Cupcake Madness

Cupcakes. It seems the whole world has become completely enraptured with them and everywhere you go, everyone is offering these little single serves like the latest must have.

Initially, I could never get my head around them. You see, I've always been a giant slice of cake person, always the first to say, "Forget the plate, just pass the tin around and let's spoon the bloody thing already." Spoon to cake, cake to mouth and mouth to pleasure center.

Besides, cupcakes have always been deceptive. Yes, under that plethora of icing, frosting, glaze, cream and rainbow sprinkles lies a very dry and boring cake. The seduction often ends in an anti-climax, leaving one want for more. Often times, I find myself feeling cheated, like the morning after an impulsive night time tryst with a stranger. But I digress.

This cupcake sojourn of mine all started when a male colleague decided to upstage the bakers and cooks of the fairer sex in the department by turning up with beautiful cupcakes for a company get together. Cupcakes so beautiful that I ignored the little voice in my head and allowed myself to be seduced. Picking it up, I peeled the parched white wrapper off, took my first bite and waited. My body tingled. I was hooked. It was lust, love and obsession at first bite. This single serve of butter cake covered in chocolate ganache was not only delicious but stunning to behold. Yes, one night stands, I mean, cupcakes can be good.

Fired by this revelation, the mad artist in me took over. For days and nights I researched on how to decorate a cake. You see, despite being an avid baker and cook, my food constantly bore this mutant gene I like to call "The Ugly Chromosome or T.U.C". Compelled by the urge to purge this genetic defect, I launched myself into the daunting task of cake decorating. The perfect opportunity came when my favourite aunt's birthday came about and I embarked on a cupcake adventure. I made four different types of cupcakes and then launched on creating four different ways of decorating. Okay, maybe five.

Warning: The following scenes might containt explicit material.


Butter Cupcakes with Marshmellow Flowers

Yup, you read right. I used marshmellows cut up and dipped in coloured sugar for the flower petals. I cut little stems from the remaining marshmellows and arranged the petals to resemble flowers on a bed of piped whipped cream. I personally am not a fan of buttercream. Whipped cream gives an ice cream like consistency when chilled and is light and just delectable. Underneath that whipped lightness is a rich buttery cake that contains more eggs than your daily required amount. Cardiac arrest might ensue.





Gula Melaka( Palm Sugar) Coffee Cupcakes



A heady aromatic cupcake that combines that delectable sweetness of palm sugar and coffee. To me, gula melaka is probably the molasses of the east. Topped with a classic sugar frosting and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands. Looking deceptively playful and sweet, it'll shock with its depth of flavour.

Gula Melaka Coffee Cupcakes 2: Swirled and dangerous


Same cupcake swirled with dark chocolate ganache. Might as well play with my left over chocolate ganache and dirty up these pristine looking cupcakes. They look like inkblot cupcakes to me. Quite a cool way to carry out the ink blot test I reckon.


Triple Chocolate Cupcakes

Seriously, if you're going to sin, do it in style.
Imagine a dense moist chocolate cake made with coco then studded with dark chocolate chips and finally doused with a dark chocolate ganache( topping made with chocolate and cream). Then topped with a red rose because nothing screams seduction like a deep red rose.Very Freudian I know. I could go on but nobody needs to read my stream of consciousness.
I used those gum paste ones from a baking shop. Next time, I'll make my own with fondant.



Pretty In Pink aka Bandung Cupcakes


Pretty in Pink aka Bandung Cupcakes:
For those who don't know, Bandung is a popular milky drink made with rose syrup and evaporated or full cream milk, mostly found in South East Asia. Its sweet and rosy and to some, an acquired taste. To me, this is heavenly. This baby is a product of many experiments. Introducing a Bandung Butter cupcake frosted with a lightly Bandung flavoured whipped cream frosting and decorated with silver sugar dragees.



And finally, an overview :

THE CUPCAKE TOWER

Yes, I had to. Without the money to buy a fancy cupcake tower, I had to create an alternative. Since I've laboured over the art work, I might as well have a display that screams the same. This was made by my equally creative pet gorilla who used a kitchen towel roll, toilet roll and various sized cake boards. He picked a pretty wrapper from Borders and got to work. Nifty eh?



I apologise for the blurry shots because after frosting the last cupcake, it was pretty much pack and go to my aunt's house. After displaying the cupcakes, there was this urgency to eat them and nobody wanted to wait for me to be done trying to get the perfect Food-nographic shot. Ah well.

So who would have thought that something so small and simple could capture one's imagination so vividly? I take it all back. Cupcakes can be good. I'm not cheating on the good ole slice of cake, I'm merely exploring my options.