Cakespy thanked me for my thank you!

There's a whole lot of thanking going on and I love it! This won't mean as much to you as it does me, but it just made me laugh out loud and I had to share. In March, I made a little "thank you" movie for my favorite cupcake cartoonist, Cakespy. Well, she decided to return the favor and just one-upped me with this super-cute movie poster inspired by the movie, Barbarella. And, she's sending me the original, too! I think I look pretty cute as a whisk-wielding cupcake. This is so going in my kitchen.

For more out of this world cupcake cuteness, visit Cakespy.

And one more time… thank you!

Hello, Cupcake Giveaway!

You guys have been so sweet and encouraging and you put a smile on my face everyday. So here's a little fun to show my appreciation. I'm having a double, that's right, I said DOUBLE Giveaway.

HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN WIN:
One lucky winner will receive a copy of the book, Hello, Cupcake, courtesy of Houghton-Mifflin Books at Yummr (a community of people passionate about food and a place to share food-related experiences, recipes, reviews, photos, and videos.) This book is as cute as cute gets. Lots of great ideas that I wish I had thought of. And don't worry, if you don't win it here, you still have a shot. Yummr is having a "Cookbook a Day in the Month of May" Giveaway. You can visit Yummr to learn more.

Another lucky winner will receive a cupcake t-shirt from me at bakelove.com.



HOW TO ENTER: It's easy! Just leave your response to the following cupcake question in the comments section. (with an email or website link so I can contact you if you win).



Cutoff for comments is midnight, May 31st, 2008. I'll announce the winners (picked at random) sometime on June 1. Good Luck!

Hey Mom, I got a tattoo……

…… a tattoo cupcake just for you! I love you with all my heart.

Cupcake Bites Made Easy!

Okay, I think you guys will love this. But hate that I don't have better pictures to show you. This is for anyone who wanted to make the Cupcake Pops but didn't feel up to the task. They are based on the Red Velvet Cake Balls I've made before. These Cupcake Bites are just as cute and don't need a cookie cutter to shape. But you will need a candy mold. They are easy to find though. As a matter of fact, here's a link. So instead of lollipop sticks, you can package them in little boxes and wrap with ribbon.

So, if you're a first-time cake baller/cupcake popper, you may want to start with a cake mix and ready-made frosting. (These proportions work right for me everytime.) Then, you can try with your favorite cake and frosting recipe once you see how the proportions and texture should come out. Here's what you do:

Easy Cupcake Bites
1 box cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 X 9 cake)
1 can cream cheese frosting (16 oz.)
1 package chocolate bark (or candy melts for cupcake bottom)
Colored Candy Melts (for cupcake top)
Candy Cup Mold
Sprinkles and m&ms for decoration

1. After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl. (The texture should be fine/fluffy)
2. Using the back of a large spoon, mix thoroughly with 1 can cream cheese frosting. (It may be easier to use fingers to mix together, but be warned it will get messy.)
3. Roll mixture into quarter size balls (make sure they are smaller in diameter than that of your candy mold) and lay on wax paper covered cookie sheet.
4. Chill in the freezer for a few minutes, until they are slightly firm, not frozen.
5. Melt chocolate bark and candy melts in microwave per directions on package.
6. Using a spoon or squeeze bottle, fill each mold cavity with a small amount of chocolate. Sorry, I didn't think to measure how much. But as soon as you fill the cavity, go ahead and place one of your rolled balls into it. Carefully push it down until the force causes the chocolate to push up and fill in around the sides of the ball. You may have to experiment with a couple to get the right amount. Stop pushing once the chocolate reaches the top edge.
7. Place the mold tray filled with cupcakes in the freezer for just a few minutes to let the chocolate set. Remove and then gently pull up on the cake ball top to release from candy mold.
8. Now, holding the bottom of the cupcake, dip the top in another color of melted chocolate.
9. Decorate.
10. And, probably impress your friends and family.

Makes about 50. Store in an airtight container and they will last for several days.

This Takes the Cake!

When I made these Garfield cupcakes the other day, I never expected the people at Garfield to see them, and I definitely didn't expect to be mentioned on their website. I feel like a kid again. Just like I did when I received that first letter from Jim Davis almost 25 years ago. Thanks Jim and everyone at Paws, Inc.!

Wow Your Mom on Mother's Day!

Can't decide on flowers or candy? Then give your mom both - and some cupcakes to boot.

These cute candy flowers were inspired by fellow flickr user mommawants1more. She does a great job with this creative candy technique. Then I also found this decorating style featured in the book, The Whimsical Bakehouse, and saw how easy it was to do using colored candy melts. And you know, I have my fair share of those laying around the kitchen lately. So you guessed it, I started melting. Read below to see how you can do it too.



Find a design you want to use or draw it by hand for a more whimsical feel.
Place the drawing on a cookie sheet and cover with wax paper. Tape it down flat so it doesn't move. Use one unmelted yellow candy melt for each flower center.



Melt the white candy coating and use a plastic bottle (shown) or ziploc bag with the corner cut out to pipe the outline of your shape. Place in the freezer for a couple of minutes until hardened. Remove.



Fill in the shapes with a second color. It shouldn't be too hot. (or too hard… my niece even helped me with this.)



Return to freezer to harden. Remove and flip over to reveal the flat side to display on your cupcakes. Easy!



And if you want to make some letters, that's easy too! Use an alphabet mold and fill shape with melted candy. Freeze for a few minutes and then, pop them out.





Perfect!

You'll need:
Frosted Cupcakes
Squeeze Bottle or Ziploc Bag
Cookie Sheet with Wax Paper (taped flat)
Colored Candy Melts
… and a steady hand

Here's three brands of candy melts:
Make 'n Mold Candy Melts
Mercken's Candy Coatings
Wilton Candy Melts

Here's some fun stuff if you're up for it:
Alphabet Candy Molds
The Whimsical Bakehouse (shows some examples and instruction on how to use this technique.)

And if you're not up to the challenge:
Visit Sugar Coated Love and maybe mommawants1more can make some for you.

Comic Cupcakes

These cupcakes were inspired by a cool tool I found recently. An edible ink pen. At first, I didn't know how I would use it. But, when I came across some old Garfield books of mine, I knew exactly how I would try it out. I used to draw this cat a lot as a kid, so I thought it would be fitting to now try him out in fondant. And this pen worked perfectly for his signature stripes. I even sent Jim Davis (Garfield's creator) a letter and some drawings when I was younger and he was kind enough to respond. I guess you could say that he inspired me back in the day.

Stuff I used:
Americolor Gourmet Writing Pens
Satin Ice Fondant
Wilton Rolled Fondant (another brand I've used)
Wilton Icing Colors
And, cupcakes and frosting, of course

Oh yeah, Garfield turns 30 this June!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie… Oh My!

There's nothing like a good chocolate chip cookie… unless of course, if it's super-sized and more than an inch thick. So when I found this recipe from my aunt's Nestle Classic Recipes Cookbook a while back, I knew it was a must-make. Serve it warm, with ice cream, with syrup… and with caution… because you'll definitely want another slice.





Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie
1 unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell*
2 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 cup chopped pecans
Serve with ice cream (optional)

• Preheat oven 325 degrees F.
• Beat eggs in large mixer bowl on high until foamy.
• Beat in flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter.
• Stir in morsels and nuts and spoon into pie shell.
• Bake for 55-60 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm.

Recipe from Nestle Classic Recipes, 2003
* If using frozen pie shell, use deep dish style and thaw completely. Bake on baking sheet and increase baking time slightly.

Make Your Cupcakes Pop!

Cupcake Pops and Cupcake Bites
(Video Instructions from the Martha Stewart Show)

1 13X9 baked cake (from a box cake mix or from scratch … any flavor)
1 can cream cheese frosting (or about 2 cups equivalent from scratch)
1 flower shaped cookie cutter (1.25" wide X .75" tall)
1 package chocolate bark
1 package pink candy melts or white chocolate bark
bowls for dipping
wax paper
aluminum foil
lollipop sticks
sprinkles, m&ms or something similar for top of cupcake
small plastic treat bags and ribbon to package the Cupcake Pops
candy cups and truffle boxes to individually package the Cupcake Bites
styrofoam block

1. Bake a cake from a mix or from scratch and cool completely.
   
   
   
2. Crumble cake into a fine consistency into a large bowl.
   
   TIP: If the texture is too coarse, you can run it through a food processor.
   
   
3. Add can of cream cheese frosting or homemade frosting and blend together using the back of a large spoon. Blend thoroughly.
   
   
   
   
4. Roll mixture into 1.25" - 1.5" size balls and lay on wax paper covered cookie sheet. You may want to periodically rinse and dry your hands off in between.
   
   
   
   
5. Cover with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for several hours.
   
   TIP: You can speed this up by placing in the freezer for about 15 minutes.
   
   
6. Remove. Begin to shape into cupcakes using a small flower-shaped cookie cutter. (see below) Take the chilled ball and roll it into more of an oval and then slide into cookie cutter. Push it into cutter until about half fills the cutter and the rest sticks out of the top in the shape of a mound. Then push the shaped cupcake carefully out of the cookie cutter from the bottom. Set right side up on a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Continue with remaining balls.
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. Once shaped, cover and return to freezer. (5-10 minutes)
   
   TIP: You can leave them covered in the refrigerator overnight if you want to do the dipping on the following day.
   
   
8. While cupcake shapes are chilling, begin to heat up your chocolate bark.
9. Brown chocolate bark for the bottoms. Pink or white chocolate for the tops.
10. Follow the instructions on the package for melting. Most recommend heating for 30 second intervals at a time and stirring in between. You can also do the double boiler method.
    
    
    
    
    
11. When you are ready to dip, remove from freezer and set up another wax paper covered cookie sheet.
12. Take the cupcake shaped mixture and dip bottoms into the melted chocolate - just to the point where the mounded shape starts. Remove from chocolate, turn upside down and wiggle so that the excess starts to slide down slightly. Then lay on the wax paper upside down. If you want them to be lollipops, then go ahead and insert the lollipop sticks while the chocolate is still wet. Continue with rest of the cupcakes. You can also leave some without the sticks. They’re just as cute as Cupcake Bites.
    
    TIP: Dip end of your lollipop stick in the melted chocolate before inserting into chocolate bottoms. Not sure if this helps a lot, but it couldn't hurt.
    
    DON'T - get water in the chocolate. Make sure your hands are completely dry. Water will cause the chocolate to separate and mess up all your hard work.
    
    
    
    
13. Dry completely. (15-20 minutes)
14. Once dry, dip the tops of the cupcakes in the pink or white chocolate. You may need to move it around a little to cover all the exposed areas.
    
    
    
    TIP: Let the pink chocolate sit for a few minutes after heating to thicken. This will help it from dripping down the sides of the cupcake.
    
    
15. Remove from the pink/white chocolate and turn right side up. You may need to hold and rotate it if there is any excess so that it doesn’t drip down too far.
    
    TIP: You can use a toothpick to help cover any areas the melted chocolate didn't cover.
    
    
16. For the Cupcake Bites - just turn right side up and rest on the wax paper. Then go ahead and put a m&m on the top and add sprinkles while wet.





17. For the lollipops, Continue holding and place an m&m on the top and add sprinkles. Let them dry in a styrofoam block that you have already poked holes into.
18. When completely dry, cover the lollipops with small plastic treat bags and tie with a ribbon.




19. For the Cupcake Bites, place in a candy cup and package in small candy truffle boxes to present individually.

Makes about 50.
You can store these in an airtight container and they will last for several days. You can also store in the refrigerator if you would like them cold.

RESOURCES:

Chocolate Bark
Kroger Grocery Store Brand works great for me

Chocolate and Colored Candy Coatings
Make 'n Mold
Mercken's Candy Coatings
Wilton Candy Melts

Paper Lollipop Sticks
Make 'n Mold - 6 inch
Make 'n Mold - 4.5 inch
Lollipop Sticks In Various Lengths

Mini Cookie Cutter
Crinkle Cutter - Wilton
Flower Cutter - Wilton

Sprinkles
Mr. Sprinkles I find these at Kroger, near the ice cream condiments
M&M's


First Choice - this size (1.25" wide), mine was made by Williams-Sonoma. Not available online anymore, but you might get lucky and find one in their stores. I'd call first. I'm sure another brand makes one this size, too.


Second Choice - Crinkle Cutter - Wilton (1.25" wide) Works really good.


Third Choice - Flower Cutter - Wilton (1.5" wide) You can use this one, but you will probably want to roll your balls a little larger and use the thicker lollipop/cookie sticks for support.


Here they are side-by-side for comparison



Instructions illustrated with a Red Velvet Cake. This photo is with a chocolate cake.

Martha & Me

Being on the Martha Stewart Show was so much fun! After the live taping at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 3, my mom and I hurried back to the hotel so we could watch it. (In New York, it airs at 1:00 p.m.) And since, everything was a big, giant blur, I couldn't wait to see how it came across on TV. So, we got to the room and I pulled out my digital camera and took a bunch of pics of the show as we watched it on the flat screen - just in case no one back home taped it for me. I'm glad I did, because after New York, my mom and I flew to Dallas for a few days before coming home. So, the pics were all I had to look at until I could get back home to my computer. Anyway, (blah, blah, blah) I thought you might want to see a few pics, so here are some stills of the show and also a few pics my mom took for me.

Here's Martha, looking fabulous!


I got lucky and met Emeril Lagasse, too!


Bam! He was really nice.


Rolling…



Laughing and playing with "the chocolate"


Yes, she really did say that.


Wow! I still can't believe that's me. Thanks Martha!


Here I am, the day before in the fabulous kitchen helping to work on the food swaps. Too bad you can't see the guy's face on the right. He was yummy!


Me and some pink candy melts


This Way…


Lots and lots of lights.


Here's some of the seats for the live audience


To the left is the cooking area and to the right, the crafting area… the set was so cool!


Martha's entire team was fantastic. My producer was so great and made me feel at ease. And also, the kitchen team… Wow… I wish I could just thank them again.


My mom and I say goodbye!

You guys are the sweetest!

I'm still out of town, but I wanted you to know that I've been able to read your comments from my phone and I'm really truly overwhelmed by everyone's kind words. Being on Martha was really exciting, but I think what I'll remember most from it all is how good you have made me feel. I can't wait to get home so I can take the time to respond properly. (now, I really wish I brought my laptop.)

More soon,
Bakerella

And if you didn't get to see the show, I think it will be on marthastewart.com soon. Try searching cupcake pops.

These Pops Are Gonna Be Stars!

Remember these?

Well, someone else likes them, too.
I'll give you one guess…

I've been invited to be on the Martha Stewart Show on Thursday, April 3rd for Cupcake Week. (Crazy, isn't it?!) So if you want to see how these cute Cupcake Pops are made, then tune in.

Who knew that starting a little blog about baking could turn into something so exciting! Not me, for sure. I just started this blog last October to learn more about baking and decorating cakes and also to play around with an idea for some baking related t-shirts. I feel like I have just scratched the surface of all there is to learn, so I never would have expected to end up in New York City next to Martha Stewart.

So all of you other beginning bakers out there, just get baking. You never know what sweet things it could lead to.

Updated instructions to come soon. But, in the meantime, Here's a link to a few important things you'll need to make these:

Ideally, try and find a 1.25 inch flower-shaped metal cookie cutter (it's used to mold the cupcake shape before being dipped in chocolate), but if you can't, then you can try this size and just make your shapes a little bigger.
1.5 inch flower cookie cutter by Wilton

Mini Crinkle Cookie Cutter (round) this kind works, too.

Lollipop Sticks

Wilton Candy Melts or Mercken's Candy Coatings

Michael's Crafts and Hobby Lobby carry candy melts, lollipop sticks, and if you're lucky, the cutters.

Here's a pic of some I have used before.




Related Posts:
Chocolate Cupcake Pops
Cake Pops

Hey Everybunny…

…hippity hoppity, Easter's on its way. Last night I made two bunny cupcakes and when I woke up, I found all these itty-bitty baby bunnies hopping around my kitchen. You do the math.



Innocent-looking, aren't they…




Cupcakes: I used a Rose Berenbaum recipe for Yellow Downy Butter Cake from her book, The Cake Bible, which, by the way is a fantastic resource. Lots of recipes, tips and explanations. I however, need a few more lessons in "cake chemistry" to get mine to come out exactly the way it's supposed to.

Frosting: Basic Buttercream (from an earlier post)

Decorations: Fondant for the ears. I used some bunny cookie cutters to shape the fondant the night before. I cut off the bunny face (see pic below) to make it easier to stick the ears into the cupcakes. Then I left them out on the counter to dry out so they would stand up straight. For the curved ears, I placed in the bottom of a shallow bowl so they would form to that shape while they dried. You could even lay them over a glass, or something round like that. Also, I needed something for the whiskers, so I came across these Japanese somen noodles that worked out pretty good. And then, just m&ms and different sprinkles for the faces. Bunny Fun!

It's no SHAM…these ROCK!

You guessed it… Mint Oreo Truffles ummmmm… good. These might even be better than the originals (well, maybe). And, they're just as easy to make, but because I could only find the mint Oreos in Double Stuf, I changed the ratios a little from the regular Oreo Truffle recipe. Here you go…

Mint Oreo Truffles

1 pkg. Double Stuf Oreos - Cool Mint Flavor - (1 lb. , 1 oz. pkg.)
• use 22 cookies with cream centers included
• use 10 cookies with cream centers discarded
1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, room temperature
chocolate bark or candy coating*

1. Finely crush the cookies in a food processor or a ziploc bag with a rolling pin.
2. Stir in softened cream cheese. Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together completely.
3. Roll the mixture into 1" balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet.
4. Place covered in freezer or refrigerator for a few minutes to help retain shape when dipping in melted chocolate.
5. Melt chocolate as directed on the package and then dip balls into chocolate, tap off extra and set aside on wax paper covered cookie sheet to dry.
6. Refrigerate and enjoy!

*Or, go green:

white chocolate bark/candy coating for dipping
green candy melts for dipping

1. Make your green and/or white shamrocks first (see picture below). You can use a ziploc bag with a small corner cut off or a decorating bag with with a small round tip attached to make the shamrocks. Use a toothpick to direct chocolate into desired shamrock shape. (Of course, in hindsight, this would have been a lot easier if I had found some little shamrock sprinkles.) Let dry.
2. Then, dip half the truffles in white chocolate and the other half in green.
3. If necessary, dip them again for a smooth finish. I found it necessary, especially for the white ones.
4. Then, on the second dipping, while still wet, press your cooled shamrocks gently on the top of your truffles.
5. For another effect, you can take the ziploc bag of chocolate and drizzle across each truffle with the alternating color.

Makes about 36 truffles.
Recipe amended from Kraft Food & Family Fall 2006.

I used a brand from Hobby Lobby for the green candy melts and regular white chocolate bark found at Kroger for the rest. But since I can't find a link to them online, here's a few links to some other candy melts I found, but haven't tried yet.

Colored Candy Melts
Merckens Candy Melts
Wilton Candy Making Tips

Why is this cupcake decorated like a cupcake?

For the short answer you can play the video below. For the long answer, just keep reading.

You may have read my recent post about Cakespy and her super cute cupcake drawings. Well, I loved the Diet Coke one so much, (yes, I drink my fair share of the stuff) I thought I would thank her by decorating a cupcake with fondant to look like her "L'il Cuppie" character. Then I thought … why not recreate the drawing, too. And then, I went crazy and made this little animated video. So here you go Cakespy, this is for you.

L'il Cuppie in "Hiccuppie"



And to keep with the theme, I made him using a Diet Coke Cake recipe. (thought it would be fitting.) It was surprisingly good considering the butter was replaced with carbonated chemicals. It was a little crumbly, but if you're on Weight Watchers (I'm not) it's only 4 pts. per serving.

Here's the recipe I used.
And here's a bunch of other Coke recipes if you're interested.

Get the Scoop…

… on these homemade ice cream sandwiches. I scored these cute ice cream sandwich molds on clearance at Williams-Sonoma after Christmas and finally got around to using them. They were so easy and lots of fun for kids. (That includes me, too!) And the fact that they had been $14.99 and I got them for $3.99, made them taste all the sweeter.



Here's what you do:

• Bake a brownie recipe enough for a 12 X 18 jelly roll pan*
• Cool
• Use the forms to cut out your shapes.
• Place one brownie shape in the bottom of the capped form
• Add a scoop of your favorite ice cream
• Place the other brownie shape on top
• Press together using the part of the form with the handle to make perfectly shaped ice cream sandwiches
• Enjoy

Sorry, I didn't get great pics of these, they were a little messy and we were too busy eating them. Next time, I'll cut out all of the shapes in advance and then make sandwiches as needed.

Also, I don't think it's available anymore at Williams-Sonoma, but here are some other choices:
Triangle-Shape Ice Cream Sandwich Maker
Heart & Star Ice Cream Sandwich Maker
Farmyard Animals Ice Cream Sandwich Maker

* If you don't have a 12 X 18 recipe, use a 13 X 9 recipe and double it.

I spy something sweet…

…it's Cakespy! I recently came across her blog and etsy shop where she sells the cutest cupcake drawings. Cakespy sweetly creates cupcake artwork featuring her main character, lil cuppie, who goes on all kinds of delicious adventures. And as you can see, I made a few purchases. She creates custom art, too. See how cute I look in pink frosting and an apron. So, if you need a sweet fix, go check her out!



Thanks Cakespy - I love, love, love them! And keep your spy hat on, because I have another thank you coming soon.

Fun with Fondant

This little Care Bear on a cloud cupcake was super fun to make and even more fun to give to my niece. After she saw it, she wanted to know what he was made of, if she could eat it, and then, if she could have some to play with. So of course, this made me really happy to see her excited. Anyway, I gave her some red and white fondant, some candies and sprinkles. Then, I was asked to leave the room. When she gave me permission to return, she had made the cutest little cupcake snow woman for me. And that's snow woman (not girl) hence the long red hair, I was informed that she was holding a token chocolate candy for me, too. So cute!




I definitely recommend trying new things. So, if you haven't used fondant before, go get a box and just experiment. You can do a gazillion things with this stuff, using cookie cutters, knives, embossing tools, or even just your hands. And cupcakes are a great way to practice. You don't have to worry about messing up a whole cake, because you have 24 little canvases to play with.

Things you'll need:

• clean flat surface
• fondant (you can find it at craft stores)
• icing colors (to color the fondant)
• toothpicks (use to apply color)
• cornstarch (keep a little on your surface and hands to keep from sticking)
• rolling pin
• plastic wrap (keep your fondant tightly wrapped while you're not working with it)
• cookie cutters
• water (You can use a tiny drop to adhere fondant together. Don't get it on the part to be seen or it will look shiny.)
• cupcakes
• frosting (spread a layer on cupcake before adding fondant. Like a crumb coat. You can also use it to help shape the tops of your cupcakes if they are uneven.

So go have fun!