Chrysanthemum Cupcakes

cupcake with sunflower icing
Yield:
26

A dazzling chrysanthemum seems to spring from the buttercream icing of this pretty cupcake.

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

For decorating

  • Gel-paste food coloring in assorted colors (leaf green, lemon yellow, egg yellow, orange, forest green)

  • Pastry tips, such as Ateco: #68 leaf tip, #80 fluted tip, #3 round tip, and #12 round tip (optional)

Directions

  1. Tint 1 cup of frosting forest green (for leaves and dots); set aside. Divide remaining frosting into three batches. Tint each batch a base-coat shade (for cupcake tops): chartreuse (mix leaf green, lemon yellow, and a touch of egg yellow), lemon yellow, and orange.

  2. Alternating the three base colors, frost cupcakes with a small offset spatula or butter knife, using about 3 tablespoons frosting per cupcake. (Reserve leftover frosting for piping flowers.)

  3. Decorate cupcakes: Make the leaves first: With the #68 leaf tip and green frosting, hold the bag at a 45 degree angle to the cake with the tip's flat side up. Squeeze bag, and pull out from the base of the leaf, releasing pressure and lifting to form the end. With the coupler alone (or the #12 round tip) and frosting in the flower color, make a raised one-half-inch-wide dot to anchor the petals. Change to the #80 fluted tip; hold bag at a 45 degree angle against the edge of the dot, the tip forming a U. Gently squeeze the bag while pulling out in a quick stroke. Repeat all around the dot; form two or more petal layers over the first, making petals shorter and pulling bag upward with each layer. With the #3 tip and green frosting, pipe three dots in the center.

  4. Refrigerate in airtight containers until ready to serve. Let stand at room temperature 20 minutes before serving.

Cook's Notes

Cupcakes can be refrigerated in airtight containers for up to four hours.

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