Tomorrow on April Fools Day, cupcake lovers could trick their friends and family with fake cupcakes.  One of the best fake cupcake creations is made from mini meat-loafs with mashed potatoes as the frosting and carrots for the sprinkles.  I have made these before and they are always a huge successes because they so closely resemble a real cupcake.  These “cupcakes” also work well because they are in fact edible, if you are brave enough to try one!  If you would rather be a little more cruel, these directions from instructables detail how to make inedible fake cupcakes.  Have fun with it and don’t get fooled yourself!

Like many of you out there, I am planning on baking several dozen cupcakes this week to celebrate Easter.  Although I do love cupcakes (duh!) I have to admit that sometimes I am not the best at completing recipes above a beginner level.   So today I went to three of my favorite online spots to find cupcake decorating ideas and recipes.  They needed to be relatively easy but have a cuteness level that was through the roof!  Just try to look at these cupcakes without saying “Awww…” !

Food Network’s Chick and Egg Cupcakes

Food Network’s Little Lamb Cupcakes

 Food Network’s Easter Flower Cupcake

All Recipes’ Easter Surprise Cupcakes 

 Family Fun’s Edible Easter Basket Cupcakes

I know you too have some great Easter cupcake decorating tips and recipes so please click on the comment area below and share!

And the winner is… Cara!
Congratulations! Please email us at [email protected].   Thanks to all who entered and commented on their wonderful items. Special thanks to Green Party Goods for sponsoring this giveaway!

Free Printable Easter Cupcake Toppers from Skip to my Lou.

Facebook fan Tori sent us a link yesterday for this wonderful nursery set at Babies R Us.  It is called Sumersault Babycakes and it is so unbelievably adorable! 

And fan Amy sent us some photos of some cute finds from Home Goods.  I think they would go perfectly with the crib bedding! 

Thanks Tori and Amy!

Happy Friday sweet cupcake fans! Just a reminder to enter our cupcake stand giveaway sponsored by Green Party Goods by Sunday. Please click here to enter.

Today, March 26th is Purple Day which The Great Purple Cupcake Project supports. The Great Purple Cupcake Project aims to raise awareness of epilepsy, a condition that effects over 3 million Americans.  During the week of March 26th, bakeries are asked to sell purple cupcakes and that a portion of sales go back to Purple Day  for epilepsy awareness.  Purple Day and The Great Purple Cupcake Project are associated with the Anita Kaufman Foundation (AFK). On the website there is a complete list of participating bakeries by state along with international cupcake shops participating in purple day. Just to list a few cupcake shops that have tweeted about todays event,  Cake Love with locations in Virginia, Maryland and DC announced on their twitter that they are participating by offering a blueberry cupcake. Similarly, Two Sweet Cupcake in Richmond VA tweeted that they are offering Blueberry Pancake and Cranberry Charbord as their purple flavors today.  There are more special purple cupcakes today so if you are thinking about a cupcake, eat one today for this great cause.

Budclicks are unique headphones that the creator designed when he noticed everyone wearing the same white headphones.  One of these individual and creative earbud style include cupcakes.  The pair costs $9.95 with one ear a pink cupcake and the other blue, both are decorated with rhinestones, making them a fun gift for any cupcake lover young or old.

I’ve been so busy for the past few months I have barely had time to keep up with all of my favorite food blogs and last night I did & it made me very hungry! Lick The Bowl Good is one of my favorite blogs and I found something that looked yummy enough to share with all of the Internet world.

Ferrero Rocher and Nutella Cupcakes – Nuts About Chocolate

Mhhh … these look perfect. These may be my next venture in the cupcake world. Thanks Monica!

Ever wondered how the heck you were going to get two dozen cupcakes from your house/favorite bakery to your event of choice?  Progressive International has the answer with their Collapsible Cake and Cupcake Carrier – it can carry 24 cupcakes to their destination frosting intact, each in their own individual holder.  They have all kinds of nifty features like finger recesses for easy cupcake removal and plenty of height between the trays to allow room for fancy cupcake decorations. And, if you decide to change things up a bit, you can carry a cake in it too.

In case you did not already hear, Magnolia Bakery is expanding.  Included on the list of locations for cupcakes shops opening soon is Los Angeles.  Magnolia Bakery opened two locations, one in the Dubai Mall and one in Grand Central Terminal, Manhattan in February.  The Los Angeles location is set to open in May.  One article says the west coast store’s decor will match the original east coast location.

Ever wanted to try a Chocolate Covered Potato Chip Cupcake? Or maybe a Chocolate Jalapeno Cupcake? If so I have found just the place for you; Over the Rainbow Cupcakes

They have the most variety I have seen for a cupcake bakery. They have a Menu and then a Wild Side Menu. Both have great looking flavor combinations.

They also have customizable cupcake wrappers and cupcake bouquets .

This looks like a great place to cater your events with yummy cupcakes!

Has anyone ever had a cupcake from here? If you have let us know how it was.

If you have furnishings that are of a higher quality than a college dorm room, you want to keep them in good shape. What better way to protect your tables and countertops from the perils of water damage than adorable cupcake coasters? Two birds with one stone – cute and functional!

The coaster sets come in pink or black, and can be found at iamladycupcake’s Etsy store, along with her lines of non-cupcake related furniture furnishings.

AllPosters.com is having a major sale til’ Thursday the 25Th on a big chunk of their posters. While searching for some posters for my new place I found some Cupcake Posters/Prints on sale.

Cream Cheese Cupcake $2.98 plus S+H

Vanilla Cupcake $3.98 plus S+H

Butter Cream Cupcake $2.98 plus S+H

Remember it only goes until Thursday. And enter coupon code ‘DAWN’ at the check out an get an extra 22% off!

 This week we are hosting a giveaway for the website, Green Party Goods where their motto is “Planet Friendly Products for Any Celebration”.  I am pleased to own one of their eco-friendly cupcake stands which is made with recycled corrugated cardboard.  These stands are a great way to display your wonderful cupcake creations and are meant to be used many times.   They are made in a neutral white color so customers can decorate them to coordinate with whatever theme they need.  You can use a glue gun to attach ribbon or tule or even spray paint them.   The stands come in round and square shape.

My stand was easy to assemble and was a great deal sturdier than I had assumed it would be.  As a crafter, I also thought these stands would be a perfect way to display items, such as jewelry or cards, at a craft show.

This week Green Party Goods invites you to become a fan of the Facebook Page and to also enter this giveaway for a free eco-friendly stand.  They will also throw in your choice of any cupcake wrap or liner of your choice! 

To enter this giveaway, first go to Green Party Goods and pick out a favorite item.  Then come back here to ATC and in the comment area below tell us what was your favorite item AND what kind of wrap or liner you think they should add to their site. 

One winner will be chosen on Monday, March 29th.  Thanks Green Party Goods!

Cupcakes have a natural nostalgia about them – as sophisticated as they’ve gotten, they still have roots back to the days when we regularly ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch and watched cartoons on TV on Saturday mornings.

That’s why I find this week’s nerdcakes to particularly appropriately themed – the geeky nostalgia of Space Invaders aliens and Super Mario Bros. 1up mushrooms meets the childhood nostalgia of cupcakes to create a tasty snack that is somehow cooler and more up-to-date than all that nostalgia might imply.

Thanks to Rakka and her fantabulous Flickr photostream for these lovely pictures! (Also, bonus points for no fondant :)

I hope the sun is shining where ever you are, it sure it is here on Martha’s Vineyard! I spent the day moving a little into my new apartment and then I went to the beach. In honor of the sun and the beach I have 2 different cupcake ideas.

Mr. Sun Cupcakes from the Betty Crocker website.

Shark and Beach Cupcakes from Martha Stewart!

When my daughter turned two years old a few years ago, we had a cupcake themed party. It was so much fun but at that time, cupcake decorations and party supplies were harder to find. It seems that ever week I hear about a fan that is planning a similar party for their little one.  And lucky for them, cupcakes are everywhere now!  Here are some cute items I found on Etsy today that might be just what you need if you are planning a cupcake party too.

Cupcake Party Invitations 10 for $10

Cupcake Pinata $35

Cupcake Banner $40

Cupcake Goodie Bags $2.75 each

Visit stayhomecupcake on Etsy.

Before the review, from left to right: Pancakes & Bacon, Tomato Soup, Mexican Chocolate (picture courtesy of Amy Sutedja)

I recently got the chance to take a cupcake run with my friend Amy down to Belltown’s Yellow Leaf Cupcake Co. I’ve heard good things about them for awhile, but I’d never had a chance to try their wares.

Amy and I decided that since this was for a review, we’d be adventurous. Between the two of us we sampled some of the more interesting selections from Yellow Leaf’s menu: Pancakes and Bacon, Tomato Soup, and Mexican Chocolate.

Pancakes and Bacon tasted like it sounds: it was just like a bacon-studded cupcake with maple butter and bacon bits on top. Even the texture of the cake was reminiscent of pancakes. The finish was identical to the aftertaste of breakfast at a pancake house, sans eggs. (Amy said it was a “breakfast sensation”, but she couldn’t say it with a straight face). The cake was very good, firm and moist with enough bacon to give a nice smoky accent to the sweetness, though hard-core bacon fans might wish there were was more bacon.

I really wasn’t sure what to expect from Tomato Soup. As it turns out, tomato cake totally works – it’s like carrot cake but with more acidity, basil accents, and none of the texture from carroty bits.  The cake was the driest and densest of the three cupcakes we sampled, but it wasn’t too dry and was complimented well by the rich, moist frosting. As for the frosting – I felt like I was eating dark chocolate butter. The cake and the mousse went well together, but the dark chocolate overpowered the subtle accents of tomato soup.

After the review :) (picture courtesy of Amy Sutedja)

Mexican Chocolate turned out to be less chocolate and more cinnamon and spice. The cake was great, light and fluffy with a muffin-y texture and a wonderful crunchy top.  The buttercream frosting was very rich and buttery with a light cinnamon flavor. The cake flavor was similar, spice cake with a hint of cocoa.

All in all, excellent cupcakes. I can safely say they’re the best I’ve had in Seattle so far. One word of warning – Yellow Leaf’s buttercream frosting is very rich. One and a half cupcakes was almost too much for one sitting. These are cupcakes with gravitas –  make sure you approach them with an appropriately empty stomach :)

Hi there,

My name is Ali and I run a blog called Three Baking Sheets to the Wind.  Since I’m beyond excited for the release of the new Alice in Wonderland, I made themed cupcakes to celebrate and thought I would share them with the baking world.

Enjoy!

Clever Cupcakes has done it again – once more they have the title of NerdCake of the Week, this time for the QR code cupcakes they cooked up for the Technofollies exhibit at the Montreal Science Center.  The coolest part is that not only are they completely edible, if you have the right app on your cell phone, you can scan the code and it’ll take you to the science center’s website :)

Ever get the urge to just decorate a cupcake but don’t have the time to decorate? Well if this is you I have come across a a cute lil’ cupcake decorator game.

Tutti Cuti: Cupcake Game

There are 2 versions Career Mode and Speed Mode. With both versions you have to copy exactly the cupcake that is on your left. The Career Mode you earn enough money to cover your daily costs. And in the Speed Mode you earn as much cash as you can in 12 hours.

image courtesy of No One Puts Cupcake in the Corner

I was cruising the cupcake blogosphere when I noticed that not only is No One Puts Cupcake in a Corner a good blog with a hilarious title, it is also the host of the cupcake challenges Iron Cupcake Milwaukee and Iron Cupcake: Earth. IC Milwaukee, I expected, seeing as the blog is brought to us by the Milwaukee Cupcake Queen. But Iron Cupcake: Earth? Holy crap. That is like the World Cup of Cupcakes.

Nobody Puts Cupcake in a Corner just announced the IC:E Passion/February winner, Stephanie of the Keckie’s World blog’s Lavender Love Cupcakes. In the words of the champion herself:

If you’re in the mood for a very adult cupcake, this is definitely it! The flavors in this one are mature, subtle, and layered. The cupcakes have a distinct fruity olive oil undertone, which is lighted by lemon and sweetened by the blackberries. The lavender gives the entire cupcake a lightly floral aromatic quality. There is a hint of salt to add the the complexity of the final flavor. These are some serious cupcakes!

That sounds like a fine fancy cupcake. Also, flowers plus cupcakes plus olive oil equals good for your heart!

If you want to throw down the gauntlet with cupcake bakers from around the globe, you too can join the Iron Cupcake: Earth Challenge. Just email the Milwaukee Cupcake Queen your information (first and last name, city/state/country and blog web address) and keep an eye on the Iron Cupcake: Earth blog for announcements about upcoming challenges.

I am an Amy Sedaris fan and have always loved the episode of Martha Stewart where she tells Martha she should have her own show.  I came across this recipe for Amy Sedaris’ Cupcakes.   If you watch the youtube clip you will quickly learn that Amy is a minimalist and that is reflected in her recipes.  There is no sifting, alternating adding of ingredients, or separating eggs because any Amy fan would tell you that’s just more dishes.