Sweetapolita's Inside-Out (Mini) Neapolitan Cake

Isn't this sweet? I made this mini cake with 4.5 inch springform fans for a dear friend of mine for her 30th birthday. I wanted to make something special so I thought I'd tackle a three-buttercream recipe. I was inspired from the cover of the latest cookbook from Miette (I just adore the bare edges) but mainly from Sweetapolita.

It was harder to make than I thought because I didn't level the layers of cake properly so one of them was at an angle, and it seemed to me like the cake would tip over.

This cake ended up being a bit of an investment because of the springform pans, but I'm so glad I purchased them because I am always looking for a way to indulge my friends and I think a mini-tiered cake is the perfect way.

I'll be honest. This recipe has completely changed the way I feel about buttercream. I love it now. This buttercream recipe is to die for. And you can play with it to produce strawberry, vanilla and chocolate buttercream as you see here.

Owl Cupcakes

Whooooo loves owls? Apparently, the masses, because they're everywhere lately: Anthropologie, Crate and Barrel, Winners. You name it. I'm slightly miffed because I loved owls even before they earned a cultish following. Still, I couldn't resist making these owl cupcakes. At first I was going to make them for Halloween but when our plans got cancelled, I made them anyway.

Martha Stewart's Honey-Cinnamon Frosting

I'm always on the lookout for great-tasting frosting, which pipes well, and isn't necessarily buttercream. I was in a bind one afternoon when I realized I had to make a quick frosting. 

I needed to take photos of our Famous 'Stache Movember cupcake toppers and wrappers for our Etsy shop Frost and Fete (see the entire set here) but I didn't want to waste all my butter on making buttercream I didn't even like.

I quickly rifled through my well-loved edition of Martha Stewart's "Cupcakes" and found something I hoped, and prayed would work out. The photo in the book didn't reveal whether it would pipe beautifully or if it was just one of those slather and smear frostings.

Fortunately for me this honey-cinnamon frosting came together just beautifully, piped easily, and to top it all off -- it's delicious. Normally I don't dedicate an entire post to frosting, but this one is a winner and this post jumped to the front of the line. If you don't like honey, you might find this a bit strong and a bit too sweet, but that's how I like it.

Also, you'll need a touch more food colouring than you're used to because this frosting is not snow-white but if you use the good quality colouring you'll be fine.

Paula Deen's red velvet cupcakes

Now this, THIS is a red velvet cupcake. I've blogged about #redvelvetfails in the past. (Ahem, Martha). But then, came Paula Deen, and her full-fat, high in sugar, full of love recipes, y'all. High in calories but delish. And lo and behold, I became a red velvet baking queen. I made her recipe for a baby shower (you can see how they looked here, awfully cute with pink roses) but I didn't stop there.

Lemon-kissed buttercream cupcakes

While I tend to fall back on tried-and-true cupcake recipes such as vanilla bean or Devil's Food, sometimes I yearn for a little lemon.

I made these for a springtime party but I've also made them since then for a baby shower. I found this recipe online when I wanted something a bit more sophisticated at the last minute and I knew I had lemons in the fridge.

Trick or Treat Halloween cupcake toppers and wrappers

Forgive me for bragging a bit, but if you love cupcakes as much as I do (and I'm pretty sure you do) then you'll see why this is a big deal. As you might know if you've been reading my blog, my sister and I have an Etsy shop in which we sell custom-made cupcake toppers and wrappers.

The scrumptiously amazing blog, Cupcakes Take The Cake, featured our Halloween cupcake toppers and wrappers in one of their posts this week! They are absolute authorities on cupcakes, and have even been on the Martha Stewart Show. This is what they had to say about us: "These creepy cobweb, grinning jack o'lantern, spooky black cat and bat cupcake toppers are for sale on Etsy by Frost and Fete, 6 wrappers for $10. Fun!"

If you want to see what else we've been up to, check out our Etsy page.

My son's airplane-themed second birthday

I get nervous whenever I am hosting more than two people at my house. It's not that I don't like to entertain. I just want it to be perfect, and expectations are always high - especially when it comes to the dessert. People always ask me, where do you find the time? I start planning months in advance (for something like this), and create a schedule for myself that sets out my tasks for up to two weeks beforehand. I don't have the time to procrastinate.

This time, I decided not to get so hung up on the sweet table that I'd be stressed the entire time, especially for an important occasion like my son's second birthday. Last year, the theme was Elmo, this year I decided to make it an aviation theme for my airplane-obsessed toddler.

Wedding cupcakes class at Le Dolci

It's no secret that I sometimes find decorating cakes and cupcakes intimidating. Over the years I have attended some classes, and learned some tricks that have helped me decorate cupcakes, cakes and pastries to a much higher standard than what I used to produce.

I was able to overcome my fears of working with butter cream and piping tips after taking a cupcake decorating class at the Bonnie Gordon School of Confectionary Arts. 

But despite the fact we worked with fondant at the class, and I brought a tub home, I rarely decorated with the stuff. So when Lisa, of Le Dolci Cupcakes and Cakes invited me to attend one of their cupcake decorating classes, I eagerly accepted and signed up for the wedding cupcakes class at this fun food education studio. And you can see from the amazing cupcakes I decorated with my own two hands in the photo above that it was a huge success.

Oh Canada! cupcakes

Canada Day is creeping up upon us and it's the perfect occasion for a swanky summer soiree. Not sure what to make? Take the stress out of dessert by making some red velvet cupcakes (heck you can even buy them) and plopping these stunning cupcake toppers on top. Voila. A beautiful sweet table.

My sister designed these and they've been our biggest hit over at our Etsy shop, we even had sales as far away as Texas and Alabama, and mentions in dozens of hand-picked treasuries from Etsy sellers all over North America.

Have a wonderful Canada Day!

Whimsical daisies, precious hearts, and I do! cupcake toppers

Between a sick baby, royal wedding coverage, and the election campaign, life's been trotting along at a quick clip. So I haven't had much time to blog.

But I wanted to give you a quick sneak peek at what my sister's been designing over at Frost and Fete.
How precious are these toppers?

I wish we had thought of doing these back when I got married, I would have served cupcakes for sure.

This is the Whimsical Daisy cupcake topper, I'd serve these with mint butter cream on a plain vanilla sponge cupcake.

These are the Sweet Heart cupcake toppers. I'd probably serve them with strawberry butter cream at a tea party. Wearing a fascinator.

And these are the ones I wish I had at my wedding, the I Do! modern wedding cupcake toppers, and just maybe my favourite ones so far.

My cake was delicious, but the peonies that were supposed to get placed here and there on my wedding cake were forgotten, and so it was white. Just white. These would have added that a much needed dose of colour. (But you live and you learn, right?)

Hatching Chick Cupcake Toppers

This is the latest creation for Frost and Fete, the Etsy shop my sister and I launched recently.

When my mother and sister hosted my bridal shower, their hunt for cupcakes became a bit of a family joke as it literally spanned weeks.

I wish this solution had presented itself to us - cupcake toppers that would fit the decor and theme of the party. It would have been much easier to top plain old cupcakes than to search for the perfect cupcakes covered in piped flowers. Plus, we could have saved the toppers for another event.

No matter though. You live and you learn. So, check out our Hatching Chick Cupcake Toppers, which I will be using when I make a batch of cupcakes for my pregnant friend's upcoming baby shower at the end of this month. (And, she can also save them and use them for an Easter event, if she wants).

Canadian federal election cupcake toppers

It's already April and if you are Canadian, a federal election is just weeks away.

This campaign is all-consuming for me these days, especially with my day job as a news producer.

And so when I wanted to bake cupcakes for my colleagues on Budget Day, I wanted to decorate them appropriately. At first, I thought chocolate numbers might make be the ideal cupcake toppers, but then in talking to my sister, the idea of the party leaders came up.

I went on the hunt on Etsy and eBay but couldn't find anything nearly close to what I wanted.

Baby shower flower cupcakes

My first attempt at making red velvet cupcakes was unimpressive. Muddy rust, rather than red, cream cheese frosting that wouldn't hold a peak, they were a bit of a mess that even rainbow sprinkles couldn't brighten up.
But when I was asked to make some cupcakes for a baby shower around Valentine's Day this year, I decided to try making them again as the colour scheme would be fitting. 
This time with a new recipe. It's a good thing I tried, because my faith in my red velvet cupcake-making abilities was restored with this new recipe.

Welcome Baby Girl Cupcakes

Please excuse the blurry photo. I took this photo moments after I finished assembling these cupcakes at our friends' house and all I wanted to do was get a close look at their sweet newborn.

You may remember my Welcome Baby Boy Cupcakes, well those were for her big brother.

These cupcakes are a simple vanilla cake base, topped with Martha Stewart's seven-minute frosting, and adorable rattles I had picked up at Michael's ages ago for an occasion just like this one.

I chose to make the seven-minute frosting because it had held its shape so well when I used it to make lemon meringue cupcakes and I was hoping it would travel well - it did.

There is nothing I hate more than toiling over cupcakes only to have my hard work ruined when the vehicle I am travelling in makes a sharp right.

Be warned, however, this frosting is sweet, and it may not be to everyone's liking. I prefer it to butter cream, though, and you may as well. Make it once and it will likely become a fast favourite because it is hard to mess up if you follow the instructions.

Boston Cream Cupcakes

I was inspired to make these cupcakes after seeing a variation of them in Martha Stewart's cupcakes book I am always writing about.

I had my sister-in-law over for lunch as I wanted to indulge her request for cupcakes with dulce de leche, which I've used as a filling before. I wanted to try something different, however, than the same old same old and I remembered seeing these in the book I mentioned (they also appeared in the February 2009 issue of Martha Stewart Living).

Halloween creepy cobweb cupcakes

I'm so very behind on my blogging, I have a number of cookbook reviews on hold as well as some fabulous desserts but I can't resist posting a photo of these creepy cobweb cupcakes because they are timely and I am a journo and I am nothing if not timely.

After all, I have a pumpkin on my doorstep, an Elmo costume in my son's closet and a gigantic bag of teeth-rotting chocolate-coated candy in my basement. Yup, Halloween is just around the corner and you probably have a costume party or two to attend. Rather than the ubiquitous caramel apples, take these as host gifts instead and you'll seem thoughtful and gifted all at once.

Nigella's chocolate banana muffins

This recipe comes to us from Nigella's latest behemoth cookbook "Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home," which I will be reviewing in short order so stay tuned.

In the meantime, though, this was one of the first recipes I marked after leafing through the book at a galloping pace.

I leave for work so early during the week I don't get to have breakfast with my son so I try to make him something special for breakfast on the weekends.

On this particular weekend, my son was boycotting any and all fruits so I decided to sneak some bananas into his diet by way of these muffins. He's not much of a chocolate fan, so I was taking a risk.

Sesame Street cupcakes

My baby is not a baby anymore. He turned one on August 15. And already, he has a favourite show -- "Play With Me Sesame." Whenever he sees ay "Sesame Street" characters he points and yells "Heeeeeeey" and he also demands "Ehmo, Ehmo, Ehmo" when he sees me scrolling through the PVR list.

So it was a no-brainer to make Sesame Street cupcakes when we were going to have some of his young cousins over for a visit.

Martha Stewart's hummingbird cupcakes

I turned blanky-blank this year. I guess it's a testament to my rising age that I don't want to tell you how old I am. Ply me with some Bombay Sapphire and tonic and I might.

Anyway, I guess I was feeling the Birthday Blues this year as I approach an age milestone, and so I decided to cheer myself up by making something beautiful.

I had never noticed the hummingbird cupcakes in Martha Stewart's "Cupcakes" book before, maybe because I hadn't been brave enough to try making blossoms out of dried pineapple.

I often turn to this book for inspiration when I am in the mood for something fanciful and special. In the past, I've made the lemon meringue cupcakes, tiramisu cupcakes, and also the chocolate spice cupcakes.

Colossal Cupcake Creation

Cast your mind back and you may remember I wished for a giant cupcake on my Christmas wish list. I hoped someone would pick up on my heavy-handed hint and order it for my birthday, but I wasn't holding my breath.

Well, you can imagine how thrilled I was when one of my besties surprised me for Christmas with the Big Top Cupcake, silicone bakeware to create my very own giant cupcake. Oh Em Gee. A thousand times better than getting a giant cupcake because I can make as many of these as I want.