I Made Cupcakes!
[ 12 June 2007 ]
I had a nap this afternoon & woke up feeling the need to do something productive. The solution was to make cupcakes. I ran down to the supermarket & loaded my basket with “fairy sprinkles” & icing sugar & free-range eggs, then came upstairs & started my cupcake adventure.
Here are the results.
Chocolate cupcakes with violet buttercream icing (& sparkly pink sprinkles). Yay!
For the first batch of cupcakes I’ve ever made, I think I did okay (though now you probably know why I write about fashion & not baking!). They’re a bit lopsided & the icing’s not perfect, but they still taste good.
I beckoned my boyfriend into the kitchen so he could see the results of my handiwork. I started to make excuses for the way they looked, but after eating one, he said, “It doesn’t matter how they look. These cupcakes are just a visual representation of what you’re doing with your website — cupcakes are great whether they’re perfect or not, just like people. No one has to fit into some pre-defined mould. People should feel free to know they’re brilliant, even if they think their icing’s too thick or their sprinkles are uneven.”
Awwww. (Now you know why he’s my boyfriend, huh?)
Super-love & cupcakes,
Gala 
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Those look fantastic, Gala. And your boyfriend is so right! I would totally munch down on an imperfect cupcake. :)
That’s probably one of the best quotes I’ve read in a while. :D
And the frosting on your cupcakes is gorgeous! I think they look great.
Aw, thank you! If I could go back & do it again, I would use different vanilla essence… the stuff I bought was AWFUL! It smelled nasty :< & that was all the supermarket had… Ahh, the perils of an inner-city supermarket.
really beautiful, both the cupcakes and what your boyfriend said. i’m in awe!
They look so yummy! Did you enjoy making them? I always prefer the actual making of the food more than the eating of it! I just taste test one then give them out to people! It’s a shame I’ll be leaving college soon because I’ve always loved making cakes or cookies and taking them into psychology lessons… or selling them at fundraisers! x x x x
P.S. Your boyfriend sounds like he really ‘gets you’ it’s so sweet!!
Yes, it was great fun! I made a huuuge mess & got icing sugar all over my shirt, haha. Though I enjoyed playing with sprinkles & food colouring, I’m more into the eating than the baking part… I used to make (vegan!) fudge which was basically half a jar of peanut butter, melted dark chocolate, vanilla soy milk & dessicated coconut. SOOO GOOD, but it was all about eating it :D
Sounds gorgeous!! I can’t wait till my exams are over so I can start baking again! There are some vegan whole meal muffins I really want to try out… mmm yummy and nutritious.. I would enjoy eating those more! I just like the feeling you get from baking, it’s like you’re doing something worthwhile!! The last thing I made was chocolate brownies a few weeks ago and I couldn’t wait for those to come out of the oven!!!!!! I definately enjoyed eating them!! hehe!! x x x x (oh and I love how they are PURPLE cupcakes!!)
they look delicious. (i’m so hungry right now)
and i loved what your boyfriend said! =] adorable!
They look wonderful!
Is that violet flavored icing, or just violet colored? I love violet mints, but other foods with this flavor are a rarity here in the US. A few of my friends have told me they found violet ice cream abroad though, so your icing made me curious…
You lucky girl: those cupcakes look great, and your BF is obviously a real sweetheart!
Your cupcakes look delicious! They have that home-made, rustic, authentic and therefore tasty look. (Listen to me, I’m going all Jamie Oliver on ya . . )
Your man is hilarious! (And 100% correct.)
They look great! Yum!
I am also curious to know if they are violet flavored. If so, did you use violet water or is there an extract available?
And what method did you use for the buttercream? I think the French method comes out TOO buttery- tasting, even when flavored.
I love the colour of that icing!
I love baking, I can’t cook AT ALL but baking, fuggetaboutit! I HIGHLY recommend the book “Vegan Cupcakes Take Over th World”, the recipes are dreamy.
they look soo good :)...I love baking…I’m the kind of person that loves to bake for everyone cupcakes,brownies,muffins,apple pie,cakes..you name it jeje..and your boyfriend quote is true
my secret weapon in cupcake baking are these; http://www.shopbakersnook.com/m5_view_item.html?m5:item=2387
they are fantastic!
Only violet-coloured, I’m sorry to say! Next time I’d like to do something different with the icing, I wasn’t stoked with this lot. I am about to have one for breakfast now :D
They look fabulous, Gala!
All this talk of cupcakes makes me uneasy. They’re called fairy cakes, people! * waves Irish flag * :P Four, four, six and two, beat them till you’re black and blue! (So my mammy taught me: four ounces of caster sugar, four ounces of margarine, six ounces of self-raising flour, and two eggs!). I think when I was little I made up my own version for double quantities: something like ‘eight, eight, twelve and four, beat them till you can no more…’ or something similiarly dodgy!
cupcakes are great, but they are evil little things…
Yum!
I made a batch of cupcakes a while back, and my purple icing came out the exact same colour as yours! I used sprinkles that were shaped like little hearts and dinosaurs and fishes. Very cute!
What recipe did you use?
I used this recipe which is supposed to be the recipe for the Cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery in New York. For obvious reasons, I thought this might appeal to you. :)
http://www.kitchenlink.com/cookbooks/2005/0743246616_2.html
I think they are lovely.
Sweetness. Your fella is quite a guy.
They look awesome!
I made some the other day and today I gave them to my friends.
Now I’m using it as an excuseif I need something from them >:P
awwwwwww. for the cupcakes and the boyfriend! he’s a sweetie. :)
Now I feel so much better about my cupcakes!
I have to agree with Roo on the fairy cakes thing (despite me calling them cupcakes in an earlier comment! haha) but I’ve always made butterfly cakes… where you cut the middle of the top off and cut it in half, fill the hole with butter cream then stick the pieces in as wings!!! I love them!
Butterfly cakes are yummy! I made them once with my aunt. They sound so fiddly as to be impossible, but actually aren’t so bad.
Hehe they’re so much more fun than fairy cakes because you get the big blob of buttercream icing (ooh and sometimes with jam!!) Although fairy cakes/cupcakes I suppose are more aesthetically pleasing and fun to decorate!! Oh and today I decided to forget all about exam stress and revision and make those muffins… they’re so yummy! Thank’s for the baking inspiration Gala =)
Ritalin — I tried to use their recipe but after reading that I needed 8 cups of icing sugar (when I only had about 500 grams) & a cup & a half of butter (OMGGGG), I decided to make my own type of icing! Maybe I will attempt their icing some time that I have lots of ingredients to chuck around.
Lizzie & Roo — I’ve seen fairy/butterfly cakes, they look so cute. I am such an amateur baker that even cutting the middle of the top off is probably something I would bungle. HA!
Fairy cakes = cupcakes except they often aren’t iced. Fairy cakes + raisins = queen cakes.
Yeah, that’s what I mean, it sounds hard, but I managed it first time and I was only little!
Huh, & here I was thinking that fairy cakes + false eyelashes & glitter = queen cakes. ;D
HEE HEE, don’t mind me, just a little drag/cupcake humour.
Superb colours!
Superb boy!
xox :)
Gala – Oh yeah… the ingredients list is killer! I think next time I make them, I’ll halve the icing recipe, as that recipe makes so much as to double the size of each cupcake with icing!
As much as I love the idea of cupcakes with icing as thick as my fist…! Even the meagre amount of icing I put on mine was more than enough for me!
That really is a great quote he’s made there.
Definitely one to remember.
I love your site. I just saw it today for the first time. I love your wonderful insight into cupcakes and your passion about them.
Brian
CEO
ShopBakersNook.com