Boo! Halloween Cupcakes

Here they are, my cute Halloween Cupcakes. Decorated with the left-over buttercream and Royal icing from the beginner cake decorating class.

The white ghosts and the orange flowers are the Royal Icing, piped onto parchment paper and left to dry overnight. Once dry, they can be picked up and placed on, or stuck into, the buttercream icing. I should note that the ghosts softened and toppled over in about 2 hours, due to the grease in the buttercream icing changing their consistency. The other icing is buttercream piped with a star tip. Simple. Cute. The cupcakes didn't need the flowers but I had them left over and they were pretty so I stuck them on. I thought the ghosts were adorable! Hope you do too. To make the eyes and mouths, you pipe around where they will be first and then fill in the rest. It was a lot of fun.

Here is the recipe for

Buttercream Icing

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup shortening

 2 cups sifted icing sugar

 1 Tbsp. milk, cream or water

 1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream together shortening and butter until very smooth. Beat in one cup of the icing sugar. Add the vanilla and milk and beat until smooth. Beat in the remaining icing sugar. You may add additional icing sugar if the icing is too thin or more milk if you would like it thinner.

Happy Halloween a little early!