My little one had a birthday this month, and as a serial overachiever, I NEEDED to make the best cupcakes her class had ever (or will ever see). This year's theme was nautical, so I headed over to Bake it Pretty to check out my options.
I learned about Bake it Pretty when i was doing research on making cupcake bath bombs. I read tons of blogs and tutorials, and Little Birdie Secrets recommended extra large icing tips from Bake it Pretty, and I've been buying almost all of my decorating supplies from them ever since!
Now I have a confession to make. I really am a fantastic baker, but I'm usually seriously pressed for time. I have no issues with using store bought cake mix in a pinch, and this is exactly what I did for these cupcakes. White cake mix is the best because it usually has really small air bubbles, and makes a firmer cake. After following the directions on combining ingredients and mixing, I separated the batter into 3 parts, and added green coloring to one batch, and blue to the other (I prefer Wilton's icing colors). I added a spoon of each to the cups and swirled them with a toothpick. Easy peasy!
Icing was just as easy. I almost always make icing from scratch, but I've recently discovered that store bought icing can be tweaked to make something fantastic! For these cupcakes, I took two tubs of store bought vanilla icing and added a few drops of blue and green icing color. I also added a few drops of yummy bubblegum flavoring from Bake it Pretty for a nice custom flavor. I highly recommend LorAnn oils. I even add a drop of these oils to my coffee grinds before brewing a pot of coffee. A little trully goes a long way, and the price can't be beat!
After mixing the coloring and oil into the icing thoroughly, I slowly added powder sugar until the icing was able to hold a peak. I added a little more than one cup of powdered sugar, but be sure to add just a little at a time. Once it gets too hard, there's no way I know of to fix it!
I used my large star tip to ice this sea green deliciousness onto my cupcakes, then started to decorate. I used Necco wafer flavored Sugar Buttercups on some of the cupcakes for the girls, and the boys got pirate rings and sharks. Sticking to the nautical theme, edible Sugar Pearls were the only way to go! And of course, for a little bling, a pinch of Disco Dust (edible Aurora Borealis type glitter) really made these little guys sparkle! I really wish I was a better photographer, because this glitter is like nothing I've ever seen!
I purchased the wonderful Meri Meri Mermaid Cupcake Kit from Bake it pretty for the girls, and Wilton's Pirate cupcake kits for the boys. Bake it Pretty also supplied the adorably scary shark toppers for the boys (I don't see them on the website now, but go ahead and ask if they have any. They're super helpful, and more than likely the sharks are in stock).
And there you have it! These cupcakes really were incredibly easy to make. You just need some imagination and an awesome supplier. Bake it Pretty is absolutely my go-to shop, and I really hope they become yours too! I really couldn't have made these cupcakes without them! Please be sure to send me a message if you make anything using their product. I would love to see what you create!
