Tips On Making Perfect Cupcakes

I'm having a special guest, Ivy from Little Bertha - a specialty bakery shop all the way in Australia, share with us some tips on making the perfect cupcake!

Ivy got in touch with me while she was doing a search online and found relevant posts about my recent interest in baking. (I guess she sensed that I could really use some tips about baking cupcakes thus she got in touch with me!!)  

I cannot be happier but to have her contribute this post on my blog and share with my readers about making THE perfect cupcake because I know a lot of us are fans of it! Heads up everyone! I hope this article would motivate you to start baking more! Happy baking!

*******************************************************************************

Cupcakes are one of those foods that should be enjoyable, both to make and to eat. Of course, they're a culinary delight as well, so they have to follow all the golden rules of baking. That means that they have to taste good. Here are my top tips for making beautiful cupcakes every time.

Temperature

This is crucial. Cooking is chemistry after all. Begin by making sure that your ingredients are the right temperature to begin with. Butter, milk and eggs should all be room temperature when you use them, not straight out of the fridge. Let your cupcakes cool before the icing and decoration begins. Otherwise your icing will melt and it will ruin the look of your cakes.

Carrot cupcake from Little Bertha bakery

Freshness
Freshness is not quite taste, it's taste's older brother. It's a feeling and a sensation as much as anything else. Freshness means superior cooking and baking. Begin with fresh ingredients. This will out you at an advantage. You can test the freshness of your eggs by placing them in a bowl of water. If they sink, they are fresh. If they rise to the surface then they are full of air, and stale. You can store un-iced cakes in air tight containers for up to three days and they will preserve very nicely. Icing and frosting tend to age worse than cake itself, so if you know that you will be saving the cake for later, consider holding off on the icing until you're ready to serve.

Flavour
This is where you can have fun with cupcakes. You can make them any sweet flavour that you like. Classics like chocolate and vanilla flavour can be made original with updates like peanut butter and lime. The icing element of cupcakes is a great opportunity to make great flavour combinations. Not every type of baking incorporates two definite elements.

Decoration and presentation
The cupcake isn't like all the other types of food. The way it looks matters a lot. It is a party food, a pleasure food, and it's also a decorative food. It's supposed to look festive. So that's why your icing and your decoration matter. The rules with decoration are that there aren't any rules. As long as it's edible, and it looks beautiful, you can do what ever you want. Decoration with lollies is really popular, sweet fruits, biscuits, icing sculptures, salted butter caramel and other pastry creations are also common. Invent your own if you want! Presentation is relevant too. Buy a cake stand or a pretty cake dish, or a board or something that you think will do your cakes justice. Use a pastry brush to clear away any cake crumbs from your presentation. Jazz up your presentation with non-edible decorations if you like. Tie it in with the theme of your occasion.

Leaving you this post with more yummy pictures from Little Bertha bakery for your drooling pleasure!

 

Choc Mint Yoyos

Chocolate orange tart

Brownies

  Till the next post, have a blessed week!