This year for Christmas I was given a calendar; a calendar with cupcakes all over it. Not only do I now know the date off by heart, but I'm always hungry. (It has its got pros and cons.) It has one design for every month of the year, and in a fit of New Year-driven enthusiasm I decided that each month I'd try to create my own at-home version all with things from the supermarket and the aid of my shaky hands.
So, whilst it is still January, and from the feel of it, still quite obviously winter, I give you polar bear cupcakes.
They're gorgeous and as results vary, brilliant fun to make.
You will need!
Cupcakes (recipe to follow)
Dessicated coconut
Big marshmallows
White sugary sweets or mini marshmallows (for hands and feet)
Chocolate icing (brilliant if you can get a little tube with a piping nozzle)
Chocolate mini M&Ms
Pot of frosting, or use an American Frosting recipe (recipe below)
Circular cereal (wheetos, though brown, work fine here)
To make cupcakes:
4oz butter
4oz self raising flour
4oz caster sugar
2 eggs
baking powder
Two spoonsfulls of milk
A quick American frosting recipe (for those who aren't lazy like me)
75g butter
550g sifted icing sugar
4 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Beat butter until soft and gradually beat in icing sugar. Beat with a fork until arm tired and/or frosting soft and forming peaks.
Making the cake!
Preheat over to 180 degrees.
Mush your sugar into the butter. Once fully mushed (a good baking word), add eggs. Stir until all resembling a big goo, and add the flour gradually. Stir until resembling cake mix more, and add the baking powder and milk. Stir until bored and divide into cupcake cases.
Cook for 15-20 minutes, or until you can stick the handle of a teaspoon into it and it comes out clean.
Decorating!
For decoration, this video helps a lot to give youa n idea of how to go about it.
Essentially, you need to create a giant tummy out of icing. It will look sugary. "This is sickly-looking," you may say. You will likely be right.
To one side, add a large white marshmallow and scrape a layer of frosting over it until covered. This will make the head.
Hurl dessicated coconut over the cake.
Cut your mini-marshmallows or sugary sweets into legs and arm shapes, and attach where you feel polar bears' legs and arms should go.
Cute wheetos/round cereal in half, and cover with frosting and coconut. Attach using yet more frosting.
Add a chocolate nose by attaching an M&M with chocolate icing.
Add claws detail and eyes using chocolate icing.
Optional (and/or thing I forgot): Make a nose out of a mini marshmallow or sugary sweet. Add little bear-like detail under the nose.
Wait until dry. Wait..
Devour.
Here's my effort:
I loved this one. He looks like is french and enjoys reading.
