Cupcake Hangover

Late last week, I received a last-minute order for 100 cupcakes. As I've mentioned in a previous post, I'm no cupcake maker. But at this point in my decorating career, who am I to turn down a customer. And considering it was from Intel (now a repeat customer), I didn't want to say no.

By Monday, the order had gone down to 80. Now, my insider at Intel who doubles as my cake-pusher, dubiously thought that since I'd only ever really made cakes large enough to serve 25 or so, that I couldn't possibly make a cake for 80. Um, hello, Spongebob could easily have fed 60! And so cupcakes it was. And having never really made more than a dozen jumbo cupcakes (which the aforementioned insider dropped in the parking lot), I had no clue what I was in for.

The baking part was the easiest. And the scratch mix I used was simple and tasty. I went through two double-batches of buttercream and got way too ambitious with my fondant accents.

Mind you, I have to do all this (with the exception of the baking), once a wee 18-month old has gone to bed, which is around 8 p.m. However, I could have done a few things days ahead...made the buttercream, created my fondant figures. But no, I like to do things the hard way.

The cupcakes were finished this morning with the help of my handsome assistant. Let me just say that decorating a cake has its challenges, but decorating 80 cakes is ridiculous. I'll stick with cakes, thank-you-very-much. In my opinion, the finished product is much more rewarding.

The cakes

Vanilla buttermilk cupcakes with buttercream frosting

Chocolate cinnamon cupcakes with buttercream frosting

Each cupcake was adorned with either a Intel bunny man or fondant flower (both made from mmf)

Note: I only made 20 of those bunny buggers and they took me TWO hours. But yeah, if I'd planned ahead and made them in advance, I could have easily done 80 and in assorted colors too. Hindsight...