Monday, June 21, 2010

Birthday Cupcakes!

Ah, it's June, the time of weddings, baby showers and birthdays!

I made these birthday cupcakes for my friend, Mama A who just had a birthday. But I also have to say Happy Birthday to my cousin, Jen, who we just threw a baby shower for two weeks ago.

These Billy's vanilla vanilla cupcakes are one of my favorite recipes because:

1. they are from scratch and they have a slightly denser crumb which I prefer to a mix.
2. the butter doesn't have to be pre-softened and they turn out just fine if the butter is a bit lumpy in the mix.
3. it's a one bowl recipe.

The vanilla buttercream frosting is super fresh and delicious and made with lots of powdered sugar and butter.

For the little flower, I used Wilton melting chips and melted them in a glass bowl in the microwave at 30 second intervals until soft. I spooned them into a ziploc bag, cut of the edge and piped the flowers on parchment or waxed paper. As you can see, not all of them turn out perfectly but I make more than enough so that I can choose the very best..

You can make anything with these melting chips. They aren't a great list of ingredients but you eat just a bit and they made wonderful decorations.

Here's a little link love to two other cupcakes that I have made- you'll see some similarities!

2. Wedding Shower cupcakes

Hoping to make a few more cupcakes before the summer ends...

Do you have a favorite cupcake recipe? I'd like to branch out and try something new.