Branching Out: Cupcakes – Tips and Techniques


Sunflower Cupcake:
1. Color white buttercream a light shade of yellow.
2. Using a small offset spatula, apply a small amount of yellow icing to the tops of the cupcakes to create a smooth top on which to pipe the flower.
3. Using a bag fitted with a #352 tip, fill it with yellow buttercream and pipe small flower petals around the edge of the cupcake.
4. Fill the center with Callebaut Dark Chocolate
Crispearls.


Ladybug Cupcake:
1. Color white buttercream a light shade of green to resemble grass.
2. Using a #233 tip, pipe small mounds of green buttercream all over the top of a cupcake to resemble grass.

To create the fondant ladybugs:
1. Begin by coloring two small balls of rolled fondant, one red and one black.
2. Using your hands, roll out small balls of both red and black, the red being larger than the black.
3. Gently press the two balls together so that they bond with one another.
4. Roll out a small amount of black fondant and use a very small circle cutter to cut out the dots for the body of the ladybug.
5. Lightly dampen the backs of the circles with water using a small brush and place them on the body of the ladybug.
6. Pipe two dots of white buttercream on the head of the ladybug for the eyes, using a piping bag fitted with a small plain tip.


Bumblebee Cupcake:
1. Color white buttercream a light shade of yellow.
2. Using a small plain piping tip, pipe the buttercream in a swirling motion on top of the cupcake.

To create the fondant bees:
1. Begin by coloring two small balls of rolled fondant, one yellow and one black.
2. Using your hands, roll out thin tubes of both colors of the fondant, about 6-inches long.
3. Start with a black tube, lay a yellow tube directly beside it, then repeat with another black tube and end with a yellow tube. Press the tubes gently together so that they bond with one another.
4. Using a small knife, cut a small strip about finger width, cutting across the colors. Gently roll and mold the cut strip between your fingers to make the fondant resemble the shape of a bee’s body. Repeat as necessary to create the bodies of bees.
5. Place two sliced almonds into the sides of the bee body to resemble wings.
6. Pipe two dots of white buttercream on the head of the bee for the eyes, using a piping bag fitted with a small plain tip.
7. Gently lay the fondant bees onto the cupcake.


Flower Cupcake:
1. Begin by coloring small batches of white buttercream. Yellow, orange, green, and white will be needed.
2. Using a small offset spatula, apply a small amount of yellow icing to the tops of the cupcakes to create a smooth top on which to pipe the flower.
3. Using a piping bag fitted with a #81 decorating tip, fill it with the orange buttercream. Starting from the center, pipe a thin line from the center to the edge of the cupcake. Repeat this all the way around the cupcake, then pipe a second row on top of the first, repeating the same process until all the leaves are complete and the cupcake resembles a flower.
4. Pipe three small dots of white buttercream in the center of the cupcake using a piping bag fitted with a small plain tip.
5. Pipe a leaf on one side of the cupcake using the green buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a #366 tip.