Penny, I was unable to log in over the weekend, but I wanted to tell you great job on the Blue's Clue's cake. The icing was so smooth on the cake and the paw prints just too cute.

Great job and good luck with all the orders!!!

You go Penny727.. Good for you ! HAVE FUN !I have never tried a CT where do you find the tutorial or ?

THANKS! I was telling my trainer while working out about the Blue's Clues order when one of other women I work out with asked about my doing some cupcakes for a meeting she's holding on Thursday. One of her co-workers had apparently joked with her about needing to have better snacks at the meeting - like cupcakes with strawberry filling. So that's what she wants to bring in!

I didn't follow any tutorial for the chocolate transfers - it's just been discussed on a couple threads I was following and tried what I could remember from them. I don't know if I am doing it the best way - I should probably check and see! Maybe it wouldn't have taken me so long.

The more I did, the better they started to came out...so just give it a try!

Thanks for the update Cupcakemkr, one of these days I hope to get to try everyrecipe in the file. Thanks also to all who have contributed your recipe to this large file.

I'm completely shocked right now. I baked 2 cakes for my son's b-day next week, and they came out great! I must have did something wrong lol. I wanted to get them out of the way before the funeral, and because I'm dumb and got talked into going to work for 60 days to help out my mom.

Now, Chocolate transfers, is that the melted discs? And then use in a squirt bottle or piping bag?

I am also curious on what choc was used for the transfer, I attempted and I mean that "loosely" bakerella's cupcake bites/pops this weekend and boy, I couldn't for the life of me get my chocolate thin enough to even remotely look good on the "cupcake".

any help of how to really thin out wilton's choc or just something new in general would be great. I have 45 1/2 done pops on my kitchen table!

pinkbeesugar: if you are using the candy melts, you can buy something called paramount crystals at your cake/candy supply store...add a teaspoon and melt...stir well and it will thin it out nicely. If you need more keep adding a bit at a time and stir well.
They are chips of partially hydrogenated palm kernel oil combined with lecithin and citric acid (as a preservative) for the use in confectionery coating and chocolate work. When used it keeps the chocolate fluid. Used similarly to cocoa butter in chocolate work, except paramount crystals have virtually no flavor (tasteless).

CandyLady....thank you. I was wondering if its so much in the quality of the choc as I think. I like the ease of the wilton along with the colors already being done for me.

I will be making a trip to my cake supply this week....Is that the same as food grade parafin?

Yes, thanks CandyLady! That sounds like it would be really helpful!

So, in our cupcake forum, someone (crystalina1977) shared this recipe that sounds AWESOME to make for the fall:

Apple Pie Cupcakes
(adapted from Donna Hay Magazine #27)
(makes 24 cupcakes)

Cupcakes
2 1/4 all purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
9 ounces (2 sticks plus 2 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened at room temp
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp finely grated lemon or orange zest
1 cup (8 fluid ounces) whole milk

Apple Topping
3 tbsp (40 g) unsalted butter
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

Cinnamon Frosting
12 ounces (3 sticks / 340g) unsalted butter, softened at room temp
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

To cook the apples
Place butter and sugar in a large fry pan over low-medium heat. Stir to dissolve sugar. Add apple slices and cook for 8-10 minutes or until apples are lightly caramelized. Remove apples from pan and let cool completely.

To make the cupcakes
Preheat oven to 325F. Line 24 4-fl-oz-capacity muffin wells with paper liners.

Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside dry ingredients.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides if the bowl occasionally. Beat in the vanilla and grated zest.

On low speed, add the flour mixture and mix until flour is barely incorporated. Add the milk and mix until just smooth.

Divide the batter among lined muffin wells, filling each well about 2/3 full. Top with the apples.

Bake at 325F until a cake tested comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from pan and cool cupcakes on cooling racks. Make sure cupcakes are completely cooled before frosting.

To frost the cupcakes
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the confectioner's sugar and cinnamon and beat for another 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Frost the cupcakes with an icing spatula or piping bag. Optional: Lightly dust frosted cupcakes with 2-3 tsp ground cinnamon.

It came from this website:
http://alpineberry.blogspot.com/2007/10/apple-pie-cupcake.html

I wanted to post it here because it sounded SO GOOD and I wanted to add it to the the recipe file

pinkbeesugar: yes, and it is also used to make chocolate shiny but I use it to thin some types of candy melts. Some of the colors are thicker than others especially the white so this helps. They sell it in small plastic containers and also in bags I would buy the container...lasts forever.

If you use that to thin it, will it harden up?

Thanks CupcakeMkr! You're awesome! I posted this yesterday but for some reason it didn't get on here. Don't know what's going on.

I'm hoping that someone can help me locate a recipe for cafe con leche buttercream. I came across this today (Nutella stuffed cupcake w/ cafe con leche buttercream) and I'm determined to recreate them despite not having a clue about the buttercream....I am however familiar w/ the taste of cafe con leche b/c I drank it while on holidays in Cuba. I have tried searching the internet w/ no luck?? Can anyone help?

http://www.allthingscupcake.com/2008/07/21/nutella-stuffed-cupcake/

Sounds good! Do you think that would be like a "caramel coffee" buttercream?

Linda

it's not really a caramel flavour...almost like a strong, sweet, cafe au lait.

paramount crystals will not prevent your chocolate from hardening. It will chill just as fast with or without it.

It just means coffee with milk. Here is a recipe for the coffee.
Maybe they used a special flavor of coffee.
http://www.recipezaar.com/114354

hi guys!! i need some help.. someone wants to order some vanilla cupcakes and some strawberry cupcakes from me.. but i have yet to find a to die for scratch recipe for these. I saw some vanilla recipes in the recipe file.. has anyone tried these and are they to die for? :p or if anyone has tried any fantastic recipes could they please direct me to it please!!! this dude ordered today and wants them tomorrow so i'm starting to panic.. help!

GrandmaG thanks for the link (cafe con leche is the cuban/spanish equivalent of cafe au lait but w/ cuban coffee which has a unique flavour). I have found a site that details the preparation of the coffee & I have cuban coffee from my recent trip

For Strawberry cupcakes I took a white mix and exchanged a cup of frozen strawberries, thawed, for the cup of water and added strawberry Torani Syrup for the flavoring and they turned out good. I frosted with Decorator's cream cheese frosting. I would think you could do this with a scratch mix too or with any other white cake recipe. I'm also looking for that great vanilla recipe. So far my best has been the Golden Vegan Vanilla. It has a little bit of a soda taste though that I don't particularly care for. I really like the texture and moistness of it and otherwise has a great flavor!

Hi GrandmaG... when you refer to a white mix... are you referring to a white cake mix? Guess i'll be making the Golden Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes for vanilla cupcakes since i don't have time to try out any other recipes at this time. thanks so much GrandmaG.. you're a lifesaver!!

looking for a summery fruit filling using pudding and bettercream (Mel?) I think there was a peach jello, with chopped peaches and bettercreme..any other ideas? thanks folks. yellow or white cake

CandyLady... here's a recipe for peachy keen cake (it was on the home page today when I logged in )

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-7170-Peachy-Keen-Cake.html

sounds refreshing and thanks but what is:
1/2-Cup Ex.Light OO

olive oil? in a cake?

Haven't seen peach pudding, but there is banana, lemon, and coconut that would be a great filling and white chocolate, I did pistachio w/bettercreme for a cake a few weeks ago and it was really really really good

I love pistachi but not sure the office staff would, course they would eat baby poop over noodles, they are such a bunch of mooches!

If you have any of the fruit filling sleeves they are delicious with the bettercreme.Also mixing Smuckers jams etc is very yummy mixed into the bettercreme !