If you not only love the taste of vanilla cupcakes but also the smell then you will enjoy Sephora’s Vanilla Cupcake Body Collection. The collection includes dry oil, body wash, bubble bath, and body scrub with prices ranging from $8-$16.  The scent was originally part of the gift package for members and had a cupcake image on the bubble bath container.  It was so popular that they added it as one of their Sephora brand lines.

I realized yesterday I never posted about the wedding cupcakes I made.  Better late then never I guess since the wedding was a few weeks ago now.  In the end I made 10 batches of the cupcake recipe for a total of 6 dozen regular sized, 4 dozen mini and 1 giant cupcake.  I made the frosting recipe twice and had a little left over.

I worked with the bride to create what she was looking for.  Her colors for the wedding were black, white and lime green.  She does not like a lot of frosting so she wanted the amount to be minimal and liked the glossy look of glaze.  From the time she asked me to make the cupcakes she knew she wanted chocolate cupcakes and lime frosting. The bride ended up making the toppers on her own and showing them to me after they had been made.

The cupcake recipe I used was from Cooks Illustrated 2009 America Classics issue.  The bad news is that the first thing the recipe tells you is not to double it (really bad news when you have to do it 10 times).  The good news is that every batch came out perfect.   Every cupcake had the perfect cupcake shape and everyone said they were good.  Here’s the recipe:

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

Note: Do not double this recipe.  Cupcakes made from a double batch yield a slightly compromised rise.  It’s best to make to separate batches and bake each separately.  Store left over cupcakes (frosted or unfrosted) In the refrigerator, but let them come to room temperature before serving.

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

½ cup (1 ½ oz) Dutch-processed cocoa

¾ cup (3 ¾ oz) unbleached all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon baking powder

2 large eggs

¾ cup (5 ¼ oz) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon table salt

½ cup (4oz) sour cream

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees.  Line standard-sized muffin pan (cups have ½ cup capacity) with baking-cup liners.

2. Combine butter, chocolate, and cocoa in medium heatproof bowl.  Set bowl over saucepan containing barely simmering water; heat mixture until butter and chocolate are melted and whisk until smooth and fully combines.  Set aside to cool until just warm to the touch.

3. Whisk flour, baking soda, and baking powder in small bowl to combine.

4. Whisk eggs in second medium bowl to combine, add sugar, vanilla, and salt and whisk until fully incorporated.  Add cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until combines.   Sift about one-third of flour mixture over chocolate mixture and whisk until combined; whisk in sour cream until combined, then sift in remaining flour mixture and whisk batter until it is homogeneous and thick.

5. Divide batter evenly among muffin pan cups.  Bake until skewer inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.

6. Cool cupcakes in muffin pans on wire rack until cooled enough to handle, about 15 minutes.  Carefully lift each cupcake from muffin pan and set on wire rack,.  Cool to room temperature before icing, about 30 minutes.  (To frost: mound about 2 tablespoons icing on center of each cupcake.  Using small icing spatula or butter knife, spread icing to edge of cupcake, leaving slight mound in center).

The Bride and her Wedding Cupcake Baker

For the frosting I used Martha Stewart’s recipe for Fluffy Vanilla Frosting. After several sample recipes that used real lime juice, lime extract and bottled lime juice we settled on the bottled.  To flavor the frosting lime I did not use an exact measurement, instead you just have to find the right lime flavor by adding some and sampling the frosting.  I used my roommate for this so that we could establish a lime flavor that had a hint of lime but was not over powering.  Then I left half the frosting uncolored and used lime green food coloring to dye the rest.  I melted the frosting in the microwave for a few seconds then dipped the cooled cupcakes into the frosting.  For my first time baking in bulk I think the end product turned out pretty well and most importantly, the bride was happy!

If you are looking for a unique way to display your cupcakes, an individual cupcake stand is an alternative to cupcake trees.  These antique white ceramic stands come as a set of six and are available from farmhouse wares for $38.95.

This past summer I was fortunate enough to visit Charleston, SC; which was where I make photographer Diana Lauderdale.  Lucky for me her daughter shares a love of cupcakes and Diana had baked over 100 cupcakes for her daughter’s 13th birthday.  Of course she took pictures of these cupcakes which I ended up purchasing.  I purchased the beautiful print  above that I had framed and is actually brighter in person. Dianne shared the additional image below.  She has a myartspace page and I stumbled into her booth at the Charleston Farmer’s Market.

It is  hard to find the words to describe how much I love what Amy Atlas Events creates.  As soon as I saw the company’s website I thought of how much I would love to work for this company for a living, despite the fact that it has nothing to do with the Nutrition degree I will be earning in one month.  If someone ever asks me what my dream job would be I now know the answer is “working for Amy Atlas Events.”  All the pictures look like how I wish everyday of my life was, bright, cheerful, and everything going together but not necessarily matching.  Of course I also like the fact that they deal with cupcakes and that they make people happy on a daily basis.

Amy Atlas Events works with their clientele to create customized events that are an expression of the individual.  They are known for their dessert tables which almost look to good to eat. Amy Atlas Events is located in New York City and has a great blog, Sweet Designs, that is loaded with pictures, recipes, ideas and more! Just looking at the pictures from past events makes me wish I still leaved near NYC and that there was an event in my life that I could use as an excuse to work with Amy Atlas Events. Also she was featured in the Martha Stewart Weddings, Summer 2009 issue that was my first blog post.

Quick! Hurry! This Cupcake Tea Towel is available on 3Potato4 for $8.00.  It comes as shown, white with green stitching and includes the sewn on loop so it can be hung as pictured.  There’s also a tea cup one on sale as well.  Hurry and get yours before this cute deal sell out!

This porcelain cupcake container is by kgrandey and available via etsy for $35.00.  According to the description, the cupcake container is slightly larger then an actual cupcake.  I think it’s great for holding small things like hair ties or the buttons that come with clothes that you never know what to do with but are afraid to throw out.

This is a technique that I have never heard of, adding chocolate Necco Wafers to chocolate cupcake batter for a unique texture.  According to Melody Kramer who tried this addition, the result is surprisingly delicious.   She crushed the Necco Wafers and then added them to the batter.  While they did not melt while baking the end result offered the texture she desired.

When I came across these cute cupcakes items from Victoria’s Secret Pink line I could not help but wonder how I had not seen them sooner.  Pink  has two cupcake images offered on a variety of underwear styles including hipster and boybrief.  The underwear can be purchased individually or as part of the 5 for $25 deal.  There is also a Super Bling Cupcake Tee that is $39.50 and would make a great Christmas gift!

This NPR discussion looks at why cupcakes and cupcake shops have become so popular.  The explanation is that we are in an economic bubble similar to what the coffee industry went through.  Cupcake shops like Magnolia, in NYC, started the trend that quickly caught on.  Now cupcake shops are popping up all over the country.  The good news is that according to the this discussion, cupcakes are still going strong and we can expect cupcake shops to continue opening up.

Since I started as contributing to ATC, I have had a lot of “why didn’t I think of that” moments and this was another one.  Black Bottom Cupcakes have been a long time family favorite at our house and are possibly my favorite type of cupcake even though some would argue that they are not true cupcakes because they lack frosting.  Having said this you would think I would have come up with at least dying the cream cheese filling orange to make them festive for  Halloween.  That is exactly what Tender Crumb did, and she even took it one step further and tweaked the recipe to make pumpkin cream cheese filling.  I know I am late posting this as Halloween has passed but I just found it on tastespotting and figured  it’s always a good idea for next year.  Plus pumpkin black bottom cupcakes could would be great for Thanksgiving or Christmas or any other day of the year!

I would like to add that black bottom cupcakes are a really easy cupcake to make.  The recipe is very simple and they always come out perfect.  However I never seem to have enough of the filling so buy some extra cream cheese, just to be safe.  And remember you don’t have to dye them orange, you could pick any color or do tye dye!

My idol, Martha Stewart, recently announced the cutest cupcakes of 2009 contest winners and I have to agree they are cute.  There’s a total of 18 cupcakes and by the looks of things, I am sure it was hard to narrow it down.  My personal favorite are the Hedgehogs, by Ladybug Luggage.  The two look like such a cute little couple, with the girl hedgehog wearing a little flower.  After checking out her blog, I found that Mr. & Mrs. Hedgehog go on “adventures” which means the couple are dressed up aka decorated differently and even have little children hedgehogs.

I also love the Where The Wild Things Are cupcakes by Kitchen Dough Dough who always has unique ideas.  I personally like that they are decorated without fondant and that they are an Old Fashioned Applesauce Spice Cupcake recipe with cinnamon buttercream frosting.

On their way home from Washington, DC the other night, my mom and sister stopped by my apartment to make a special delivery.  They had stopped by Georgetown Cupcake and were delivering  two amazingly delicious cupcakes to me.  The flaovrs were pumpkin spice with maple frosting and chocolate peanut butter swirl.  I have tasted a lot of cupcakes and I have to say these were some of the best.  My sister warned my that I would not be able to take only one bite of the pumpkin cupcake and she was right!  It was just the right amount of pumpkin flavor, and pleasantly moist.  There was also the perfect amount of frosting, not too much where it overpowers the cupcake but also not too little.  This is not to say that the chocolate cupcake was not excellent, it too was wonderful.  Sometimes chocolate cake can be disappointing because it is dry and crumbly but this cupcake was packed with great chocolate flavor.  I also really liked the cupcake decorating on each.  They were simple yet attractive with the pumpkin cupcake topped with a festive fall foliage colored fondant leaf that was sparkly.  The chocolate peanut butter had a simple peanut butter swirl and peanut butter inside.

I checked out Georgetown Cupcake online and they offer shipping which I would highly recommend because these were some of the best cupcakes I have had and I have tasted a lot of cupcakes.  They have three options which include a Classic Dozen, Halloween Dozen, and Seasonal Dozen, each costing $29.00

Kohls has quite a few cupcake items.  I thought I would share two that are fitting for this time of year.  One is Cupcake Fairy Wings which would make a cute last minute costume for any little girl.  Before you run out to the store be warned that this is an online exclusive and the wings cost $17.99

The second item is a girls cupcake T-shirt that is on sale for $6.30, so sizes are limited.  The shirt is pink with the three cupcakes decorated with a ghost, candy corn, and spider on top of each.

Chapel Hill, NC is home to Festifall, which was just a few short weeks ago.  This was where I came across Cuckoo Boo.  Cuckoo Boo creates one of a kind hair accessories, magnets, badge clips, pacifier clips, chokers, and snack bags.  Everything is in fun and bright patterns and prints.  What caught my eye and drew me into the tent was of course cupcakes! On their etsy site there are a lot of the cupcake related items that I saw at Festifall.

Funfetti Cupcake Hair Clips

Cupcake ID Badge Reel

Cupcakes and Cherries Ponytail Holders

As the weather gets too cold for ice cream, Bergdorf Goodmans offers a fun and tasty way to remember those hot summer days.  Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes that come in a set of 4 for $50.00 each.  The set includes two of each variation, one with a milk chocolate dipped cone and another with a strawberry-flavored chocolate dipped cone.  A second option is the Chocolate Cupcake Set. This set is two solid milk chocolate cupcakes with white frosting and sprinkles. The cost is $28.00 for the set of 2.  What is nice is that to ensure freshness, you choose the day you want them to be delivered.  They almost look too good to eat, almost.

I know some of these ideas have been shared before but it’s always helpful to see alternatives to help you come up with your own unique variations.  Here are the M&M versions of Halloween cupcakes  that are always fun because everything is edible and when it comes to kids and decorating candy is always best.  These are some ideas that are great for individuals.

For larger parties, these are sure to be crowd pleasers:

Giant Pumpkin

Dean & Deluca two delicious looking cupcake options for this fall.  One of which is a set of nine cupcakes, which means you get three of each flavor for $55.00.  The flavor options include pumpkin with cinnamon cream cheese frosting,  chocolate with  chocolate buttercream, and Madagascar bourbon vanilla with vanilla buttercream.

Dean & Deluca’s second option are little cupcakes are made out of white, milk, and dark chocolate that come with three filling options.  Those options include chestnut caramel, spiced pumpkin, and maple walnut.  The set comes with nine cupcake chocolates for $48.00.

My sister passed this along to me knowing I would love it! Cupcakes baked inside of coffee cups is an adorable idea!  It is a fun idea for a party because the mugs could serve as favors.  And the creative options are endless, the cake could be a hot chocolate, coffee, or even earl grey tea flavor.  It could be decorated simply or to look like an actual drink.   Sweet Paul made these for his niece’s birthday and I am sure that any little girl in a party dress would love them.

Stonewall Kitchen’s mini Halloween candles make perfect cupcake toppers.  They are simple, fun, and most importantly festive. You can choose between candy corns which cost $11.95 or bats for $12.95.  Each set contains 16 candles that are 1 inch in size.  I think they would look great on top of Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Halloween is coming quickly and if you are still looking for a centerpiece, this cupcake decorating and display kit from Hearth Song might interest you.  The Haunted Mansion Party Pack consists of a cardboard cupcake stand topped with a haunted looking house. There are also 24 graveyard fence style wrappers and 24 moon and haunted house toothpick toppers.  The pack is purchased as a whole for $16.98.

I came across this while looking for cupcake costumes and while it’s not exactly a cupcake it still claims to be a cupcake costume.  This is a cupcake chef costume, so instead of being what’s eaten, this time around you could be the baker of the sweet culinary concoction.

When I came across these I immediately wondered, “why didn’t I think of that?” For years my family has been making tie-dye style angel food cakes and this summer I made red, white, and blue vanilla bean cupcakes for my sister’s return to the US from a summer in Ireland.  But I Heart Cuppy Cakes put me to shame by coming up Candy Corn Cupcakes last October.  The recipe if extra easy if you decide to make your cupcakes semi-homemade by using a box cake mix.

Since my co-worker’s wedding that I am making the cupcakes for is only two weeks away I have contracted wedding fever because weddings seem to be on my mind.  I came across this while looking for alternative designs, even though we have already decided on what we will be doing.  I had to share this wedding cupcake option.

Baked is a cookbook by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito.  It is also two bakery locations, one in Brooklyn, New York and the other in Charleston, South Carolina.  The website include a shop section which allows you to purchase several items including baked goods and apparel.  There is also a new feature which they are offering, Baked Weddings.  They work with you and your budget to meet your needs and desires for your wedding cake, cupcakes, baked goods assortment.  Their designs are unique and modern so if you are looking for something different and a little less traditional white wedding cake I would suggest checking them out.

I a big fan of presents and birthdays which is why I secretly love those belated birthday gifts that surprise you when they show up.  I had a small package waiting for me yesterday when I go done with classes and one of the items inside was a charm for my Pandora bracelet.  The popular Pandora bracelets are the new version of charm bracelets.  The charm I received was of course a cupcake! It is sterling silver with 14k gold on top and is $35.oo.