How to Make Cute Halloween Cupcakes Recipe 

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Halloween Cupcakes Ingredients:

150 g plain flour

75 g self-raising flour

150 g softened butter

250 g castor sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp baking soda

50 to 60 g cocoa powder (I like to add about 75g)

50 g melted chocolate

200 ml buttermilk

Halloween Cupcakes Icing:

120 g golden syrup

250 g sugar

4 egg whites

2 tbsp chocolate sugar strands

Halloween Cupcakes Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC.
2. In a baking tray arrange 12 muffin cases.

For The Cupcakes

1. In a glass bowl, beat butter and sugar well until it becomes light and fluffy.
2. Start adding eggs, one at a time so that they mix very well with the butter sugar mix.
3. Add melted chocolate and mix well again.
4. Add vanilla extract to the above mix.
5. Spoon by spoon add flour, then add cocoa and in the end add baking soda. Ensure all of it mixes very well.
6. Gently blend in buttermilk to the mixture
7. Put a big spoonful of batter into each cupcake liner and bake for 20 minutes.
8. Place them on a wire rack to cool.

For The Icing

1. Put sugar, syrup and 4tbsp water into a saucepan and heat gently till sugar dissolves.
2. Bring the sugar syrup to boil and keep it boiling for about 5 minutes till the temperature reaches 115ºC. Remove the saucepan from heat.
3. Whilst the sugar syrup is boiling as in step 2, in a large glass bowl whisk in 4 egg whites till they form soft peaks.
4. Keeping your mixer on a slow speed add the sugar syrup gently very carefully.
5. Increase the mixer speed once the sugar syrup has gone in the egg whites and beat for about 10 minutes. The icing should have completely cooled off  by now and it should get cooler, else the icing might turn too soft and will not hold.

Halloween Decorations – Cupcake Frosting Piping Ideas:

1. Put the icing in a piping bag with a large plain nozzle.
2. Pipe icing first in a circle and then sweep the piping bag from the centre of the cupcake making a little hill in the centre and finish off with a peak.
3. Add chocolate chips or chocolate strands as eyes.

Need more fun Halloween Cupcake Ideas?

These Cupcake Recipes for Halloween from Delish are a must-try!

Here’s 21 Scary Cupcake Recipes from Taste of Home for your Halloween party.

Enjoy your Halloween Dessert!

With the Halloween party, all planned and being waited for such little sweet nothings can really add shimmer to the already delightful festivities. Halloween Ghost Cupcakes Recipe is a perfect way to wrap up Halloween.

For more Halloween party ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Mothers Day Ideas: DIY Cupcake Bouquet

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Cupcake Bouquet Ideas Supplies:

12-24 cupcakes – Visit our cupcake ideas recipes here

Two cans of firm frosting (enough to cover all the cupcakes)

Food coloring

Large open star tip – cake decorating tip set and pastry bag

Foam ball (5-6 inches in diameter) white or green

Flower pot (5-6 inches – same size as foam ball) – We like these pretty colored flower pots

Scraps of Styrofoam or floral foam

Small wooden skewers (or cut larger ones into half) or toothpicks

Adhesive tape or hot glue gun

Tissue paper in one or assorted colors

Ribbon

Watch a Mother’s Day Cupcake Tutorial Video:

ribbon

St. Patrick’s Day Desserts: Pistachio Cupcakes Recipe

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St. Patrick’s Day Dessert Ingredients:

⅔ cup of milk (room temperature)

¾ cup of unsalted butter (room temperature)

¾ cup of cake flour

¾ tsp. of salt

¾ cup of regular flour

1 cup of pistachio nutmeats (roasted)

1 cup of pistachio buttercream

1½ cups of white sugar (separate)

2 tsp. of vanilla

2 tsp. of baking powder

4 large eggs

 St. Patrick’s Pistachio Cupcakes Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350ᵒ. Insert paper liners into your muffin cups.
2. Blend ½ cup of sugar and pistachios in a blender until fully blended.
3. Sift the cake flour, regular flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl.
4. Using an electric mixer, beat the remaining sugar and butter together in a bowl until they are fluffy. Add each egg separately to the mixture and incorporate it entirely before adding the next.
5. Mix the vanilla extract and milk together in a bowl.
6. Add the flour mixture and milk mixture to the butter mixture in small amounts. Alternate and stir as you add each mixture. Start and end with the flour mixture and stir until fully mixed.
7. Add the ground pistachios to the mixture and distribute the mixture in the muffin cups.
8. Bake the cupcakes in the oven until they are slightly brown or until a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
9. Place them on a wire rack to cool.
10. Garnish with buttercream and pistachio nuts and serve.

One of the most significant things on St. Patrick’s Day is the wearing of shamrocks or green attire. If you don’t want to wear green clothes but still want to celebrate the day, make this St. Patrick’s Day dessert.

It is absolutely perfect for lovers of pistachio nuts. Be sure to follow all the instructions to the latter and you’ll love the end result. You can also tweak the recipe by using different nuts every time.

For more St. Patrick’s Day ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Thanksgiving Food Ideas for Family Fun

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Thanksgiving Food Ideas – Festive Cookies:

Who doesn’t love cookies? Decorating them is just as fun as they are yummy. Use your favorite cookie recipe and some fall or Thanksgiving cookie cutters and decorate them with autumn color’s icings or sugar paste. Pillsbury as some cute turkey cookies treats to try here.

Turkey Cookie Treats

These are yummy and so easy to make. Just take your favorite round cookies, frost them with chocolate frosting and decorate with yellow icing, candy corn, candy sprinkles, candy-coated chocolate bits, black decorating gel and whatever else you can think of.

Thanksgiving Dessert Recipe: Turkey Cupcakes:

Everyone knows that cupcakes are fun all by themselves. But what makes them even better, is icing them and decorating them. Try decorating with this cute Thanksgiving turkey cupcakes recipe. With some chocolate frosting and decorations made of marzipan or sugar paste, you can create those cute little cupcake turkeys.

Take a look at our 35 Thanksgiving Dessert Ideas here:

Thanksgiving food ideas: Sweet Scarecrows:

They don’t seem that scary, do they? They are easy to make, too. You just need round cookies, white frosting, sugar wafers, candy corn and for the finer decorations some mini chocolate chips, bran cereal for the hair, chocolate sprinkles and whatever you think that will make these guys cuter. To stick the hat to the head ,use the white frosting.

Thanksgiving Dessert: Chocolate Cookie Turkey:

Those cute turkeys are quite simple to make, but patience is needed for them to dry. You will need chocolate vanilla crème cookies, candy corn, peanut butter cups – which must be cut on the one end so they are leveled – chocolate frosting, yellow and red frosting, whoppers  and some sprinkles for the eyes. To stick the candy corn, the peanut butter cups, the whoopers and the cookies to each other, you will need to use the chocolate frosting as glue. The turkey’s nose is made of the cut tip of a candy corn.

Thanksgiving Snack Recipe Ideas:

Need Thanksgiving appetizer and snack ideas?  To make them, you will need some cocktail pumpernickel bread and cream cheese. For the decoration you can use peas, red, green and yellow pepper, cheese, cashewnuts, almonds, parsley and all the things you can think of, that can make them yummy looking. We also love these 109 Thanksgiving appetizer recipes from Delish.com

Either sweet or savory, healthy or just a treat, creating Thanksgiving snacks and sweets is a joyful act, especially if they are made in a cheerful atmosphere with loving people all around.

For more Thanksgiving food recipe ideas on Stagetecture, click here.

Fall Dessert: Easy Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes

Image Via: The Crazy Coupon Lady

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Ingredients

1-1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1-1/2 cup all purpose flour

4 large eggs

3 cups white sugar

5 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 can pumpkin pie filling

1/2 cup cooking oil

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup water

1-1/2 tsp salt

Image Via: The Baker Chick

Directions

1. Pre-heat the oven to 330ºF.
2. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.
3. Mix whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, baking soda, pumpkin spice and salt in a large bowl.
4. Next blend sugar, oil, water, eggs and pumpkin pie filling in a separate bowl.
5. Mix the contents of both the bowls little by little until a uniform batter is obtained.
6. Fill the muffin cups with batter up till the 3/4th  mark.
7. Bake for about 30 minutes. Check the muffin centres with a toothpick.
8. Once done cool the muffins on the wire rack.

Pumpkin recipes find a lot of resonance with crowds during fall as pumpkins are readily available and waiting to be used. Having create something unique and new gives us home chefs a very good feel good high. This easy fall dessert recipe is sure to win your heart in more ways than one, especially if you are a pumpkin fan. One could replace the water with milk or evaporated milk if you want a softer muffin. You can top these gorgeous beauties with fresh whipped cream and toss a few roasted walnuts for a little crunch. Do share your views on this recipe! It would be great to hear from you.

Click here for more Fall Dessert Recipes on Stagetecture!

3 Fun Alternatives to Serving a Traditional Wedding Cake

A Cupcake Tower

A cupcake tower is a great alternative to traditional wedding cakes and can have an edge when it comes to picky eaters. You can mix and match various flavors so that there is something for everyone. Moreover, they can become an instant decor and focal points for your reception table. Simply tailor your cupcake tower by using particular colored icing or flavors to complement your wedding theme. Similarly, you can do a macaroon tower if you desire.

Image via: Wedding Bells

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Pie Buffet

A pie table is not just a fun alternative to wedding cakes, it can also get budget friendly. If there are great pie bakers in your circle of family and friends, request each one to contribute a different flavored treat. If not, you can always outsource the job to a bakery specializing in the task.

Candy table

This self service alternative is guaranteed to win full points with your guests. To make your candy table visually appealing, add decorative signs to let everyone know what’s what. Alternatively, you can put them in fun containers in a mix of heights, for instance a low bowl shaped dessert dish for truffles and a cake stand for marshmallows. What’s more? Put out little bags or boxes so that your guests can scoop up some treats to go, and you have got favors covered too!

Image via: The Knot

If a traditional wedding cake is not your style, consider one of these delicious alternatives for your reception. So, which one are you serving?

Spring Dessert: Orange Cupcakes

Image via: Betty Crocker

Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (350 degrees F). Line 2 dozen muffin cups with paper liners.
In a large bowl, beat together the orange cake mix, whipped topping mix, creamy salad dressing, ¾ cup orange juice, eggs, and orange zest with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute or until moist. Scrape the sides of the bowl using a spatula, then increase speed to medium and continue mixing until well blended, approximately 2 minutes more. Fill the prepared muffin cups about 2/3 full of batter.
Bake in a preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow the pans to cool for 10-12 minutes before placing them on the wire rack.

Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Yields: 2 dozens

Ingredients

1 packet orange cake mix

¾ cup creamy salad dressing

30g dry whipped topping mix

¾ cup orange juice, freshly squeezed

3 large eggs

2 tablespoons orange zest, grated

1 jar marshmallow crème

1 cup butter at room temperature, unsalted, divided into two

1 cup vegetable shortening, divided in two

1 tablespoon orange zest

¼ teaspoon vanilla essence

2 drops orange food color

4 cups confectioners’ sugar

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (350 degrees F). Line 2 dozen muffin cups with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the orange cake mix, whipped topping mix, creamy salad dressing, ¾ cup orange juice, eggs, and orange zest with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute or until moist. Scrape the sides of the bowl using a spatula, then increase speed to medium and continue mixing until well blended, approximately 2 minutes more. Fill the prepared muffin cups about 2/3 full of batter.
3. Bake in a preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow the pans to cool for 10-12 minutes before placing them on the wire rack.

Image via: Gluten Free Canteen

Procedure to make cream topping

1. In a bowl using an electric mixer, beat the marshmallow crème, ½ cup shortening, and ½ cup unsalted butter until creamy and smooth. Top each cooled cupcake with ½ inch thick layer of cream topping. Use a knife to spread the topping flat. Make sure that about 1/2 of the cupcake shows below the cream topping.

Procedure to make orange butter cream

1. In a bowl, beat ½ cup shortening and ½ cup unsalted butter until light and fluffy. Mix in 1 orange zest, ¼ cup orange juice, vanilla essence, and food color until well blended. Gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar until smooth.
2. Transfer the prepared frosting to a piping bag with a large star tip. Now pipe a decorative layer of orange butter cream over the cream topping on the cupcakes.

Reminiscent of those childhood popsicles, these orange cupcakes will make you feel like a kid again. Try them and let us know if they are good enough to be a part of your spring dessert recipe collection!

The thing here is, whether enjoyed alone or in company, these little devils are going to tingle your tastebuds in way that would leave you asking for more.

Tea Time Dessert: Lemon Tea Cakes

Image Via: Martha Stewart

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Ingredients

6 eggs

3 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp lemon extract

2 tsp lemon peel, grated

3 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp vanilla extract

2-1/2 cups sugar

1-1/2 cup butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

confectioners sugar for sprinkling the tops

Image Via: Foodlibrarian

Directions

1. In a glass bowl mix butter, cheese and sugar until fluffy.
2. Add eggs one by one, whilst beating it well alongside.
3. Put in lemon extract, grated lemon peel and lemon juice.
4. Finally add flour and beat well to make a homogeneous mixture.
5. Take muffin cups and grease them well.
6. Fill in the cups to about 3/4 of their capacity.
7. Bake the cakes for about 10 to 15 minutes at 325ºF. Insert a tooth pick to check if they are done.
8. Leave them in the oven for about 5 minutes to cool down and then take them out.
9. Brush the cupcake tops with lemon extract and then sprinkle confectioners sugar as a garnish.

These yummy tea cakes are fleeting light and have just the right punch of lemon in them. In case you want to go a step further, you can top them with meringue and then sprinkle confectioners sugar on them. This delectable recipe can have many variants. For instance one could go in for a tray cake or a traditional round cake instead of cupcakes. You could even experiment with toppings and garnishes. It would be quite interesting to know of your take on the lemon tea cake recipe. Do share it with us as we look forward to it!

For more yummy cake recipes on Stagetecture, click here.

Cupcakes are such a great and fun food. Especially when beautifully frosted or decorated, they can be a centerpiece on any sweet table. But they should be displayed in a worthy way and what better way is there, than a wonderful cupcake stand. But they can be expensive, and finding one that matches our taste or overall décor can be tricky. Here is an entraining idea and way to easily make your own inexpensive and personalized  DIY cupcake stand.

How to Make a Spring Cupcake Stand for Display

Image via: Spunky Junky

DIY: How to Make a Cupcake Stand

Materials:

3 plates (one small, one medium, one large size). You can use any flat plates put of plastic, ceramic, glass, metal, wood etc. and any shape. Even mirrors work for this.

2 candleholders. Choose sturdy candleholders with wide bases. They can be made out of plastic, wood, ceramic, glass, etc.

E6000 Glue

Spray paint (optional)

Decorative item (optional)

Image via: Life Sweet Life

Instructions:

To implement this simple entertainment idea, just follow these steps:

If you want to change the colors of your plates, decorative items and/or candleholders, spray paint the plates and candleholders per instructions. Let the paint dry completely.

Find the center of the largest plate and, using the glue, glue one candleholder on the plate.

Next, glue the medium sized plate onto the candleholder.

Now, glue the second candleholder onto the center of the medium plate.

Finish your cupcake stand by gluing the small plate onto the second candleholder. Let the glue dry overnight by placing something heavy on the plate, like a book for example. Glue on the decorative item you chose. Ready!!!

Image via: Pinterest

You can decorate the stands in any way, like using ribbons or fabric. If you paint them, make sure to have something between the food and the surface, like a doily for instance, since the spray paint isn’t food safe. Also, consider making some individual mini cupcake stands using mini or small candleholders and plates. They would be a blast as name card holders or favors (or both) at parties for sure!

Image via: Modern Moments Designs

These fun cupcake stands are so simple and inexpensive to make, and yet they are perfect at any occasion.

For more DIY ideas on Stagetecture, & Stagetecture’s YouTube Channel, click here

Salted caramel cupcakes are not your everyday, ordinary cupcakes. They are fancy and so delicious you can’t even imagine. Just go on and make them and see for yourself! This recipe is using almond extract to give the cupcakes a fine almond flavor which works wonderful with the salted caramel. If you don’t want this flavor though, just omit it and double the amount of vanilla extract.

Scrumptious Salted Caramel Cupcakes

Image via: Pinterest

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Ingredients

For the cupcakes

¾ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ cup sugar
¼ cup softened margarine
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract
¼ cup and 2 tablespoon whole milk

For the frosting

¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup margarine
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ cup heavy cream
½ pinch salt
¼ cup and 2 tablespoons salted, softened butter
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar

Image via: Baking Mad

Directions

1. To make this delicious cupcakes preheat your oven to about 350 degrees. Line your muffin pan with muffin liners.
2. Combine flour and baking powder in a bowl. Using a mixer, mix the sugar and ¼ cup margarine until the mixture is creamy and well combined. Add the egg and beat well. Add the aroma almond and the vanilla extract and mix. Now beat in a little at a time the flour mixture and the milk, alternating between these two ingredients.
3. Fill the liners with the batter, so they are about 2/3 full. Bake the cupcakes for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let them cool.
4. Now it’s time to make the caramel. In a saucepan, combine the brown sugar, ¼ cup of margarine, the corn syrup and the vanilla extract over medium heat. Bring it to a boil. Now reduce the heat and let it thicken, which should take about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool down so it’s not hot. Now add the cream a little at a time until you have a caramel that resembles the consistency of the honey. Add the salt and stir. Allow to cool. If you want, set aside 1-2 tablespoons of the caramel for decorating.
5. For the frosting, beat the salted butter together with the confectioners’ sugar with a mixer until you have a fluffy frosting. Add the caramel slowly little by little and mix until you have a smooth frosting.
6. Frost the cooled cupcakes and drizzle some of the set aside caramel. You can decorate with sea salt or almond slices. Enjoy!

Image via: Pass The Sushi

This recipe from allrecipes.com is the ultimate fancy yet easy cupcake recipe. They would be great for any occasion and of course they are just perfect to have besides a warm cup of coffee or tea in this time of year! Let us know how you love this Scrumptious Salted Caramel Cupcakes Recipe.

For more desserts on Stagetecture, click here.