Caroline Dipping of Daily Breeze offers up some cupcake-baking tips in her article, "Cupcakes a perfect warm-weather dessert."
• For standard-sized cupcakes with nicely rounded tops, fill muffin tins two-thirds full. For a generous cupcake with a high crown and a lip that slopes over the edge of the cake, fill tins at least three-fourths full, or almost to the top.
• Avoid overbaking by checking cupcakes five minutes before the end of baking time.
• If using a cake mix, follow package instructions, but add one extra egg and cup of all-purpose flour to the mix. This ensures a denser, less crumbly cupcake. (This is a nifty trick when making a full-sized cake from a mix, too.)
• Let cupcakes cool at least 10 minutes in the pan before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
• For a hidden surprise, fill your cupcakes with a bit of frosting, mousse or fruit puree. Fill a piping bag fitted with a large star tip, preferably a No. 20 or 22, and gently insert the tip into the middle of a baked cupcake. Squeeze until filling just starts to pop out of the cake. Frost as you would normally.
• Most cupcakes are round, but many cookware and craft stores and Internet sites sell different shapes of individual-serving cake pans, including squares, ovals, triangles and hearts.
• Sprinkles, blossoms, mini candies, toasted coconut, fruit, fondant, holiday-themed liners -- the sky's the limit when it comes to cupcake accouterment.
• Unfrosted cupcakes freeze nicely for up to four months if well wrapped in plastic or sealed in airtight containers. Thaw at room temperature in their wrappings.
• When making a regular cake, never throw away any extra batter. Make cupcakes!
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