The Cupcake Thread!

[Linda W]

Marcy,

You did a beautiful job on your cake

. I wish I could have a big ole slice of it.

. It looks beautiful.

 

[marcy]

Thanks Linda. I''ll send you a piece in the mail.

 

[Porridge]

Is there any way of indexing, or making an easier way to search this thread? It''s as good as any baking book! You gals are amazing! But it''s impossible to troll through 63 pages to find one recipe...

 

[Porridge]

I have another question, about marshmallow frosting. Mara I see you used heavy cream and milk. How much of each did you use to keep it stiff enough for piping? Did you melt the marshmallows first?

And one more question

do you gals use piping bags? Do you wash them and reuse? Or do you make piping bags from greaseproof paper?

Thanks

 

[vip0802]

hey Porridge! i use Wilton's disposable piping bags and sometimes the occasional plastic sandwich bag. they're not the most environment friendly, but they're the most convenient for me.

mia1181 - your cuppies are awesome and look soooo good!

 

[Dandi]

Mia and Marcy, your cakes look incredible!!

Clever ladies!!

 

[Porridge]

Thanks vip! Sandwich bags is a clever idea when you''re in a bind.

 

[Mara]

I love love love my piping bags. They are Ateco, they are the best ones I have found and I have tried Wilton and Loyal. They soften up with age, the 12 and 14 are my favorite sizes, anything smaller and you have to keep refilling. We just wash them out in the sink with soap and water after use and air dry and they are good to go. I used disposable when I started but I hated the rough scratchy feel on my hand and when you pipe a lot or are doing a big piece or lots of cupcakes it does make a diff as to how the bag feels in your hand. Ateco gets really soft after 5-10 uses and molds to my hand. I have like 3-4 since they are not that expensive. I cut diff size holes in them for tips because I have 2-3 size tips that I like to use and I have a smaller bag for 'regular' tips (aka detail work).

Re: Marshmallow Frosting... I used two diff ones on the cupcakes I did. Round 1 (a month or more ago?) I melted marshmallows in the microwave with heavy cream and then mixed it up and let it sit to cool until it thickened. IT tasted good, like marshmallows and cream. There is also a recipe online for frosting marshmallow cream, similar to what I did I think but maybe adding corn syrup or something then whipping to stiffness for piping. Mine was not pipeable.

Then this 2nd round I did fluffy boiled icing which is basically sugar, water, corn syrup and egg whites (I use merengue powder). It tastes like marshmallow frosting when done (it's all the same ingredients!) and it is GREAT for piping if you get the right consistency. It makes BEAUTIFUL swirls, better than any buttercream or any other cream I have ever used. My girlfriend loves this frosting and requested it, it's a pain to make because as it basically acts like marshmallow it is SOOOO sticky and makes cleanup horrible. And if it gets on anything, it's sticky for days. But it is a great frosting for marshmallow anything. I used it for the inside of my cupcakes and for the dollops on top. You can google Fluffy Boiled Icing to find a recipe. It's very easy. I microwave the sugar and corn syrup and water rather than put it on the stovetop and it works fine. You also cannot refridgerate this (Which I learned the hard way) as it breaks down the frosting and it collapses into a mess. It lasted through 95 degree weather without sagging or melting, amazing! It gets hard after you pipe it and literally will glue anything into place hahaha.

LOVE your swirls on those 4th of july cupcakes mia!!

 

[Porridge]

Thanks so much Mara!

 

[Jas12]

Mia--YUM, those RV look divine! The icing looks so silky!

Mara--i''ll have to try that icing, sounds delish!

....

I of course forgot to take good pics of my finished bridal shower cuppies this weekend. They were a hit. People were lovin the chocolate transfers. It helped that the pattern on them and the color matched the invites and room decor

By accident i used salted butter in the buttercream (noticed *after* i whipped up a batch!) and surprisingly it got rave reviews. What do you guys usually use? I always add a bit of salt into whatever i am baking (even if it is not called for) i think it just adds some sort of dimension to the flavor and maybe this was the case for the icing too?

Anyway, i stole 2 pictures posted on FB, so it might be grainy, but it''s all i have...

 

[Jas12]

another ....


The bride wants Red Velvet for her wedding. I am not sure i am really cut out to do a 100+ for a wedding . I am totally still a novice and although i know i could pull off a few dozen, i am not convinced i could do a huge order. I also prefer to serve them fresh and that would mean waking up VERY early to assemble. I have to give her an answer soon so i better really think it over!

 

[vip0802]

Jas12 - they look incredible and you did a fantastic job! i''m totally in love with the choco transfers you used too. they''re gorgeous! i usually use unsalted butter in my baking, and like you, i always add a pinch of salt to bring out the sweetness. i want to say that''s what happened with your buttercream but i can''t say from experience. i don''t think salted butter taste too salty so maybe it added just the right amount. i''ll have to try a small batch using salted butter and see how it turns out...it sounds delicious!

i think it''s awesome that the bride asked you to do her wedding cuppies! i''ve never made more than several dozen so i''m not sure how to handle a large order like that either. i say that you go for it and call it a learning experience. obviously, i can''t extend any physical help but we''re here for you on the forum! i think you would do an awesome job

 

[marcy]

Porridge, I use Keeseal brand disposable bags. I am a total NOVICE but I hate cleaning bags and just throwing them away is a time saver for me. Keeseal are thicker than the Wilton bags and work great for me.

Thanks, DandiAndi. I start on fondant this week.

Jas your cupcakes love marvelous.

 

[marcy]

Jas, I tried a butter cream recipe I found on cake central with a 5 star rating. It had one cube of salted butter, one cube of unsalted butter and one cube of crisco. That is the recipe I used for the cocoa frosting and everyone loved the taste of it. i don''t generally like frosting and found it quite delicious - probably more the chocolate than anything.

 

[Dandi]

Just gorgeous, Jas! No wonder the bride wants you to do her wedding cuppies, they are so professional!!!

 

[InLuv101]

Jas - they look fantastic!!

Awesome job!

 

[Jas12]

Thanks for the nice compliments all. They were fun to do (minus the butter fiasco)

Marcy--i think i will use half salted/ half unsalted next time. That''s a good idea. And maybe i''ll do some blind taste tests with the 3 combos (salted, unsalted, and a mix) to see what is liked best.
Sometimes when i am short on butter i add in some shortening, but not when i am making them for an event. My frosting is simply butter, icing sugar, milk or light cream and a good vanilla. Shortening leaves a film or something in my mouth that isn''t super noticeable when mixed with butter, but it still bugs me a bit.

Does anyone know why so many recipes call for shortening in the frosting? Is it the way it mixes up?

 

[Mara]

before i forget entirely, here is the s''mores cupcake in all it''s dolloped glory. good enough to eat!!! once again, this is fluffy boiled icing and it tastes like marshmallows. i did graham cracker cake with chocolate chips sprinkled throughout, filled with the frosting, piped with the frosting and then put a graham and hersheys bite on top. people LOVED them.

jas i love how the cuppies turned out, FAB job!

 

[Jas12]

Mara, i just want to dive into that frosting

. Love how it''s so dollop-y

 

[Jas12]

Mara, don''t know if you mentioned it, but did you use Jaders recipe for the graham cake? She made some amazing smores cuppies waaaay back and i was thinking of trying them.

Q about supplies. I am looking for a cut-out for flowers (one where i can add detail to the petals) and a large tip that will do a big dollop on minis and a no-edge swirl on large cuppies (does that make sense?). I can''t find either on the sites i usually visit....

 

[marcy]

Date: 7/8/2009 11:13:27 AM
Author: Jas12
Thanks for the nice compliments all. They were fun to do (minus the butter fiasco)

Marcy--i think i will use half salted/ half unsalted next time. That''s a good idea. And maybe i''ll do some blind taste tests with the 3 combos (salted, unsalted, and a mix) to see what is liked best.
Sometimes when i am short on butter i add in some shortening, but not when i am making them for an event. My frosting is simply butter, icing sugar, milk or light cream and a good vanilla. Shortening leaves a film or something in my mouth that isn''t super noticeable when mixed with butter, but it still bugs me a bit.

Does anyone know why so many recipes call for shortening in the frosting? Is it the way it mixes up?

Jas, I really don''t like how greasy the shortening makes things either. I make the shortening for the flowers in my class but for the frosting on my cakes I use butter. Let me know how your taste tests go.

 

[marcy]

Here is my first fondant cake. We ran out of time in class so I just did some quick drop flowers at the end to finish the cake. Fondant is pretty amazing but I sure don''t like the taste.

 

[TravelingGal]

You guys are all seriously a bunch of artists. Wow.

 

[Camille]

What a great thread

Fondant is wonderful to work with but

MMfondant, much easier to make, can be rolled paper thin and def yummier.

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 7/9/2009 10:47:00 PM
Author: marcyc
Here is my first fondant cake. We ran out of time in class so I just did some quick drop flowers at the end to finish the cake. Fondant is pretty amazing but I sure don''t like the taste.

Oh Marcy, it''s soooooo pretty!!!

 

[steph72276]

Oh Mara, my pregnant self should NOT have seen that yummy smores cupcake this morning. I am going to be craving a smores all day now! Yummo

 

[Dandi]

SO pretty, marcy!!!!!!

 

[Miscka]

Marcy, fantastic!

Mara, lovely as always! Your pics make me happy and hungry

 

[marcy]

Camille, thanks for the review of MM fondant.I might try it once just to see how “tasty” it is.

Thanks Lisa, DandiAndi and Miscka.The next class is a square cake we decorate to look like a package.Should be interesting.

 

[Porridge]

Marcyc that cake looks divine! I can't wait to see the package cake.

I baked these yummy little mini cakes last week. I made a chocolate-mocha cake with hazelnuts, and used raspberry jam to stick the icing. Then I made the swirls with tempered milk and white chocolate, using a fork. They were scrumptious! I'll definitely be making these again.

On the production line...