Carrot Cake Cupcakes

I love carrot cake, its sweet and morish, and makes a change from chocolate. This concoction is just my favourite carrot cake recipe which I have broken down into the cupcake liners, simple, easy, classic. What makes them even better is creamed cheese frosting. The perfect balance of cheese, sugar, butter and loads of vanilla and just a dash of cream to cut through the sweetness and to help get that perfect piping consistency. A sifting of cinamon and a sprinkle of raw sugar and I am in heaven.

Mini Rose Cupcakes - Mary Kay

Mini Chocolate Cupcakes, styled with Pink Buttercream Rose and dusted with glitter. They are so simple and stylish, I don't know why I don't pipe roses more often. These I have to admitt were a bit rushed, due to a huge baking weekend (Starry Castle, Star Wedding Cupcakes aswell as a Mater Cake).

I find this picture very restful, it seams to reach into the distance. And yes, you may have seen these before, its a repeat order.

Mater Cake

Chocolate cake torted with raspberry jam, yellow vanilla buttercream and chocolate sultanas. Styled with yellow vanilla buttercream, crushed Maltessers, Violet Crumble and Choc Sultanas. Birthday boy's own Mater.

And yes, many of you have seen this cake before, the Birthday boy wanted a mater cake and his Mum thought that this would be perfect.

Star Wedding Cupcake Tower

Don't you just love being recommended by a close friend to a bride, the joy of creating the perfect cake for they're special day is a wonderful feeling. This bride knew exactly what she wanted, gold cupcakes with white/ivory and stars, and a top cake with gold shooting stars. She did have a picture but in silver, which made my job alot easier.

Having tested a number of white mud cake recipes I have come across this deliciously moist White Chocolate Mud Cupcake, which I topped with a layer of vanilla Italian Buttercream, and styled with a white chocolate fondant disc and gold luster & glitter dusted star. Topper cake is the same as the cupcakes.

Never really being a fan of the White Chocolate Mud Cake I am please to say that this is one is fabulous, you can really taste the white chocolate, and the texture is not overly dense. Thanks to minhneme of ecupcake for the recipe. If you have time check out her blog and you will be blown over by her flavour combinations, I wish she lived around the corner from me so I could be one of her testers.

Starry Castle

Greatly inspired by Debbie Brown's Starry Castle book entitled Magical Cakes. But what the birthday girl wants the birthday girl gets. My little one was very upset when she found out that it wasn't for her! The inside is Rice Crispy Treats (so easy to work with, omg) made with Raspberry Marshmallows (birthday girl isn't a big fan of cake), covered in buttercream and then styled with white fondant. Clouds and Princess made from Flower Modelling Paste.

Glitter, I wouldn't eat it when it is so thick, not that it would hurt me. But lightly sprinkled is ok by me. I just love the effect it gives. I am very please with how well this cake turned out, so much so that I would like to try again but with cake dummies so that I can keep it on display.

My First Batches of French Macarons

French Chocolate Macarons. This is the first time I tried them. They taste devine, now I know what everyone is raving about, but they don't look right. I have foot but they are too high, no shine and not smooth.

These ones used Cadbury's Unsweetend Cocoa.

• Does anyone have any ideas, I banged the tray and let them sit. I have read that chocolate Macarons are the hardest to get right!
• And is anyone willing to give up a favourite hazelnut based recipe? or a basic one that I can tamper with. Please pretty please.

They are so easy to make, but so hard to get perfect. This is the second time I tried them. They still taste devine but they still don't look right. I have foot but they are too high, no shine and not smooth.

These ones used a Homebrand unsweetend Cocoa, which gave a very dark chocolate colour, interesting to think about what colourings they add to the cocoa.

For both recipes I used David Lebovitzs' recipe which I was pleased to find, his site is so tasty, I wish I was living in France, and mine look very similar to his macarons so maybe I shouldn't be too hard on myself.

Note: I have since made them again, and they still came out very similar to above, people raved about them, queried the process, blah blah blah, but for me they still did not come up to scratch. I will keep trying!!! I promise.

None too Shabby Hen's Night Cupcakes

The perfect cupcake to end a delicious meal, celebrating a brides Hen's Night. Unmentionable decorations were suggested but I went with delicate and pretty, it also gave me an excuse to make some overly feminine cupcakes for a change. A delicious cupcake, very light and moist, topped with Vanilla Italian Buttercream, styled with handmade pink roses, green balls and green & gold glitter.

The chocolate cupcake recipe is from Chockylit, who created this super light mud cake, it literally melts in your mouth. Some type of mousse like topping would have been ideal if they didn't have to be transported.

Ready to Disco

There is just about nothing I like more than cupcakes, except dressing up. So when we heard that the theme of the Birthday was 70's Disco we hit the thrift shops with a vengence.

Me : Dress - a Betty Beale Original made in Sydney, Australia. Silver Lurex with green, purple and dark blue flowers. Thrifted for $12.00. Shoes - brand new, love them, bargain only $8.00.

Stud : New headband, thrifted shirt $5.00, light denim jacket (stud's fathers - I knew that there was a reason we were hanging onto it). Shorts - Ambassador, styled for today, they were also thrifted and they still had their original tags, never worn, $5.00. New AFL socks. Shoes - KT26's new this year bought for rehab purposes.

His legs go on forever! Would we have got into a real disco? What do you think?

Disco Ball Cake & Cupcakes

What type of cake do you have to celebrate a 30th Birthday when the theme is 70's Disco? Why a Disco Ball Cake of course!

Chocolate & Rum Disco Cake Ball, styled with royal icing and individual tiles of silver fondant encrusted with edible glitter. Displayed on custom made cupcake stand.

Orange & Rum cupcakes frosted with lushious chocolate fudge icing, styled with orange sprinkles and gold glitter.

Chocolate cupcakes frosted with sherbet sweet white chocolate orange fudge icing, styled with grated chocolate and gold glitter.

Kalhua & White chocolate cupcakes frosted with Kalhua buttercream, styled with freshly ground coffee and gold glitter.

Never Bake on Friday 13th

Cake Flour vs. Plain Flour

Last month Cake Flour hit the supermarkets in Australia, many Australian bakers are over the moon about this and I had to give it a try. But Both cupcakes tasted to me like sawdust, but the Blue was coaser in texture, whilst the Purple was very dense.

They were baked on Friday the 13th. Mental note 'Never bake on Friday the 13th'. I blame the day. Will try again when I get time.

Blue cupcake - Cake Flour Purple cupcake - Plain Flour

What are your experiences with different types of flour?

Hi Tops and New Stands

There is nothing like getting new toys especially new stands, these ones are Donna Hay Cake Stands, two weeks later the Cake Stand Fairy (my Mum) delievered the largest one. I am feeling that I need to so a set of English Garden styled Mini Cupcakes to completely cover the stands, Spring is on its way lets see how we go.

After I had finished playing with the Mini Hi Tops I packed 50 of them up for a friend who was planning on munching on them all weekend. Hope she had a tasty time.

Spooky Tower

This cake is based on one designed by Debbie Brown, and was made from scratch with a small amount of guidance from me by an 11 year old boy. He was really please with his efforts.

When we lit the candles the ghost on top's eyes started to melt and bubble (ie molten sugar) and had the kids in histerics.

Admittedly it was not a cake that I would have been happy with, but I had to remember that he was only 11.

Ginger Galaxy Cupcakes

Another take on my Galaxy Ganach Cupcakes, this time a scumptous ginger, lemon and creamed cheese pound cupcake topped with oh so dark chocolate ganache and styled with gold and silver balls and sprinkled with gold and red glitter, stunning.