My 3 Monsters: Hopping on the Bandwagon

Recent Posts

10.04.2010

Hopping on the Bandwagon

So, I know I'm not even remotely on the leading edge of the giant cupcake trend.  It's old news.  I've always been staunchly against them.  I'm anti-anything that is sold exclusively on TV.  And I've seen a bunch of them on the internet and they never, ever look that great.  BUT I had to make one last weekend for that wedding AND I did it without the $20 pan.  AND I think it looked . . . OK.  Fine at best.  AND I'm not getting any younger so I thought it would be a good idea to document my method just in case I ever have to make one again.  ALSO, I've been seeing a recipe for Cookie Dough Buttercream Frosting all over lately.  Of course, I HAD to try that . . . AND SO . . . a project was born today.  However, as I started baking, the sky clouded over and a torrential downpour broke out.  It was like dusk at 1:30 -- no natural light.  And so the photos, taken in my dim little galley kitchen, are not ideal.  (We never did get that chandelier put up the weekend before last.  The faucet and microwave, thankfully, yes.  But no light.)  Anyway, I plowed through and here it is, more for my benefit than yours, really.  Because it's my blog and I can do that.

First you'll need a yellow cake mix, a 6" round cake pan, and a Pampered Chef Large Batter Bowl (or any other bowl that is oven safe , vaguely round at the bottom, and looks like it will sit nicely ontop of a 6" cake).  Mix the cake mix according to the package instructions.  Generously grease your pans.  Pour 1/3 of your batter into the pan, 1/3 into your bowl, and the other 1/3 into another 6" pan (or save it to cook later if you only have one pan like me.)

 This is what it looks like all stacked up -- more like a beehive than a cupcake.  That's OK.
You'll probably want to crumb coat the entire cake with a thin layer of frosting.  I did that last weekend and it worked out better.  Then frost the bottom part.  Just get a good even, kind of thick layer so that you can use this fancy tool:
 (cut out of a paper plate) to drag up the edges from bottom to top all the way around the cake so it looks like:
 (kind-of) a cupcake wrapper.  Last time I used a different color of frosting for the base and I thought that looked more authentic.  Today I was lazy.
Then go in with your giant star tip (Wilton M3? Maybe.) and bulk up the top a bit and get that cupcake shape.  Decorate it however you like.  I decided that Cookie Dough Buttercream is a little too soft for this project.  I'd probablt stiffen it up a bit with powdered sugar next time.  However, the flavor is to. Die. For.

Here's the recipe I stole from Kevin and Amanda dot com:

Cookie Dough Buttercream Frosting


3 sticks of softened butter
3/4 C. lt. brown sugar
3 1/2 C. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 T. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Cream butter and brown sugar.  Beat in powdered sugar until smooth and fluffy.  Beat in the rest of the ingredients until smooth and combined.  Top with mini chocolate chips and DIE AND GO TO CUPCAKE HEAVEN.

3 comments:

  1. My tummy still hurts from that beautiful deliciousness. But honestly, looking at it again, I'd totally eat another piece - it's THAT good!
    YUMMY!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  3. "Vaguely round at the bottom..." You always make me chuckle!

    I have one question for you: why? WHY would you do this to me at the end of a long day, when I don't have the time or ingredients (or talent or general ability or anything other than opposable thumbs)? That leaves me with nothing but an overwhelming desire to chef and eat this giant cupcake.

    Why, cruel friend? Why? ( ;))

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for leaving a comment. I try to respond to every one, even if it takes me a little while!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...