Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes

Who doesn't love a good peppermint mocha from the local coffee shop this time of the year? Maybe you've seen peppermint mochas in cupcake form before, but I just really love this version from Sally's Baking Addiction. They're so bright, festive, and gorgeous! These cupcakes start with chocolate cupcakes with hints of peppermint and coffee. Then they're topped with peppermint vanilla frosting, drizzled with melted chocolate, and sprinkled with crushed candy canes. For the recipes, see the whole post here!

Elf on the Shelf Joins the Cupcake Craze!

According to www.elfontheshelf.com, the next most popular time of the year for the Elf on the Shelf to appear is on a child's birthday, so now they are selling a "birthday suit" (get your mind out of the gutter) - an adorable cupcake costume!  Apparently, Santa has given the elves special permission to leave the North Pole this one other time of the year, as long as they look like an adorable pastry.  For just $19.95, you can free your child's Elf on the Shelf for one other day of the year, including a new book that tells the story of how this new part of the tradition came to pass.

 

Another new bakery related item to the Elf on the Shelf line is a cute little baking outfit/set for the Elf (and the child), including a cookie cutter.

 

Also available is a cupcake decorating kit from DecoPac:

 

 

and Elf on the Shelf printables displayed here from hoosierhomemade.com:

 

 

 

I will let you know if I get my hands on any of these new items and try them out myself!

 

 

(from Cindy Hoose's pinterest board)

 

 

P.S. I couldn't help but post a few cute examples of the Elf on the Shelf ... herself ... getting into the cupcake act!

Gluten-Free Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

Blogger Heather Sage of A Sage Amalgam made these gluten free Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes.

Happy Hannukah and candy cane crunch mini cupcakes at Baked by Melissa in December, plus the history of candy canes

I tried the new candy cane crunch mini cupcakes at Baked by Melissa on Monday and was delighted. It's their December flavor and is very festive and seasonal, one that candy cane fans should check out. I like candy canes but when I bite into them they get stuck in my teeth, so this way of doing it avoids that and gives you some white chocolate to enjoy along with your cupcake. Baked by Melissa now has so many Manhattan locations I can't keep track of all of them, and they also do mail order cupcakes, so check them out and get all the details at bakedbymelissa.com and on their Facebook page, where this Happy Hannukah cupcake message came from.







The card above saying that candy canes were invented to keep children quiet piqued my curiosity. About.com dates the candy cane shape back to 1670 and goes on to say:

The first historical reference to the candy cane being in America goes back to 1847, when a German immigrant called August Imgard decorated the Christmas tree in his Wooster, Ohio home with candy canes.

The Stripes

About fifty years later the first red-and-white striped candy canes appeared. No one knows who exactly invented the stripes, but Christmas cards prior to the year 1900 showed only all-white candy canes. Christmas cards after 1900 showed illustrations of striped candy canes. Around the same time, candy-makers added peppermint and wintergreen flavors to their candy canes and those flavors then became the traditional favorites.

Pink Leopard Print High Heel Shoe Cake and Cupcakes

The 50th birthday centerpiece is a cake, but wow! I had to share this with our readers. This leopard print cake and cupcakes were made by Amanda Mumbray of Clever Little Cupcakes.

MAC Cosmetics Cupcakes

For the beauty lovers, check out these MAC cupcakes.

Fall Flavor Face-Off, KC Style!

Fall flavors abound at this time of year, including, but not limited to, apple and pumpkin.  It seems every cupcakery is doing some version of those two flavors in particular this year, so I thought I'd do a head to head comparison for a couple in Kansas City:

Cupcake A La Mode, located on the Plaza and in Park Place featured a Pumpkin Cheesecake and a Caramel Apple over Thanksgiving.  As usual, their cakes were of an amazing texture I have yet to find anywhere else (nationwide!).  The apple cupcake had real bits of apple in the cake itself, but I could have used more caramel in the icing.  Because the theme was "caramel apple", not "apple pie", which is more common, there were also crushed peanuts on the outside of the cupcake, but I found that addition a bit jarring and actually ended up picking some of them off.  The icing layer of the pumpkin cheesecake cupcake is where the pumpkin cheesecake flavor was located and it really tasted like real pumpkin cheesecake (though lighter and fluffier), but by itself, it was a bit overpowering, whereas a bite of all the layers together was thoroughly enjoyable. 

At Addictions cupcakery in Zona Rosa, I purchased 6 cupcakes, but most of them were very dry, so I was excited when I got to their pumpkin spice cupcake because it was moist and delicious and fit the bill through and through.  There was nothing special about the cupcake, but they did the simple spice cake combination just right and chopped walnuts on top were a welcome addition.  The apple pie cupcake was again a bit dry and hard and the icing was tangy in a not-so-pleasant way.  In addition, they used canned apple pie filling in the middle instead bits of real apples, so the overall combination "didn't work for me", as Florian Bellanger of Cupcake Wars might say.

In the end, please draw your own conclusions from my descriptions about which pumpkin or apple cupcake might be better for your own tastebuds, but personally, I'd say it was a tie for pumpkin and win for A La Mode for the apple.  I will try to do the same for December flavors soon!

P.S. I took a picture of the interior display at Addictions to share with you, however, because it was just so lovely!  They wanted to have a display window in the front of their shop when they opened on Black Friday 2012 (that was brave!), but their landlord doesn't allow it.  It's too bad, because I'd like to see more from them.

What's Baking in December: Christmas Cupcake Flavors

Tell us some of your favorite Christmas cupcake flavors or wintry flavors are you planning to experiment with for the holiday season. Here's a list from culled from our Facebook and Twitter community. Please add more in the comments.

• Eggnog
• Gingerbread
• Candy cane
• Fruitcake
• English Christmas Cake
• Hot Buttered Rum
• Chocolate Orange
• Brandy Apple

P.S. 

Boxing Day, Kwanzaa and any other December holidays. We welcome your ideas.

A Holiday Tree Of Sweets

Cupcake towers and stands have similar shape of Christmas tree so there are great inspiration for holiday party sweets. Jennifer McFadden posted this lovely array of cupcakes, marshmallows and rice treats.
Decorating the tree has never been sweeter.

World AIDS Day red ribbon cupcakes

Charity cupcakes at Hummingbird Bakery in London from their Soho bakery for World AIDS Day, today, December 1st, via @hummingbbakery on Twitter, supporting Terrence Higgins Trust. Find out more at hummingbirdbakery.com.



Via worldaidsday.org, linked above:

World AIDS Day is held on 1 December each year and is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. World AIDS Day was the first ever global health day and the first one was held in 1988.

Sports fan cupcakes: Toronto Raptors

A very dedicated Toronto Raptors fan made these basketball cupcakes. Via @RealSports on Twitter.

Happy Thanksgiving Cupcakes By MaraBakes

Are there any Black Friday cupcakes?! Don't forget to support your local cupcake bakery tomorrow for Small Business Saturday.