giant cup cakes

[H Bee]

hi all,

a few months ago i went to a little cafe and had the most amazing giant cup cakes!! they were muffin sized with lovely coloured 'hard' (not stale) icing swirled on top.

I tried to make some myself using a normal cake mixture but using muffin cases. I then used butter icing and food colouring for the icing but failed miserably!! The cake itself was gross! and the icing wouldnt stay swirly it all fell down on itself and dribbled down the side of the cases!

Does any one have any recipes on how to make lovely giant cupcakes with firm icing??? I would love to make some for christmas!!

Thanks
H Bee

[fairycakes1972]

Hi H Bee

Sounds like your buttercream was too soft! Can you remember what ratio of butter to icing sugar you used? I always use half butter to icing sugar, with a dessert spoonful of milk to soften it. If you used liquid food colour that will have changed the consistancy of the icing as well!

For receipes for the cupcakes, try Martha Stewarts webbie as she has some fab ones on the site. Normal receipes can be used in muffin cases, just make sure you half fill them.

Happy Baking!!!

x

[Bath-Bomb.Com]

Hiya,

I am by no stretch of the imagination a cupcake expert (not the kind you eat, anyway, I make Soap and Bath Bomb Cupcakes)...but here are a couple of suggestions you could try...

On Ebay you can find large silicone muffin trays - probably the size of the large muffins sold in a lot of shops...they are about £5 each and make 6 at a time...

Have you thought of using an american muffin recipe...it's more like a batter than a cake mix but when it works it's lovely and soft and fluffy...

For the icing, I think you need more of a meringue than a traditional icing - in the USA they sell it in packets that you whisk up yourself (I know this because some Americans decorate their bath bomb & soap cup cakes with it!)...it's a kind of egg-white icing...may be worth googling it to see if someone makes it here...

Anyway, it's thicker and more stable and you may even be able to pipe it onto the top of your cupcakes...

HTH

Jude x

[H Bee]

Thank you to you both for replying,

I cant remember how much butter and icing powder i used but next time i will make sure its more like 50/50. Ill also give that website a little look.

the American topping sounds a bit strange but maybe worth a try!!!

thanks

[fairycakes1972]

I think the American icing mentioned is either 7 minute frosting, or Italian Meringue buttercream. It's made with heated egg whites, butter and sugar. There are loads of receipes if you google them.

I only ever use good old normal muffin trays to bake my cupcakes, Tesco's do a really good one for £10.

[Scorch]

Weight-of-an-egg-cake works for almost anything that wants a sponge recipe, from buns to birthday cakes!

Butter icing takes MUCH more icing sugar than you'd think, and I recommend adding at least 2 tablespoons of condensed milk, or one of evaporated (or ordinary) milk to each half-pound of butter, or even more than that if you want. It'll improve the taste, making it more creamy and less greasy, and let it take up more icing sugar, too. Also, 'cos its water-based, it dries a bit and thus goes firmer when left for a little while to set.

You can make that recipe be chocolate by using 1/3 cocoa to icing sugar, and also adding a tablespoon or more of melted good plain choolate to each half-pound as well. If you use melted chocolate, remember that the icng will get MUCH firmer when it cools right down.

You should always make butter icing to taste, not to recipe, I reckon! If it feels right and tastes right, it IS right.

[Scorch]

Oh, yes - make sure that your cakes are COMPLETELY cold before you ice them, or your icing will melt...

[SalvageTasha]

You could cheat and use the ready made Betty Crocker frosting! :D

Definately make sure the cakes are completely cold and making it to taste/appearance is a great tip (for all baking not just the icing).

As for the big size. I tend to just make up a normal cupcake mix and put it in muffin cases. Cooking time alters slightly but then I'm not so good with actually timing things anyway. I just leave them in the oven till they look done

[PrincessPrudence]

Hi,

I love baking cupcakes, and although I've not done giant ones I've had some success with normal sized ones. I even posted some to my blog in another thread yesterday:

http://princessprudencediaries.blogspot.com/2009/11/cupcake-queen.html

Anyway, they have butter cream icing on which is firm and peaked. I don't have the recipe on me, but I use the primrose bakery cupcake book and they usually turn out well. I'm at work at the moment, but if you want me to send you the recipe for the icing then PM... I'll do it from home... it's actually quite a lot of icing sugar compared to butter and milk!

[cakedecorator]

You can make cupcakes with Royal Icing, provided you add glycerine.
To make Royal Icing beat together dry 15g of dried powdered edd white (buy at your local cake shop), and 455g of icing sugar. Once all stirred together, add 85g of water *yes weigh it, and then beat it for 10 to 15 minutes, until it resembles whipped cream. You can then colour it and pipe it onto your muffins.

If you really want to use buttercream - you absolutely have to use real butter and a good quality one, e.g. kerry gold, lurpack, country life. You need to double the amount of icing sugar to the amount of butter you use and then beat it - preferably by machine, for about 8 minutes, on a slow setting - the longer you beat it the whiter it goes. Then you can colour it.
Hope this helps
cake decorator

www cake-links.com


hi all,

a few months ago i went to a little cafe and had the most amazing giant cup cakes!! they were muffin sized with lovely coloured 'hard' (not stale) icing swirled on top.

I tried to make some myself using a normal cake mixture but using muffin cases. I then used butter icing and food colouring for the icing but failed miserably!! The cake itself was gross! and the icing wouldnt stay swirly it all fell down on itself and dribbled down the side of the cases!

Does any one have any recipes on how to make lovely giant cupcakes with firm icing??? I would love to make some for christmas!!

Thanks
H Bee