Holy Giant Cupcake, Birthday Boy!
As you may recall, I recently looked into a few novelty cake pans while trying to decide what kind of cake to bake for my son's first birthday. In case you were wondering (I'm sure you were all on the edge of your seats), I decided to go with Wilton's giant cupcake pan.
As I tend to do when purchasing a product, I thoroughly read the Amazon customer reviews for the cupcake pan. This can be especially helpful with baking items since you may discover some great baking tips along the way. Several customers commented that the pan baked one side (the bottom part of the cupcake) faster than the other. I was worried about this, so I did a test run before the actual event. Turns out it did bake the bottom faster, but not so fast that there was any discernible difference in texture or moistness. So, we were good to go!
On my test drive, I frosted just the top, like a real-size cupcake. This was a big disappointment. Although it looked super cute, hello, who wants half the cake to have no frosting?! Is there even a point? So, for the big day, I went the extra mile and did up the bottom half in grand style. I used three frosting colors total! Green and white on the bottom, piped to look like one of those paper cupcake pan liners. On the top I piped a big swirl of blue frosting. I finished the masterpiece (if I do say so myself) with a sprinkling of Necco wafers--perfect for the giant concept. We even had an extra-large birthday candle to complete the effect.
The cake was a huge hit, and I'm glad I did it up right, even if my son will never remember it. I know of course though that next year's cake will have to be even better! I'm already on the hunt for new ideas--and I've got lots of time to make test cakes.
Dear readers--if you've got your own amazing pastry creation you'd like to share, send us a delectable photo and the baking story to go with it. I'll pick the most amazing one and post it on Al Dente for all to see.
--KitchenMaus
Wendy on June 20, 2008 at 11:10 AM
I'm giving away one of these great cupcake pans on my blog if anyone is interested! Love the photo you posted... great looking cupcake if I ever saw one! :)
Jaimi on June 23, 2008 at 07:03 AM
I was thinking about doing this for my daughter's first birthday but wasn't sure on how to serve the cake...how did you cut it?
Jaimi on June 23, 2008 at 07:03 AM
I was thinking about doing this for my daughter's first birthday but wasn't sure on how to serve the cake...how did you cut it?
KitchenMaus on June 23, 2008 at 08:36 PM
I sliced it like a regular cake, though thinner slices, since it's so tall. You'll also need to serve it on a dinner plate, instead of a dessert plate, if you do it this way.
Alycia on June 29, 2008 at 07:06 PM
Beautiful cake!! I was wondering what tip you used to make the vertical stripes on the bottom? And, what tip did you use to make the swirls? Also, did you make homemade icing or store-bought? Thank you so much!!
KitchenMaus on July 01, 2008 at 09:18 PM
Hi Alycia--For the vertical green stripes I used a #30 tip. For the ribbony cream ones I used a #67 tip. For the top of the cake I used these very large tips I have for food prep. I think you could use any large tip that makes a star or flower shape and just stream it on instead of making rosette-type patterns.
For the frosting I made a cream cheese one--though I had to add more powdered sugar than the recipe called for to make it stiff enough to hold up. I definitely recommend refrigerating the frosting for a bit before piping it. I didn't chill mine long enough and it was sloppy here and there and I even had some trouble with it sliding off the top a bit. One last tip is to pipe the entire bottom layer, then put the top layer on and frost that. I made my whole cake one night ahead so I could refrigerate it before cutting and the frosting was nice and set.
Good luck! Send us a photo of yours if you make one!
Olivia on February 23, 2009 at 11:00 AM
I love the cake! I am making this for my daughters first birthday as well. I hope it will turn out half as pretty as yours, I am not a baker and have never decorated a cake before.
My question is where did you find the big candle?
KitchenMaus on February 23, 2009 at 11:45 AM
Olivia--Sorry, this won't be much help--I found the candles in a little shop in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. These are not the same, but they look like they might be bigger than your average candle: http://www.amazon.com/Birthday-Party-Taper-Candles-Pack/dp/B0016ATYC8/ref=blogs_aldente_link If I can find the package at home, I'll look at the brand and try to find the candles online for you.
Nurit - 1 family. friendly. food. on June 01, 2009 at 12:55 PM
Hi,
I loved this idea for a birthday cake. I linked to it in my last post (although I've decided to go with a dirt cake this year. Seemed easier and faster to make...), if you want to take a look: http://www.familyfriendlyfood.com/2009/05/birthday-dirt-cake/
Thanks for the idea!