I heard from a friend of mine that it was cupcake week on Martha Stewart’s show last week. Apparently tiny cakes are really “in” right now. Little Cakes From the Whimsical Bakehouse: Cupcakes, Small Cakes, Muffins, and Other Mini Treats by Kaye Hansen and Liv Hansen fits right in with this trend. Cupcakes are easy to make, and fun to decorate. They even bake fine at altitude, and trust me that’s a feat!
Little Cakes has cupcakes and treats from very simple to quite advanced. Don’t worry, there are plenty of simple designs. And often, the authors give ideas for simplifying the more complicated decorations. Plus, the book is full of delicious sounding recipes for cakes, frostings, fillings, and other decorations. I though cinnamon chocolate whipped cream sounded great. I know we’ll try praline powder for sprinkling on ice cream. And I was intrigued to find a recipe for “chocolate plastic” an edible and moldable clay made from chocolate!
A few normal recipes are taken just an extra step to make them even more special. The authors make shortcake into star shapes instead of rounds, and they suggest using mangoes with fresh ginger as an alternative to strawberries. Meringues go wild, and are decorated with zebra stripes and leopard spots. White chocolate is made into beautiful fall color leaves.
Other recipes and directions include caramel popcorn cupcakes, pails of sand, basket shaped cupcakes filled with flowers, make a wish cupcakes, corn muffins, witches hats, and even 3-d apple baskets and Christmas trees.
If all of this sounds complicated, it is a bit. The authors devote almost half the book though to explaining tools and techniques in a non-threatening way. Plus the recipes are rating by one star to three stars for level of difficulty.
These are fun little recipes. It is indeed a whimsical book. I love the open ended quality and all the adaptations the authors provide. The authors’ love of fun and cooking really shine through.
Also See:
Kids in the Kitchen: Coconut Cupcakes