Contrary to what you may think, this is NOT a cupcake! At least, not in my opinion. I prefer to think of this as a mini cake - just large enough for 2.
It's made in Wilton's Dimensions Multi-Cavity Mini Cupcakes Pan. Yes, I know, they call it a "mini cupcake pan," but I think they're confused. Mini cupcakes usually only measure 1-2 inches wide. These babies are approximately 3 inches wide and 4 inches tall! So I guess we can call these jumbo cupcakes or...mini cakes! For argument's sake (and because I'm the one writing this blog), we'll refer to them as mini cakes today.
Let's get to the baking already!
Fill the pan cavities about 2/3 full. The amount of batter you use will change depending on what recipe you use for your cakes. For example, I made these with Pamela's Gluten-free Chocolate Cake Mix so they didn't rise as much as a from-scratch recipe would.
Bake the cakes, according to your cake recipe's instructions, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with only a few crumbs. When the cakes are baked, allow them to cool in the pan for approximately 5 minutes. Then, place the cakes on a wire cooling rack to cool completely. The cupcake tops need to be cooled upright and the bottoms need to be cooled upside down so that the shapes don't get distorted while cooling. Basically, cool them like this:
Once the cakes are completely cooled, level off both halves.
Place a small amount of icing (raspberry cream, in my case) between the halves, and put them together.
Now, you're ready to ice it! For ease in handling the mini cake, I put a simple cupcake liner on the bottom. This way, you're touching the cupcake liner, and not the actual cake. Much less messy this way! Crumb coat the top half of the mini cake. Not sure what I'm talking about? Check out this post from April. Place the mini cake in the refrigerator for a few minutes until the buttercream crusts.
Then, add more icing to the mini cake, being careful not to disturb the crumb coat that's holding all those ugly crumbs in place.
Finally, just add a few simple sprinkles and stick a candle in! Viola! It's a perfect little gift for a friend's birthday, to cheer up a coworker, or to just say "I was thinking about you!"
I know what you're thinking. My candle looks funny, right? That's because it's a singing candle! It sings "Happy Birthday" when it's lit! I got it at Publix, but you can also buy them online from many different vendors.
In other news, there will be yet another attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the World's Largest Cupcake on October 3, 2009 in Boca Raton, FL. A 1,500-pound cupcake will be revealed just before the THINK PINK ROCKS concert, which raises money for breast cancer research. According to Laurie Braden, President of Global TV Concepts and Bit Top Cupcake, the huge cupcake will "call attention to - and raise money for - breast cancer research, screening, and treatment by selling pieces of the 'World's Largest Cupcake.'"
What does it take to bake a 1,500-pound cupcake?
-240 pounds of eggs
-225 pounds of sugar
-510 pounds of flour
-225 pounds of baking powder, oil, vanilla, cocoa, salt, milk, and water
-350 pounds of icing
-24 hours of baking time
-5 bakers
-an oven 10 feet wide x 10 feet high
Wowsers! Check out the full story at earthtimes.org.
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