Snowflake Cupcakes

I love snowflakes. They are my favorite thing about winter and as far as I am concerned there is no reason to have cold weather without snow. It’s just a waste of coldness. But I digress..

Since Jason’s birthday is on 12/25 I wanted to steer clear of the red and green, thus creating the perfect window for these cupcakes. Why blue snowflakes instead of white? Because they are pretty and the pure white icing looks like a little snowdrift with a big flake floating down to join in. Plus Erica reminded me that water is blue- like in the ocean, and I like the idea that snow is a little bit of ocean coming right to me for Christmas. Let’s go with that.

How do you make these treats?

• Cake: White wedding cake batter with extra cinnamon and vanilla for a holiday kick.
• Filling: None
• Icing: Pure white vanilla butter cream with flecks of Tahitian vanilla bean
• Decorations: Blue “chocolate” candy

To make the snowflakes simply melt little blue chocolate disks over a double boiler, fill a piping bag and pipe snowflake shapes onto parchment (or a silicon sheet) placed on a baking sheet. Make sure that the lines are thick enough to provide stability to the design, and make more than you need because there will be casualties.

Tip: Place the baking sheet in the freezer while you are melting the chocolate. When the warm chocolate hits the cold metal it will set more rapidly and reduce spreading.

After you finish piping place it back in the freezer to set. Afterward you can pop them off and set them atop the frosted cakes.

Don’t forget, no two snowflakes are alike:

Baby, it’s cold outside!