Easy Cupcake Decorating Ideas

[undaunted]

I know there are many ways to decorate a cupcake which makes it one of my favorite things to bake. I'm running out of decorating ideas though. Does anybody know any real easy ones but comes of as complicated? In return, I can tell you mines. Usually I'll melt some baker's chocolate, place it a tube or zip loc bag, make crazy patterns on parchment paper, let it cool, and then place it on the cupcake. It makes the cupcake look so much better! Then, I'll place a chocolate chip or too beside it.

 

[Soliloquy]

You could always get a cupcake-sized stencil and shake powdered sugar or cocoa over it for an elegant look.

 

[undaunted]

You could always get a cupcake-sized stencil and shake powdered sugar or cocoa over it for an elegant look.

Oh, I've heard of that method before! I've seen a lot of recipes where you use powdered sugar but never heard of cocoa.

 

[edimzy]

I always go for the basic cupcake swirl. I start on the rim of the cupcake and just swirl around the edge until I get to the middle and keep piling the icing on. After that I usually get a different color and drizzle it over the top. Sometimes I just get colorful sprinkles and shake it on top.

 

[love2bakesoon]

Cupcake decorating can be a fun activity for kids especially during vacations. Once they had a sleepover, we bought some M&Ms, Reeses, sprinkles, chocolate chips, and a variety of tiny candies. I prepared a basic frosting, some tiny tubs of food color, and several pipings. They mixed their own colors as the frosting base. They drew shapes and lines, then they choose the toppings to top their cupcake art creations.

 

[Selina]

i normally make two different colour icing and add both in the piping bag< comes out fantastic>

 

[shopgirl]

Unfortunately I don't have any ideas about decorating cupcakes but there are some really COOL cupcakes that I want to try to make. They are "Camo" cupcakes. My husband is REALLY BIG into hunting and also loves Duck Dynasty. I thought the Camo cupcakes would be cute to make for his upcoming birthday. These cupcakes would be cute at a little boy's party as well. I googled Camo cakes and found this website coincidentally and seen these cupcakes. Check it out. They are so cute!

http://craftymamabakes.com/2012/08/03/camouflage-cupcakes-tutorial/

 

[NThomas]

Chocolate molding clay is fun way to decorate cupcake. You can use children clay toy from the dollar store to help you shape and creates . Once you get the clay made, you can cut out shape mold and sculpt many decorations that look complicated but are simple to make.



This recipe is from wiltons , I have made this clay and it worked really well. You can also and flavored oils.
Ingredients:

• 1 package (12oz.) Candy Melts® Candy
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• Candy Colors Set (Optional)

Makes:

1 pound.

Instructions:

Step 1

Melt Candy Melts® following package directions.
Step 2

Add corn syrup and stir to blend.
Step 3

Turn out mixture onto waxed paper and let set at room temperature to dry.
Step 4

Wrap well and store at room temperature until needed.
Candy clay handles best if hardened overnight.
Step 5

To Use
Candy clay will be very hard at the start; knead a small portion at a time until workable. If candy clay gets too soft, set aside at room temperature or refrigerate briefly. When rolling out candy clay, sprinkle work surface with cornstarch or cocoa (for cocoa clay) to prevent sticking; roll to approximately 1/8 in. thick.
To Tint
White candy clay may be tinted using Candy Color. Knead in color until well blended.
To Store
Prepared candy clay will last for several weeks at room temperature in an airtight container.
*Brand confectionery coating.

 

[belle]

Well in your place what I'd do is to get different good colorings (like red/blue/yellow/orange/green) and mix it with the mixture and bake different colors of cupcakes.That would be fun to do/see/eat

 

[justusforus]

I was an impromptu babysitter one evening, and the kids wanted to bake cupcakes. So off we went and made a pan. I collected up all possible toppings and cut up some berries and fruit. It kept them busy all night when I asked them to make faces (people or animals or characters) and it was interesting to see what came out from simply frosting and then playing with the toppings. I did not take a picture but I will try to update (of course all the youngsters had an Iphone).

 

[zlemune]

I'm lazy so my favourites are adding m&m's, hershey's kisses, candy hearts, or those sorts of things in the frosting. Everything else seems way too complicated

 

[Christine Mlinek]

I love cupcakes! I like to inject them with any filling, and then a simple squirt on top of the same flavor.
I did a chocolate cupcake with coconut pecan frosting on top, then piped on chocolate around the edges. A fake german chocolate cupcake! it was devoured by my coworkers.

Another idea is to crumble up some brownies and put those on top too. Those are good for kids to have fun with

 

[zlemune]

Just saw some in a shop window yesterday that were decorated like basketballs! I guess they had the orange frosting handy for Halloween and figured they'd have some fun with it.

I guess you can easily do just about any round shape.

 

[JessiFox]

You can get a cool "tie dye" effect for the icing that tends o go over pretty well with kids . I'm big on experimenting with different fillings lately...carmel apple cupcakes with green apple filling are great for this season!

 

[zlemune]

You can get a cool "tie dye" effect for the icing that tends o go over pretty well with kids . I'm big on experimenting with different fillings lately...carmel apple cupcakes with green apple filling are great for this season!

Really? My boyfriend loooooves tie dye and I would enjoy trying to make something like that for him. How do you achieve the effect?

 

[veroniquebrown72]

I am decoratively challenged. I usually do the different color frostings and use decorating tips for different swirls or shapes. I do like NThomas' candy clay idea. I will definitely be trying this idea and I may be able to tweak it as well.

 

[smlewis00]

I agree! Chocolate candies, candy hearts, and sprinkles are simple and easy to use! However, for Christmas I went all out and decorated cupcakes to look like reindeers. I made them look like reindeers using M&M's for eyes, red hots for the nose, and pretzels for the antlers. I will try to upload a picture if I can find one. I guess I try to be simple when I decorate. When I use colorful gel icing I get nervous because my hands are not always steady. When my nerves get to me, my hands shake. When my hands shake, my icing and decorating looks like a 3 year old decorated. At least I can control candy pieces better.

 

[LindaKay]

These are some really cute ideas. By the way, I love the Wilton Candy Melts! They taste good and come in lots of colors!!

 

[SmartPea85]

I love decorating cupcakes for seasons, special occasions, and anything in between! Because the American SuperBowl is coming up next weekend, I plan on making some football-related cupcakes. One idea I have is to make the cupcake top look like grass with either green-food-colored coconut shavings or just spiky green frosting (I am aware not everyone is a coconut fan).
My mom taught me a neat trick to make frosting stick up: smack it with short little hits with a frosting tool or the flat side of a butter knife. To add a football in the grass, you can use a plain chocolate truffle or make oblong chocolate covered peanut butter balls, then put a little white icing on the side to look like the lacing. (Check out their version from tasteofhome.com)

 

[Tina Nord]

My sister in law is actually a cake decorator and she will make really pretty flowers on top of her cupcakes. She uses the piping tips and it takes her no time at all to do each flower. Her favorite design to do are daisies because the cupcake will be loaded with yummy frosting and it is quick with the right tips.