Piped Shells And Pearls Cupcakes Recipes

PIPED SHELLS AND PEARLS CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Using a serrated knife, trim tops of cupcakes to make level. Add 1 drop gel-paste food coloring to 3 cups buttercream. Stir well to combine. Add more food coloring, a drop at a time, stirring constantly, until desired color is reached. Transfer remaining buttercream to a pastry bag fitted with a coupler. Frost tops of cupcakes with yellow buttercream in a smooth layer. Refrigerate for 30 minutes until set.
• Make the shells: Fit the pastry bag with drop-flower tip. Holding bag at a 45-degree angle, with tip about 1/4 inch from center of cupcake, squeeze out frosting, lifting tip slightly, then pulling bag toward you. Stop squeezing to end in a pointed tip, stopping short of edge. Continue piping, touching each shell slightly to the next, and rotating cupcake as each is piped.
• Make the pearls: Switch to a small plain tip, and pipe a series of pearls (or dots) in a U shape. Starting at tip of 1 shell, work out toward edge of cupcake and end at tip of next shell. Repeat until all shells are linked with pearls. Repeat with remaining cupcakes and buttercream. Refrigerate until set, about 30 minutes.

ALUMINUM FOIL-SHAPED HOLIDAY CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two 6-cup jumbo muffin pans with cupcake liners. Cut some aluminum foil into fifty 1-by 2-inch rectangles; roll each into a small ball. Cut more foil into four 2-by-4-inch rectangles; fold each into a 1-inch square. Set aside.
• Prepare the cake mix according to the package directions and divide the batter in the prepared muffin pans (about 1/3 cup batter in each liner). Tuck the foil balls between the liner and cup in one muffin pan to make each shape for the cupcake using the following clock configurations:
• Reindeer: 1 foil ball at 12 o'clock, then 1 foil ball each at 2 and 10 o'clock, to shape the ears.
• Gingerbread man: 1 foil ball each at 1, 4, 6, 8 and 11 o'clock, to shape the head, arms and legs.
• Mitten: 1 foil ball on each side of 3 o'clock to shape the thumb, then a 3rd foil ball at 7 o'clock to complete shaping the cuff.
• Snowman: 1 foil ball each at 2, 4, 8 and 10 o'clock, to shape the head, torso and base. Slide 1 of the foil squares on each side of the torso to press it in slightly.
• Angel: 1 foil ball each at 1, 4, 8 and 11 o'clock, to shape the head, wings and skirt.
• Snowflake: 1 foil ball each at 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11 o'clock.
• Repeat shaping the cupcakes in the second muffin pan. Bake until golden brown and the cupcakes spring back when lightly pressed, 21 to 24 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• For the frosting: Meanwhile, mix the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, mixing on low speed, until fully incorporated. Add the vanilla extract and salt, increase the speed to medium high and mix until smooth, fluffy and lightened in color, about 3 minutes. Adjust the consistency with milk as needed.
• Transfer 3/4 cup of the frosting to a small bowl and tint with the brown food coloring for the reindeer and gingerbread men; 1/2 cup of the remaining frosting to a second small bowl and tint red for the mittens; and 1/3 cup of the remaining frosting to a third small bowl and tint yellow for the angel wings and halos. Combine 2 tablespoons of the remaining white frosting with 1 tablespoon each of the brown, red and yellow frosting in a small bowl, adjusting the color as desired, for the angels' skin tone.
• Transfer each color of frosting to its own piping bag and fit with a tip as follows:
• Brown frosting: large round tip (such as 805)
• Red frosting: small fluted tip (such as 821)
• Yellow frosting: small fluted tip (such as 15)
• Skin-tone frosting: small round tip (such as 801)
• 1/2 cup of the white frosting: large round tip (such as 806)
• Remaining white frosting: small round tip (such as 5)
• For decorating each pair of cupcake shapes:
• Reindeer: Following the shape of the cupcake, pipe the brown frosting in 1 large mound for the center of the face and 2 smaller mounds for the cheeks. Pipe 2 brown ears. Pipe the white frosting with the larger tip in 2 large mounds between the cheeks, creating a snout. Pipe 2 smaller mounds above the snout for the eyes. Place 2 brown mini candy-coated chocolates in the center of the eyes for pupils, 2 red mini candy-coated chocolates each set on its edge to create the center of the ears, and 1 red (full-size) candy-coated chocolate in the center of the snout for the nose. Carefully break apart a pretzel to create 2 antlers and insert them next to the ears. Repeat with the second reindeer.
• Gingerbread men: Following the shape of the cupcake, pipe the brown frosting in 6 large mounds for the head, limbs and body. Use an offset spatula to smooth the surface (you may need to carefully clean up the sides). Pipe the white frosting with the smaller tip to outline the gingerbread man just inside the perimeter of the brown frosting, then pipe eyes, a smile and a zig-zag cuff for each limb. Place 2 red or green mini candy-coated chocolates in the center of the body to make a column of buttons. Repeat with the second gingerbread man.
• Mittens: Following the shape of the cupcake, pipe the red frosting in a basketweave pattern across the top of the mitten, leaving the cuff empty. Pipe the white frosting with the smaller tip in lines across the cuff, then in a dashed line to outline the mitten. Decorate with some white sugar pearl sprinkles. Repeat with the second mitten.
• Snowmen: Following the shape of the cupcake, pipe the white frosting in 3 large mounds to create the body of a snowman. Place 3 brown mini candy-coated chocolates in the center of the body, to create a column of buttons and 2 more on the head for the eyes. Set an orange mini candy-coated chocolate on its edge between the eyes to create a carrot nose. Carefully break apart a pretzel to create 2 arms and press them into the sides of the torso. Repeat with the second snowman.
• Angels: Following the shape of the cupcake, pipe the yellow frosting in small downward swipes, across in rows, to create feathers for the two wings. Pipe the white frosting with the smaller tip in vertical lines to create a skirt, then three rows of small mounds to make the torso. Pipe a line, separating the two, to create a waistband. Pipe 1 line down from each shoulder to create arms. Pipe the skin-tone frosting in a mound for the head, then 2 smaller mounds for the hands. Pipe the yellow frosting in a ring over the head for the halo. Repeat with the second angel.
• Snowflakes: Following the shape of the cupcake, pipe the white frosting with the smaller tip in double lines to draw an asterisk in the center. Pipe a small downward arrow on each pair of lines, then between the pairs of lines to connect them in a snowflake pattern. Pipe small dots to decorate the empty space and top with white sparkling sugar. Repeat with the second snowflake.

PIPED-ROSE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Starting with 1 drop at a time, add gel-paste food coloring to buttercream. Stir well to combine. Add more food coloring, stirring constantly, until desired color is reached. Dab buttercream on top of pastry nail, and press a 2-inch square of parchment on top. Reserve half the buttercream for frosting tops of cupcakes. Fit pastry bag with coupler, and fill with remaining buttercream. Place tip of coupler in center of parchment square, squeeze pastry bag gently, and pull up slowly to make an acorn-shaped mound (this is the bud).
• Fit pastry bag with petal tip. (You can anchor the nail in Styrofoam or a potato with a flat-cut bottom.) Hold tip against the point of the bud, wide end down and narrow end angled in toward center. While turning the nail slowly, pipe a wide, tight strip, enrobing the top of the bud. Turning the nail as you go, pipe 2 arched petals that each reach around half of the bud. Continue turning the nail and piping, making longer, overlapping petals and angling further outward as you go, until you reach the bottom of the rose. Gently slide parchment with rose onto a baking sheet, and refrigerate until firm, at least 20 minutes (or up to 2 days). Repeat to make more roses.
• Frost tops of cupcakes with buttercream. Using a small offset spatula, gently place a rose on top of each cupcake, discarding parchment.

CATERPILLAR CUPCAKE

Steps:

• Make cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 28 cups of standard muffin tins and 1 cup of a jumbo muffin tin with paper liners. Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
• With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy. Add brown sugar, and beat until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Mix in sour cream. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and mixing until just combined after each.
• Divide batter evenly among prepared cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until tops are firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
• Decorate cupcakes: Tint fondant with green gel-paste food color, and roll out to 1/8 inch thick on a work surface lightly dusted with cornstarch. Using cookie cutters, cut out one 4 1/2-inch round and twelve 3 3/4-inch rounds. Divide 2 cups buttercream into two bowls; tint half yellow and half pale blue with gel-paste food colors. Transfer to pastry bags fitted with small plain tips (No. 3). Tint 1/4 cup buttercream red; transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a fine plain tip (No. 1). Spread cupcakes with a thin layer of plain buttercream, and transfer remaining untinted buttercream to a pastry bag fitted with another small plain tip (No. 2). Place a fondant round on top of each cupcake, pressing gently to adhere, and mold to fit smoothly.
• To make the head, pipe two yellow dots for the eyes on top of jumbo cupcake, then pipe tiny white dots for pupils. Using a skewer or toothpick, poke two holes above eyes, and insert mini candy canes into holes for antennae. Use red buttercream to pipe the mouth. Pipe dots all over other half of cupcake, alternating between yellow and pale-blue buttercreams. Continue to pipe yellow and blue dots all over remaining cupcakes, then pipe tiny white dots on top of each. Refrigerate 30 minutes to allow frosting to set. Cupcakes can be stored up to 1 day at room temperature in airtight containers.
• Arrange 12 standard cupcakes side by side in a curving line, with the jumbo cupcake at the front. Serve remaining cupcakes as desired.