe travels and hoping your trip is "magically delicious!"

Lucky Charms cupcakes

Betty Crocker Recipes

Recipe of the Week: Hummingbird Cupcakes

The first hummingbirds of the year appeared this weekend, which is a bit surprising since we got almost a foot of snow last week.  Maybe they know something our weathermen don't.  This week's recipe honors the arrival of the first hummingbirds.

Hummingbird Cupcakes

(from Martha Stewart)

firelyn21

via Flickr

Chocolate...my favorite food group

....what else is there to say!

from the Etsy store of  gigglls

Cupcake Recipe Box Dividers

My plain wooden recipe box is about to get a cupcake makeover!

P.S.  There is a matching recipe box.

KellysPaperCrafts

via Etsy

Cupcake Boxes from Fancy Flours

Fancy Flours is one of my favorite places to order cupcake supplies and I am always looking for unique presentation ideas.  These cupcake boxes are perfect for almost any occasion.  The large box holds 4 cupcakes and costs $12 for 3 boxes.  The small box holds a single cupcake and costs $9 for 4 boxes.

Fancy Flours cupcake boxes

Happy Birthday Payton!

My niece Payton has a birthday this week so I am sending her a virtual cupcake....with congratulations on a very sweet new kayak & paddle!  Love ya!

mommylife.net

via Google images

Hostess Cupcake Coupon

Coupons-R-Fun is offering $1 off two boxes of Hostess cupcakes...so download your coupon and enjoy!

Message for Laurena in Switzerland

Laurena - I bought the Pier 1 cupcake cookie jar for you. Please send your mailing address via carpecupcakes@gmail.com  and I will send it to you.  Pier 1 does not currently have online ordering (which I could not believe), but I talked to the people in our local store and they are going to begin offering some of their products online.  Thanks for reading the blog!

A Picture (of a Cupcake) is Worth a Thousand Words

This cupcake sums up my week so far! 

Cupcake Bandit

(created by Huge Marmugi for the Cupcake Bandit Film Festival)

I Want This Cupcake Truck!

I was surfing through some blogs today and found this photo of a cupcake truck...I would love to drive this!  The photo is from the Flickr photostream of jctrenton and was featured on a blog called Driving and Dining.  The caption states that the photo was taken as the photographer passed on the highway. 

If the owner of this cupcake truck should happen to read this blog someday and wants to sell this truck....please contact me!

jctrenton

Recipe of the Week: Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes

I am making vegan cupcakes for an upcoming party and this recipe is very very good...even for us non-vegans.

from the Flickr photostream of

MRiggsy24

VeganVanilla Cupcakes

1 cup soymilk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch 

3/4 teaspoon baking powder 

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Mix the soy milk and vinegar and set aside a few minutes to curdle.  In a large bowl, sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt and stir to combine.

 In a separate large bowl, beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar and vanilla. Stir the dry ingredients and mix until no lumps remain.

Fill cupcake liners two-thirds full and bake for 18-20 minutes - checking frequently after 15 minutes. Cool completely.

Music Note Cupcake Picks

I am still in the planning stages for the upcoming graduation party for a musican graduate.  On a lighter note (pun intended) I found these cupcake picks to go with the black and white cupcake wrappers I am making. 

shopbakersnook

Cupcakes and Google Search Page 77

When you do a Google search, how many pages do you click through before you quit or move on to another search?   I did a Google search using the keyword "cupcakes" and it returned a total of 77 pages (45,300,000 results in 0.32 seconds)...so I decided to give whatever was on the last page a chance to be seen. 

You could say I was bored.  You could say I didn't have a clue what to write about. You could say that I need to get a life...and all of these things would be true.

Here's to you Page 77!


Ruth's Kitchen Experiments

Coconut Cupcakes

The English Kitchen

Blog on the Landscape:  Cupcakes

375 Degrees

La Cuisine de Helene:  Red Velvet Cupcakes

A Cupcake in Paris

Started thinking about my upcoming trip to Paris....and then I found this necklace on Etsy.   Can't wait to have a cup of tea and a cupcake near the Eiffel Tower. 

PenelopesPorch

via Etsy

Cupcake Ferris Wheel

As often happens when I go cupcake surfing...I find something cute!  This cupcake ferris wheel is available for $299.99 from Knob Creek Metal Arts. 

cupcake ferris wheel

KnobCreekMetalArts

via Etsy

Recipe of the Week: Mexican Chocolate Sour Cream Cupcakes with Dulce de Leche Frosting

This past week was so busy I didn't have time to celebrate Cinco de Mayo....so I am celebrating it today with a recipe for Mexican Chocolate cupcakes.  This recipe comes from Amanda's Cookin' and is easy and delicious!

Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes with Dulce de Leche Frosting

Amanda's Cookin'

family friendly recipes and sweet desserts

Music Note Cupcake Wrappers

A friend has asked me to make cupcakes for her daughter's high school graduation.  The graduate has earned a college music scholarship so I want to incorporate this honor into the cupcakes.  These musical cupcake wrappers are just what I was looking for!

P.S.  Congrats Maggie!

cupcakelinerswrappers.com

balloons.co.uk

Not Exactly Wedding Cupcakes

I made a cake for a wedding this afternoon.  I did make a few cupcakes out of the extra batter, but not for the wedding...I ate them myself!  I was pleased with the wedding cake, but the groom insisted on putting orchids on top of the cake.  IMHO the orchids were out of place with the roses, but it made him happy.  Anyway...I thought I would share my day even though it wasn't cupcakes.

 

How to Pipe Two-Toned Cupcake Icing

Blue Door Bakery (UK) has a video showing an easy way to pipe two-toned icing on cupcakes.  It looks really nice using the 1M Wilton tip to create a white rose with colored edges. 

Cupcakes & Tulips

I made lemon cupcakes today with strawberry buttercream.  I cooked some fresh strawberries and made a puree and added that to the plain buttercream.  I have to say it turned out to be quite tasty.  A few months ago I bought a plastic cupcake vase and filled it with silk tulips....so I used that in the photos.

Laduree (Paris)

My friend Kristi has left London and is now on pastry assignment in Paris.  She sent pictures from Laduree in Paris today so I have to share them.  She bought five mini macaroons, a chocolate eclair, and a small piece of chocolate gateau for $25 USD....sounds pricey but she said it was worth every bite!  I will be in Paris June 9-11 and will sample some goodies for myself! 

If you have time, check out the Laduree web site because it is a work of art itself.

French cupcakes

(really nice photos are on their web site)

Pastries!

Macaroon selection

Beautiful packaging!

Recipe of the Week: Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Through no fault of my own, I am making a wedding cake this week.  I thought I was helping out a friend, but as it turns out, my friend did not have anything to do with this arrangement...I do wish it was cupcakes instead of this cake. 

But on to the recipe...the client wants an icing that is not too sweet so I am making a Swiss Meringue Buttercream instead of my usual buttercream.  I can't imagine why someone would not want a sweet icing, but it is not my wedding.  This recipe is easy and makes a great presentation.

calista lee

Swiss Meringue Buttercream  (makes 5 cups)

1 1/4 cups sugar
5 large egg whites                                       
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter - cut into pieces

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Place sugar and egg whites in the heat-proof bowl of an electric mixer. Set bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, and whisk until sugar has dissolved and egg whites are hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. It should feel completely smooth when you rub it between your fingers.

Transfer bowl to mixer stand. Using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed until mixture has cooled completely and formed stiff and glossy peaks, about 10 minutes.

Add the butter, one piece at a time, and beat until incorporated after each addition. If the buttercream appears curdled after all the butter has been added, it will become smooth again with continued beating. Add vanilla, and beat just until combined.

Switch to the paddle attachment, and beat on the lowest speed to eliminate any air pockets, about 5 minutes. If using buttercream within several hours, cover bowl with plastic wrap, and set aside at cool room temperature. Can transfer to an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator, up to 3 days. Before using, bring buttercream to room temperature, and beat on the lowest speed with the paddle attachment until smooth, about 5 minutes.