Every now and then you stumble across something that is truly unique and fantastic, and that is exactly what happened to me when I stumbled across Alma’s website, called Spain In A Cupcake.

You see Alma until recently had never tasted the joys of the cupcake and it wasn’t until she was on a recent visit to London that she discovered their delicate goodness.  Now understandably she is addicted.  Since that visit she has taught herself how to cook and has a kitchen in which to experiment, which she is doing.

Alma may currently be spending a year living in Germany but her cupcakes are very Spanish influenced.  You see it is not just a name ‘Spain in a Cupcake‘ but also a concept.  Alma is letting Spanish flavor inspire her cupcake creations and coming up with some very unique and fantastic cupcake ideas.  So far we have the Sangria, Brazo de Gitano, Chocolate con Churros, Arroz con Leche, and surprisingly Chupa Chups!

This is just the start for Alma and her cupcake project, but it is one that I for sure will be watching with interest!  And did I mention they all come complete with recipes??

I found these amazing chocolate trees with fall colored leaves on them and the are so easy to make.  Perfect for you to top your lovely cupcakes with. They are super easy to make and you could ‘branch’ off in so many directions with them. The ideas are a flowing!

Chocolate Tree Tutorials on the blog Crazy Delicious Food

Looking for a fun idea for Halloween cupcakes, but don’t want to sacrifice flavor?  Then hop on over to The Swell Life to see how it’s done!  Alexa Westerfield, the creator of The Swell Life is a graphic designer by day and a craft addict by night, and obviously, an expert cupcaker. 

You will need: 
– 1/2 cup butter, softened
– 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
– 2 eggs
– About 1 teaspoon orange powdered food coloring
– 1 cup buttermilk
– 2 1/2 cups White Lily all-purpose flour (sifted 3 times)
– 1 teaspoon salt
– 1 teaspoon vanilla
– 1 teaspoon orange extract
– 1 tablespoon vinegar
– 1 teaspoon soda Read the rest of this entry »

My sister has always loved candy corns; so much so that my mom even made her a candy corn costume one year for Halloween.  When I saw these cupcakes I immediately thought of my sister and I think I’ll have to make them for her this year! The Curvy Carrot created these candy corn frosted cupcakes which are great because they are so simple yet festive!

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Oh my gosh, these are just too adorable!  Amy at Naptime Crafters made this awesome cupcake matching game for her daughter!  How clever is this?  Visit her blog for complete instructions as well as a (free) downloadable pattern!  I am so impressed!  Thank you Amy!

A big thanks to The Twisted Kitchen for allowing us to share this ultracool recipe with you!  Everyone loves S’mores, right?  And how often do you get to use a blowtorch in the kitchen?

S’more Cupcakes
Makes 12 cupcakes and 12 mini cupcakes (approx.)

General notes (before cooking):

• I used milk chocolate chips to try to get as close to the flavor and texture of the chocolate as possible yet still have a brownie.
• I highly recommend using cupcake liners for this. I made a few without them, and they were a bit difficult to get out of the pan.
• Be careful when “toasting” the marshmallow frosting. Those cupcake liners tend to be HIGHLY flammable.
• It is extremely important you don’t overfill the cupcake liners. I know it’s tough, but resist! The frosting is incredibly sticky and soft, and needs the liners to set properly.

For the Graham Cracker layer:

1 cup graham crackers Read the rest of this entry »

The raw vegan diet seems to be all the rage lately.  Eating raw foods is uber-healthy and good for the planet too.  And “raw foodists” often claim that one doesn’t have to go 100% raw to reap the benefits of consuming raw foods.  Do I want to be healthy?  Of course!  Am I willing to give up cupcakes in order to go raw vegan?  Uh …

Well, thanks to Shannonmarie, who is known to the blogosphere as Rawdorable, I don’t have to.  She has created an amazingly innovative, entertaining, and useful “uncookbook” full of tantalizing raw cupcake recipes.

Her ebook details how to make the “cake,” gives us several different options for yummy frostings, and even describes how to make raw fondant.  Who ever heard of healthy fondant?

Her recipes range from basic to exquisite, from Pumpkin Spice to Citrus Confetti, from Basic Chocolate to Ruby Red Chai.  I’m telling you, Shannonmarie is a genius of the cupcake world.  And she’s one of those rare healthy cupcake geniuses.  (If you don’t believe me, try the Zippi Zucchini Cupcake!)

The book is jam-packed with gorgeous, inspiring photographs.  I’m tempted to blow some of them up and frame them. 

The Little Rawdorable Cupcake Book That Could is available at Rawdorable for $12.95.  It will be the best thirteen bucks you’ve invested in a while!

Next time you want to do some online shopping, you might want to check out Quilted Cupcake.  I’ve just spent well over an hour (when I was supposed to be working) browsing through her websites, and she has some really cool items, many of them cupcake related or inspired.  Visit her blog here.  You can download her podcasts here.  And you can shop from her Etsy store here.  Her stuff is so cool, but what really amazes me is her prices!  Tres reasonable!

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Little Betsy Baker is a really fun site for cupcake lovers.  The website features a great shop for purchasing supplies needed to bake, decorate, and serve; Party supplies are even available.  Little Betsy Baker ocassionaly has competitions, more information about which can be found on their facebook page.

Hello Naomi contributed to the recipes and tips page of the website by making Little Betsy Baker themed cupcakes.  Additionally, Naomi  offered a recipe for vanilla cupcakes and a tutorial on how to cover cupcakes with fondant hearts! If you’re new to using fondant, this is a great and easy first project which look great as a finished product as seen below!

Here in North Carolina peaches are in season which means it is the perfect time to try Peach Bellini Cupcakes.  I was really excited when I came across this recipe on My Man’s Belly, since after visiting Italy in the spring I fell in love with prosecco! Prosecco is an italian sparkling wine that is usually described as dry and having a flavor similar to white peach, which explains why it is paired with peached to make Peach Bellini which is a type of cocktail.

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My mom’s birthday is a little less then two weeks away so I was trying to come up with a cupcake idea for her.  I came across these Hydrangea Cupcakes on Glorious Treats and think I have found what I’ll be making my mom! Below are Glory’s picture directions and step by step directions to follow to create these floral cupcakes.

Glory made a batch of her favorite chocolate cupcakes (recipe HERE), and her vanilla cream cheese frosting (recipe HERE).  Then  colored half of the frosting blue, and half purple (mixing a few shades of blues and purples to get a good color match to the real hydrangeas).  When making the frosting, use very little cream (less than 1 tablespoon), because the coloring will add some liquid, and you need the frosting to be pretty stiff to hold a nice shape.

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These cupcakes are SOO cool!

These lovely lil’ gems are from Crumbs and Doilies.

I love the look of their cupcakes, they look like what my nana use to make but funky with fun colors and even more fun sprinkles.

Follow their Blog for your daily dose of Cupcakes!

One Determined Gardener has made incredibly creative cupcake toppers.  She used Hollyhock Dolls to top cupcakes! To make the dolls, a hollyhock bud and partially opened flower along with scissors and a toothpick are needed.  Follow the three steps with pictures to create the doll and you have your cupcake decoration.  One Determined Gardener made honey cupcakes with buttercream frosting to display her hollyhock dolls.

Anyone who has checked out Cupcake Bakeshop by Chockylit‘s website knows there’s a standard protocol she follows.  She creates cupcake recipes then blogs about the recipe and images that correlate.  Recenly she deviated from her standard formula with a post that I thought allthingscupcake readers would find helpful. She has five steps that she suggest cupcake bakers follow when baking in bulk.  These steps include finding inspiration and coming up with a high level plan, writing out all recipes, preparing a plan and the ingredients, preparing all the recipes and storing them for final assembly, and finally assembling, packing for delivery, unpacking, and presenting.   For details on these tips be sure to visit Chockylit’s website.

Today is my (hungry runner’s) birthday and I just received an email which included Ten Images of Inspiration, Birthday themed by Design is Mine. The first two images from the set of ten, shown below, are perfect for cupcake lovers.  The first image is by Paul Barbera and is from Book out now in Holland Cup Cakes. The second, a partially eaten cupcake from Danske’s Flikr. To view the other ten images be sure to check out Design is Mine!

Like most foods, there are many ways to eat a cupcake.  In my family everyone’s always had a different style but my mom’s was the one stood out the most.  When I saw the image above from Twin B,  I immediately thought of my mom and how she eats cupcakes.  My mom will take the cupcake and separate it into a top and bottom half, then she will place the bottom half on to of the frosting to make a “sandwich.” This way each bite contains equal parts cake and frosting!  How do you eat a cupcake?

Jacob Goldstein of NPR posed the question today:  Are We in a Cupcake Bubble?

The article is hilarious, though any reader of All Things Cupcake would certainly find his logic flawed.  No, we are not in a cupcake bubble — cupcakes have always been the superior dessert!  Duh!

Goldstein, writing as part of NPR’s Planet Money series, expresses his befuddlement about the cupcake craze, the fact that cupcakeries are springing up all around him, and the fact that employment in the restaurant and bar industry is picking up in New York City — with particular strength in the cupcake business, according to the WSJ’s Metropolis Blog.

He too, gives Sex and the City all the credit.

But you and I know … cupcakes have earned their place at the top.  Goldstein, obviously, just hasn’t had a good one lately.  Maybe we should send him some.

Cupcake bakers interested in a new monthly challenge can try Sweetest Kitchen’s Mystery Box Cupcake Challenge.  Think of Iron Chef only you’re always making cupcakes.  Each month a new ingredient will be chosen and cupcake bakers (you!) submit your cupcake creation using the ingredient.  This month is the first ever challenge and the ingredient is TEA! And there are great prizes including an electric gift card from one of my favorite sites, Bake It Pretty! Any cupcake bakers interested can enter by visiting the competition information page.

Lingerie Cupcakes by Look Cupcake (photo courtesy of Look Cupcake)

Wow, these lingerie cupcakes are lookin’ good.  I’ll be sure to keep Look Cupcake in mind next time I hear someone needs treats for their bachelorette party! They’re stuff isn’t cheap, but it’s conveniently located next door to me in Seattle (on Queen Anne Hill) and you cannot beat their presentation. Too bad they only do events – if they had a storefront, I’d stop by to see if these taste as good as they look!

Are cupcakes in danger of losing their popularity to other desserts? Back in March we shared with you an NPR article which claimed macaroons to be the new cupcake.  Now two other desserts are threatening to take the cupcake’s spot.  The August issue of Food and Wine Magazine had an article about the increasingly trendy pie which asked “Are pies the new cupcakes? They’re becoming just as ubiquitous at online stores and new restaurants with pie counters.”

And now that the hot summer here, the popsicle is another proposed successor to cupcakes.  On July 7, 2010, a blog post from Allegations of Deliciousness titled “Popsicles are the New Cupcakes” claimed unique popsicles are all the rage. Last summer, Hooks for Cooks might have prediected the future with their post titled “Popsicles will rival cupcakes”  She even quoted a friend saying ” I predict they will take over from cup cakes as the hottest new craze this Summer.” I know here in North Carolina, we have Locopops, a hand-crafted, gourmet popsicle company that began in Durham, NC and has expanded to have four locations and various venders in the Research Triangle Park region.  So cupcake fans, what do you think, will cupcakes lose their top spot?

Futurama Cupcakes by Unicorn Magic Baking Co. (photo courtesy of Unicorn Magic Baking Co.)

I was clued into this week’s nerdcake by Cupcakes Take the Cake. While Rachel of CTTC hasn’t watched the show, I have and it makes these cupcakes all the more adorable. We have the Unicorn Magic Baking Company out of LA to thank for these hilarious creations.

Cupcakes by Cupcake Queen with Duff Goldman Animal Skin Cupcake Tattoos (photo courtesy of Cupcake Queen)

I heard about this nifty new product from one of the cupcake blogs I regularly read, Way More than 52 Cupcakes by Cupcake Queen out of DC.  As it turns out, Duff Goldman of Ace of Cakes is rolling out his own line of cake accessories at Michael’s which includes edible cupcake tattoos.

According to the Michael’s website, you just lay down a nice even layer of frosting and then lay down the tattoo(s).  Cupcake Queen tried them out herself on several batches and says that they’re very easy to use.  The Michael’s website only shows striped and floral tattoos, but Cupcake Queen was showing off batches with skulls & crossbones and animal print, so my guess is that you’ll have a better selection in store than online.

Thanks for the heads up, Cupcake Queen!

Check out AliCakes Blog, where she shows off her Tiffany cupcakes! 

Helping to decorate for her friend Tiffany’s bridal shower, she thought, 

why not create some Tiffany & Co. themed cupcakes for table centerpieces!   

  And what a great idea it was! 

Check these out! 

Food52 was recently ranked as one of the top 50 mom bloggers by Babble.  Since they were awarded #2 best recipes and #4 best photography, in addition to being co-founded by a New York Times food editor, I knew I had to check out the website.  The site is impressive with a blog, videos, recipes, and even a shop.  Of course I had to check to see what cupcake recipes they might have come up with and I was intrigued by the Grand Gold Cupcakes. The description you will think these are “the best cupcakes ever,” even before you know the contain alcohol.   I think this recipe would be great to make this summer, especially for the 21+ crowd.  Adults like cupcakes too, especially those containing gold tequila and grand marnier! Below is the recipe but be sure to checkout their site for other recipes!

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Does the name Johnny Cupcakes ring a bell to anyone? Well if it doesn’t, it should and it will.

Johnny Cupcakes all started when a young man named Johnny was given the name Johnny Cupcakes while working at Newbury Comics. He used this nickname as inspiration for designing t-shirts with the  name ‘Johnny Cupcakes’ on them, obviously the t-shirts had Cupcakes on them! (click here to read more about his story)

He started selling these t-shirts out of the back of his trunk, and people went wild for them. And people are STILL wild for them. He has 2 east coast shops, one in Hull Massachusetts and one in Boston Massachusetts. He also has a brand new store that just opened up on the west coast in LA.

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