Baking

The batter for these candy-bar-like cupcakes is laden with ground sweetened coconut and pecans; to further enhance their appeal, the cupcakes are dipped in a bittersweet chocolate glaze, then sprinkled with toasted coconut flakes. Creamed coconut, usually sold in jars at natural-food stores or online, differs from “cream of coconut,” which has added sugar and is typically used in cocktails. If you can’t locate creamed coconut, you can use another quarter cup of butter in its place.

Any bride would blush to behold such fanciful cupcakes on her special day. Bakers, too, will relish making the exquisite meringue “flowers,” which are first piped onto parchment-lined baking sheets, then baked until firm and dry. Their crisp, delicate texture makes them a delight to eat.

Although the buttercream chrysanthemums may look difficult, a steady hand and a bit of practice is all it takes to produce a whole bunch of them. Displayed in a group of matching or mixed colors, the cupcakes would be lovely at a bridal or baby shower.

Tiny blue buttercream stars and red-licorice stripes create a patriotic batch of cupcakes to celebrate Independence Day. Festive cupcake liners carry out the theme; see Sources, page 342.

A trio of citrus zests brightens simple cupcakes. The ones pictured are finished with lime-flavored glaze and finely grated lime zest, but lemons or oranges could replace the lime. Or, for a particularly pretty display, divide the glaze into thirds and flavor each portion with a different citrus, with garnishes to match.

Present Dad with a bunch of golf-themed cupcakes, complete with putting greens and sand traps, on his special day. The mini greens are adorned with colored sanding sugar, a candy golf ball, and a ribbon flag; graham-cracker crumbs stand in for sand. You could create an entire course by decorating eighteen cupcakes with different numbered flags, and the remaining six with sand traps.

Celebrate commencement day with a diploma of a different sort: tiny replicas made of airy tuile cookies that are curled around a skewer and neatly tied with strips of sour candy. To make the template for the tuile scroll, use the lid of a plastic storage container.

All the features of a traditional coffee cake—tender cake base, crumbly streusel top, and simple milk-and-sugar glaze—are packed into portable, single-size portions. Try serving them for brunch, or as an after-school snack.

Some say the hummingbird cake, a Southern specialty replete with pineapple chunks, bananas, coconut, and walnuts, earned its name because each otherworldly bite makes you hum with delight. Others hold that the cake is as sweet as the sugared water used to attract the tiny birds. Adorned with dried-pineapple “flowers,” the cupcake variation makes a beautiful presentation for Mother’s Day. To give the flowers a cupped shape (shown opposite), cool them in muffin tins as described on page 323 (instead of on a wire rack, shown below).

There’s no need to perfect your piping skills to create beautiful flower-topped cupcakes. Instead, adorn them with a few fresh, edible flowers. Some of the best-tasting varieties include nasturtiums, pansies, hibiscus, snapdragons, violets, and marigolds (pictured). Use only flowers grown without pesticides, either from your own organic garden or from specialty suppliers. When making the little pound cakes, remember to cream the butter and sugar thoroughly to produce the right texture.

Pound-cake batters bake into especially rich and dense cupcakes, and the traditional recipe can be adapted in many ways to vary the flavor and texture. In this version, brown sugar replaces granulated for a hint of caramel flavor, while buttermilk makes for a more tender crumb than when made with regular milk. Nutty brown-butter icing pairs especially well with these cupcakes, but many other toppings would also work, including brown-sugar cream-cheese frosting (page 310) or whipped cream (page 316).

During Passover, the proscription of any sort of leavening (including wheat flour) can greatly limit a baker’s possibilities. Yet these cupcakes, inspired by Eastern European tortes, rely on egg whites for leavening and use ground walnuts in place of regular flour, making them a wonderful option for a seder or other gathering. They are also a good choice any time of year for those with gluten intolerance.

Inspiration for new cupcakes can come from anywhere, even a popular childhood sandwich. The creamy peanut butter frosting may be crowned with any jelly or jam flavor; strawberry is pictured, but grape or raspberry would also be delicious. For the best flavor, use natural-style peanut butter in the cupcake batter.

Consider making decorative cupcakes instead of (or to go along with) traditional dyed eggs for Easter this year. The patterns are very simple to produce: Various pastel colors of royal icing are piped onto a cupcake, then quickly swirled or dragged with a toothpick. Modify the color scheme to make cupcakes for other holidays—red and green for Christmas, for example, or black and orange for Halloween.

Be prepared for guests to buzz with delight at the sight of miniature marzipan bees alighting atop piped buttercream dahlias. Honey (of course!) flavors the cakes. Serve them at a garden reception, shower, or child’s birthday party, on their own or with the sunflower cupcakes on page 273.

Applesauce in the batter makes these cupcakes incomparably moist. Pecans add a bit of texture, but they can be omitted. The cream-cheese frosting gets a twist with the addition of brown sugar.

Spicy cupcakes packed with a generous amount of fresh ginger are just right for cool-weather days. Choose fresh ginger that is plump with smooth skin. To peel, run the edge of a teaspoon along the length of a piece, working in and out of the crevices; use a firm but light touch to remove only the papery coating, not the flavorful flesh beneath. A mini chopper or food processor makes quick work of mincing the ginger.

Share the luck of the Irish with cupcakes coated in frosting flavored with Baileys Irish Cream—a liqueur made from a blend of cream, cocoa, and Irish whiskey—and decorated with a sprig or two of real three-leaf clovers. The clovers should be removed before eating (be sure to use only pesticide-free clovers from a reliable source or your garden). You could also decorate the tops with a shamrock stencil, available at craft-supply stores (see Sources, page 342), and green sanding sugar.