Even though I consider myself a really good cook, baking on the other hand is still my Achilles heel. I definitely envy all those who can bake amazing cakes, cookies and all sorts of pastries. And when it comes to decorating there are so many techniques that can be a bit intimidating for a beginner. So I was thrilled when Craig from Cakejournal.com suggested writing a guest post for my blog. Today he’s sharing with us 5 Easy Cupcake Decorating Ideas For Beautiful Results. I myself can use these helpful tips.
Craig is an editor at Cakejournal.com, an online cake blog dedicated to providing subscribers with a fun and informative platform for dessert lovers of all kinds! They offer recipes, tutorials, articles and tips on all things cake related. When Craig isn’t writing, he is usually in the kitchen experimenting with different recipes! Make sure you check out Cakejournal on their various social media below.
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5 Easy Cupcake Decorating Ideas For Beautiful Results
Beginner Cupcake Decorating
We’ve all seen those gorgeous cupcakes in shop windows. They almost look too pretty to eat! While decorating cupcakes and cakes is a skill, there are still techniques that any beginner can master! No matter what your level is, these cupcake decorating tips are easy to learn and you’ll be amazed by the results! All you really need are a few things to get started; silicone bags for frosting, different tips to create patterns, an array of edible items to adorn your cupcakes and non-edible accompaniments that will enhance the overall look. Anyone can frost a gorgeous cake with these tips. Ready to get baking?
Make Sure Your Temperature Is Right
Make sure that your cupcakes are completely cooled before you start decorating. Hot cupcakes can melt your frosting, turning your artistic swirls into sugary smears! On the same note, keep your frosting in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it. If you’re using different colored icings, keep them stored separately. Also, consider using silicone bags instead of pastry bags. Silicone keeps your frosting from sticking and could give you a much smoother presentation.
Know The Basics Of Your Icing Tips
Each tip is different and will give you a unique end result. When choosing the tip you want to use, think about the end product. For example, both five and six-point star tips can give you a flawless looking swirl that mimics a flower effect. The difference is, the six-point will have more ridges! A general rule when choosing tips is that the larger the point value, the more detail the tip will give to the frosted surface of your cupcake! For those glorious, detailed floral arrangements you see adorning the tops of confections at your favorite bakery, try the eight-point tip! A cool trick is having two pastry bags with different colored frosting and eight-point tips attached to each. Make alternating rows of dots across the surface, and you’ll see that your cake has been transformed into a beautiful garden. It’s easy enough for a beginner to master, and the result is truly amazing!
Get Creative With Your Toppings
When it comes to crowning your perfect cupcakes, frosting is only one piece of the puzzle. Stores that cater to chefs have any number of different baking supplies and additions that you can use to make your creation special! From edible sparkly glitter to candy, let your imagination run wild. If you’re making decadent chocolate cupcakes consider topping each with a raspberry or candied orange slide. The presentation will be beautiful and the taste will be unparalleled. You can go any direction with your decorations. Kids cupcakes might have a big splash of rainbow color with sprinkles and bursts of different frostings. For sophisticated adult palettes, you could sprinkle a little caramel frosting with coarse sea salt for a classy take on the traditional dessert.
Make Use Of An Unexpected Sweet Treat
Desserts are more fun when you have two in one! Why not use your cupcakes as a canvas for other desserts? Lollypops, chocolate dipped pretzels and even brownie bites or truffles can transform your dessert into one for the ages! These types of multifaceted treats are gaining popularity and for good reason! People love the variety and whimsy of a dessert within a dessert! It doesn’t have to be too fancy. If you’re using pretzel sticks simply melt some chocolate in the color of your choice, dip in the ends and let them cool on some parchment paper. If you want to get really fancy, feel free to coat the pretzels liberally with some edible glitter or sprinkles. Using another element will really elevate your dessert and doesn’t require any special mechanical skills.
Think Outside The (Edible) Box
There are plenty of ways you can decorate your cupcakes that don’t involve actual food. Make flowers out of brightly colored pipe-cleaners or use Lego figurines to decorate each cake! The idea with this is to envision what you want to create and then find elements that can represent each piece of your dish! Just be careful not to use anything that is dangerous, and be especially cautious if you’re planning on serving young children.
Even a beginner can decorate cupcakes like a pro! All you need is a little imagination, access to ingredients like edible glitter, sprinkles, and candies, and an objective for how you want the end product to look. In regards to technical know-how, you just need to understand which tip does what. That way you can get your frosting base down. The rest is child’s play!
As with everything else, have fun it! If you take pride in making each cupcake as whimsical, creative and innovative as possible, it will show in the end product.
What You’ll Need
Silicone Piping Bags
Icing Tips Kit
Cupcake liners and baking pan
End of Guest PostWant to Guest Post On The Savvy Dreamer?
Thank you so much Craig for such amazing cupcake decorating tips. I feel a whole lot more confident to try these out on my next cupcake baking adventure. If you’d like to guest post on The Savvy Dreamer blog make sure you reach out via the Contact Form. We always look forward to collaborating with fellow content creators.
What do you think of these tips? Are you a good baker? How about decorating? Share with me in the comments below.
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I am so inspired to make some cupcakes! These all look great but I am going to try to make the ones with the pretzels on top! Wish me luck, like you, I am a better cook than a baker 🙂
OMG yes, so happy to hear that. Baking is so hard!!! So far I’ve only mastered a few things like banana bread and shortbread cookies. I’ve only made pumpkin spice cupcakes once and they turned out more like muffins lol. Oh and decorating is another story. I need these tips too!
Love the colours of the icing you’ve shown and there’s some awesome tips here. I’m okay at making cakes but for some reason my cupcakes always come out looking moe like a cake wreck than anything else!
LOL, I feel you. I’ve struggled with cupcakes too ?
These are great tips, I’m terrible at baking so thank you for sharing!
Oh you’re very welcome. Glad you found the tips helpful.
These cupcakes are so beautiful…I always try to decorate them, but they never look as good as the pictures.
I know what you mean. It’s definitely an art.
Great ideas! I love making my own cupcakes and am always looking for new ideas 🙂
That’s awesome to hear. Thanks for checking it out 🙂
I love cupcakes ! I like all kind of cakes but have never tried baking singlehandedly. Nowadays I am experimenting a bit with cooking so I would love to try this. And a beautiful decoration will be an icing on the cake as well 😉
Oh I’m a sucker for a good cupcake too. I need to bake more. I’m learning slowly. I definitely want to get some piping bags and take another crack at decorating better.
I love the Lego cupcakes!! 🙂 so cool!
They sure are so cute.
Ha!! I totally feel your pain on the “I suck at baking!”. My sister is the baker of the family and she can whip up dreamy creations with her eyes closed and hands tied behind her back. Me? Not so much…lol. Great fun blog!!
He he he. Glad you understand. We can both use those tips then 😉
Love the lego cupcakes! Look amazing and so cute
They are indeed pretty awesome.
Gosh this post makes me hungry and immediately I wanna buy some cupcakes… that’s right I’m lazy to bake. I love the colors of the icing … and also the pretzel deco 🙂
Tell me about. I need to visit my favorite cupcake shop asap 🙂
This post makes cupcake decorating sound easy!! I don’t know that I’ll get around to baking something tasty but its good to know that I may be talented enough to make a cupcake at least look pretty.
He he he right? I agree with you. These tips make it look easy and I hope the next time I try making cupcakes they will come out stunning.
These Looks great. I would need to make them paleo though :p
I don’t see why not. I’m sure it’s possible to make adjustments that are paleo friendly.
These are such cute decorating ideas! I will have to admit that the tips scare me. Ha! It would be fun to try and practice, though! 🙂
Ha ha ha I agree with you on the decorating tips. They do look intimidating but practice makes perfect, right?
These tips really are fairly straight forward! My sister used to be a professional cake decorator so I have seen some beautiful decoration and how it’s done. The chocolate pretzels or other candies on top are more something I could see myself doing properly! Just mmmmmmmm!!
Oh nice. It’s great to have a professional in the family. I bet she has lots of amazing tips.
I live to bake but icing is my weakness! Thank you so much for sharing these tips! I think I need to experiment with tips totally up my game xx
Oh nice Tahnee. I hope you find these tips helpful next time you bake 🙂
Baking is a craft that oughta be perfected. Awesome instructional list you got there!
I agree Tahna and thanks for checking out the post.