Cupcakes are standard fare for bake sales and kid’s parties, but dress them up with lemon curd, fruit and nuts and they’re ready for grown-up celebrations as well.
While we usually think of cupcakes as small, dome-shaped cakes covered with icing, cupcakes lend themselves to a variety of creative shapes. Bake the batter into colorful ice cream cones and give your guests a sweet surprise.
Cut the tops off and arrange slices into the shapes of butterfly wings for elegant spring parties.
Or make up a batch of mini-cupcakes with a swirl of colorful frosting.
Cupcakes lend themselves to making in stages. Bake them one day and frost them the next, or wrap and freeze plain cupcakes for as long as one month. When it is time to serve them, thaw as many as you need and add frosting.
Nuts, berries, candies, chopped chocolate, sugar flowers or fresh edible flowers provide decorating options.
For these cupcake cones, chocolate chip brownies are under-baked slightly so they have a fudge consistency. The ice cream cone will becomes more crisp as it bakes, but it will not darken or change color.
Chocolate-covered brownie ice cream cone cupcakes
11.75-ounce box of 12 small, flat-bottomed ice cream cones
Cupcakes
1/2cup( 1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3/4cup all-purpose flour
1/2teaspoon baking powder
1/4teaspoon salt
2large eggs
11/4cups sugar
1teaspoon vanilla extract
X\ccup (4 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
Chocolate coating
1Z\c cups (8 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon colored sprinkles, nonpareils, or other small sugar decorations
For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Cut 12 6-inch squares of aluminum foil and press them into 12 muffin tin openings, letting the edges of the foil overlap the edges. Place a cone in each opening, wrapping the foil around the cone to fit it sturdily into the pan opening. If the pan jiggles slightly, the cones should not fall over.
Melt the butter and unsweetened chocolate in a double boiler, stirring until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a small bowl stir the flour, baking powder and salt together. Set aside. In a large bowl and, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until fluffy and thickened, 1 minute. Mix in the vanilla. On low speed, mix in the melted chocolate mixture. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chocolate chips. Using a small spoon, fill each ice cream cone with about 1/4 cup batter.
Carefully put the cupcakes in the oven, making sure that the cones are standing straight in the pan. Bake just until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs, but not wet batter, clinging to it, about 28 minutes. Cool in the pan for 20 minutes.
For the chocolate coating: Melt the chocolate chips and oil in a double boiler, stirring until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Scrape the chocolate coating into a small bowl. Dip the top of each cupcake cone in the chocolate coating, letting any excess drip off. Replace the cones in the muffin tin. You will have some chocolate coating left over for another use. Let the coating firm for about 10 minutes, then sprinkle it lightly with sprinkles. Let the cupcakes sit until the coating is firm, about 2 hours. Or, to speed the firming of the chocolate, carefully refrigerate the cupcakes in the pan for about 15 minutes. Serve at room temperature.
If desired, wrap a colorful napkin around each cone before serving it. Cupcake cones can be eaten out of hand or propped individually in a small glass or serving dish and served as “sit-down” cupcakes.
The cupcakes can be covered and stored at room temperature for as long as 3 days.
Makes 12 servings
Lemon curd can be found in the jam or gourmet food section of most supermarkets or in specialty food stores.
Lemon butterfly cupcakes
Cupcakes
1cup all-purpose flour
1/2teaspoon baking powder
1/2teaspoon baking soda
1/4teaspoon salt
1/4cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4cup sugar
2large eggs
1teaspoon vanilla extract
2teaspoons grated lemon zest
1/2cup buttermilk (any fat content)
Lemon filling
1cup cold heavy (whipping) cream
2tablespoons powdered sugar
1/2teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4cup plus 2 tablespoons cold lemon curd
Powdered sugar for dusting
Food coloring (optional)
Sprinkles (optional)
For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 muffin-tin openings with paper cupcake liners.
Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a small bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and sugar until smoothly blended and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Add the eggs one at a time, beating to blend them into the batter. Mix in the vanilla and lemon zest. On low speed, add half of the flour mixture mixing to incorporate it. Mix in the buttermilk to blend it. Mix in the remaining flour mixture until it is incorporated and the batter looks smooth.
Fill each paper liner with a scant 1/4 cup of batter. Bake until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18 minutes. Cool the cupcakes for 10 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Carefully invert the pan to release the cupcakes onto the wire rack to cool completely.
For the filling: In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until firm peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold in 3/4 cup of the lemon curd.
Use a sharp knife to slice the tops off the cupcakes (about a 1/4-inch thick slice), dust each top with powdered sugar and set aside. Leaving a 1/4-inch plain edge on each cupcake bottom, use a spoon to mound a scant 1/4 cup filling over each. Cut the reserved tops in half. With the curved, uncut sides facing each other and the powdered sugar side up, press them into the filling, tilting them up slightly to look like spread wings.
Add a couple drops of food coloring (optional) to the remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon curd and spoon into a small self-sealing plastic freezer bag. Press out the excess air and seal the bag. Cut a small hole in one corner of the bag, about Z\, inch long. Hold the bag above the space between each of the two wings and squeeze a thin line of lemon curd between the wings. Decorate wings with sprinkles if desired. Serve or cover and refrigerate and serve cold.
Makes 12 servings
Piping frosting through a star-shaped pastry tube is a fast way to frost a lot of cupcakes while adding a fancy party finish.
Hummingbird swirls
Cupcakes
11/4cups all-purpose flour
1/2teaspoon baking powder
1/4teaspoon baking soda
1/4teaspoon salt
1large egg
1large egg yolk
1cup sugar
1/2cup canola or corn oil
1teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2cup sour cream
3/4teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2cup mashed banana, 1 banana
1/2cup crushed pineapple in its own juice, drained
1/2cup pecans, finely chopped
Frosting
1/2cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1teaspoon vanilla extract
3cups powdered sugar
food coloring (optional)
For the cupcakes: Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 4 mini-muffin tins that have 12 openings each with mini-size paper liners.
Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl and using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the egg, egg yolk and sugar until thickened and lightened to a cream color, about 2 minutes. On low speed, mix in the oil and vanilla until blended. Mix in the sour cream until no white streaks remain.
Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Stir in the cinnamon, mashed banana, pineapple, and pecans. Fill each paper liner with a slightly rounded tablespoon of batter. Bake just until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops are golden, about 15 minutes. Cool the cupcakes for 5 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Carefully invert the pan to release the cupcakes onto the wire rack to cool completely.
Frost the cupcakes: In a large bowl and using an electric mixer on low speed, beat the butter, cream cheese and vanilla until smoothly blended. Beat in the powdered sugar until the frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add a couple drops of food coloring if desired. Spoon the cream cheese frosting into a large pastry bag fitted with a large star pastry tip. Pipe a swirl of frosting over the top of each cupcake. The cupcakes can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for as long as 3 days. Serve cold or at room temperature.
Makes 48 mini-cupcakes.
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