How to Fill a Cupcake With Jam

If you are the baker of the family, you likely have a perfect cupcake recipe that your friends and family love. However, if you want to expand on your cupcake culinary skills, a cupcake filled with a favorite jam will surprise and impress your guests. Filling cupcakes may seem like a complicated task, but it's a rather simple process that only requires a pastry bag and tip, and the jam of your choice. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Bake your favorite cupcakes according to the recipe and allow them to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.

Place the jam of your choice in a microwave-safe dish and microwave for 15 seconds to soften.

Fit a metal or plastic tip with a medium opening over a pastry bag and fill the bag with the jam.

Insert the tip of the pastry bag directly into the center of the cupcake halfway through. Do not go any farther or the jam will leak from the bottom of the cupcake.

Gently and slowly squeeze the bag to release jam into the cupcake until the jam fills up to the top of the hole you punctured into it. Repeat with the rest of the cupcakes.

Frost the tops of the cupcakes to decorate and hide the jam-filled hole.

Tips

- You can also use a cupcake corer. This tool cuts a small hole out of the center of the cupcake for you to fill.

How to Change the Color of Your Cake Batter

Cakes are yummy treats that many people reserve for celebrations, but cake batter is typically anything but exciting. They can be colorful, though. Instead of opting for a cherry-flavored batter to have a pink cake or a "confetti" batter to have specks of color, for example, try changing the color of your cake batter. With simple food coloring, you can transform ordinary cake batter to any color of your choice, or dye different portions to render a rainbow cake. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Mix your cake batter according to the directions on the box or in your cookbook.

Add one teaspoon gel food coloring at a time until you get the color you want. Gel coloring is much bolder than liquid coloring, so not a lot is needed to change the batter to a bright color. Blend into the batter with a spoon until well incorporated.

Scrape the batter into your cake pans with a spatula.

Bake as directed.

Tips

- For best results, only use light-colored cake batters. Because gel food coloring is concentrated, basic color mixing rules (i.e. yellow + blue = green) do not apply. For example, do not add blue gel food coloring to a yellow cake mix to turn the batter green. Instead, simply add green gel food color to yellow batter to render a green-colored cake.

- Another reason to use gel food coloring: Liquid food coloring has a great deal of water in it, so not only will you need a lot of it to color your cake, but the excess water can ruin the consistency of the batter.

Preschool Cooking Ideas

Cooking with preschoolers can be both fun and educational. The educational part comes into play when teaching them how to measure different ingredients and safety in the kitchen. Cooking with children also opens the avenue of introducing new foods, healthy alternatives and healthy eating. Cooking with preschoolers can also be messy, but you can teach them the importance of keeping a clean work space and kitchen by having them clean up as you go along or when you are finished. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Pizzas

Pizza is one of the foods most preschoolers love. Have them make their own individual pizzas -- either making your own dough or using pre-made dough -- by teaching them to roll out the dough. Let them create fun shapes with the dough or make traditional circles, then spoon on and spread the sauce. Shredding cheese is another step they can help with. Allow them to add a selection of toppings to their pizzas, creating smiley faces, shapes or the first letter of their name. Encourage them to try at least one new food in their topping choices. Putting them in the oven and removing them is probably better left to an adult.

Cupcakes

Cupcakes are a good teaching lesson for preschoolers. Because they require several different ingredients, it helps to teach about measuring and following a recipe. Have each child help in mixing the ingredients, then use a round ice cream scoop to transfer the batter to the cupcake holders. Make the frosting while the cupcakes bake and add food coloring to make unique frosting colors. Let the children frost and decorate their own cupcakes. Use a variety of toppings such as sprinkles, chocolate candy pieces, jelly beans and fresh pieces of fruit.

Chicken Fingers

Kids will have a blast pounding chicken cutlets to tenderize and flatten them. Because chicken requires special handling, it is best for an adult to do all parts that require touching the chicken. Place one chicken breast in a plastic zipper bag for each child. Show them how to gently pound the chicken with a tenderizing mallet or roll with a rolling pin. Cut the chicken into long strips and using tongs or a fork, dip in a slightly beaten egg, then roll in bread crumbs and place on a cookie sheet. Bake in the oven until no longer pink inside. Serve with homemade dipping sauces.

Scrambled Eggs

Scrambled eggs are easy enough for preschoolers to make with some help and supervision. Help them crack eggs, and let them scramble them in the bowl using a whisk. Add ingredients such as shredded cheese, peppers or diced potatoes. Show them how to spray a frying pan with non-stick cooking spray and pour the egg mixture into the heated pan. Help them cook the eggs until they are done. Teach them how to use a toaster to make toast to accompany the eggs.

What Tips Should I Use to Pipe a Cupcake Bouquet?

Cupcake bouquets are an edible treat that may be used for a party centerpiece, gift or birthday cake. The small cakes are decorated with full-size frosting flower blossoms or a mass of tiny petals. The flowery cupcakes are assembled into a sweet bouquet when mounted on sticks or skewers arranged in floral foam or a wide-mouth vase. Use cake decorating tips to pipe and create the petals and flowers for the cupcake bouquet. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Petal Tips

Petal tips are used to create a full frosting flower on top of a cupcake. Tip numbers 59 to 127 create rounded ends and ruffled petals. Roses, ruffled chrysanthemum, marigold and pansy blossoms can be designed with petal tips. The specialty 127D tip makes a giant rose for a display made from large cupcakes. The 97 tip is ideal for Victorian style rose blossoms. Petals are piped individually or in a continuous motion.

Drop Flowers

Small tips numbered from 106 to 225 and medium 131 to 194 are used to pipe a mass of miniature blossoms onto a frosted cupcake. Pink, blue, lavender and yellow drop flowers can be combined in various sizes for a cupcake bouquet. Special drop flower tips are also manufactured for left-handed cake decorators. They are identified with the letter L and the tip number.

Open and Closed Star Tips

The open star shapes range from the tiny number 13 to the over-size 8B. Closed star shapes have deeper grooves with lines spreading from the center of the blossom outward. The star and miniature rounded petal blossoms are perfect to fill in the top and sides of a cupcake flower. The blossoms create an effect of a mass of forget-me-not or lilac-shaped flowers.

Leaf Tips

Leaf tips are made for plump, jagged or thin leaves. The thin leaf tips including the number 74 and 75 are the best shape for making long petals. Create daisies, asters and chrysanthemums with these tips. The rounded leaves that end in a point are formed using the number 112, 113 and 115 tip. This shape is used to form the red and green poinsettia leaves for a Christmas cupcake bouquet.

Round tips

The smallest round tips, such as the number 8, 10 and 230, can be used to pipe long, plump tips for a Gerber daisy. The petals are formed on a piece of parchment paper and assembled on the frosted cupcake after drying.

How to Make Flavored Cupcakes

When choosing a cupcake flavor, the basic two flavors usually come to mind first: chocolate or vanilla. Just turn on your favorite baking show or step into any bakery and you'll find more than just the basics. With hundreds of scrumptious choices, and endless flavor options, you'll be tempted to try whipping up your own creative concoctions. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Select a flavor for your cupcakes. Some flavors, such as carrot, will involve adding ingredients to the cupcake mix before baking. Other flavors, such as marshmallow, involve filling the already baked cupcakes. Search online or look in recipe books and magazines for ideas on what flavorings to use for your cupcakes. In his article "Cupcakes for Grownups," Greg Patent offers a variety of cupcake flavor options including ginger, mocha chip and caramel. Good Housekeeping's website provides a plethora of cupcake recipes including strawberry shortcake, cherry and pumpkin spice.

Buy the necessary ingredients to make your cupcakes. If choosing to make your cupcakes from scratch, find a recipe to follow. Martha Stewart's website features a basic cupcake recipe which can be a base for many flavorings including peanut butter, coconut, and chocolate chip. To save time, buy a white or vanilla cake mix from the store. If you plan to flavor the cupcakes by filling them, you may wish to make chocolate-flavored cupcakes.

Preheat the oven to the temperature listed in your recipe or on your prepackaged mix (typically 350 degrees). Select a muffin tin and grease it with nonstick cooking spray or line with paper liners. Prepare the cupcake batter by following the directions on the prepackaged mix or the recipe.

Add flavorings to the cupcake batter by following the recipe's directions. Once the desired flavor has been added, bake cupcakes according to the recipe or the packaged. After cupcakes are baked, cool them in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, then remove them. Cool completely on a rack.

Frost cupcakes if you desire or you fill the cupcakes with a variety of fillings. Use a large round tipped pastry bag to fill baked cupcakes. Spoon the desired filling into the pastry bag and squeeze the filling into the center of the cupcakes. Popular fillings include lemon, melted chocolate, jelly, and marshmallow. After filling cupcakes, you may then frost them if desired.

How to Fill a Cupcake With Cream

Cream-filled cupcakes seem fancy but are rather easy to put together. The key is to get the cream in through the very bottom or very top, where the marks from the work won't be visible to those eating the cupcakes. The pastry bag method can be used for any creamy filling, including puddings or icings. The cone method can be used for any filling such as fruits or jams. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Pastry Bag Method

Lay warm, fresh cupcakes upside down on a piece of wax paper. Prepare your disposable pastry bag by filling it 1/4 full with the cream filling and fitting on a small round pastry tip.

Stick the end of the pastry tip through the bottom of each cupcake. Press gently to fill the interior pocket with the cream filling, being careful not to overfill.

Sit cupcakes right side up, handling them carefully. Ice or decorate the cupcakes as you desire. Store them in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve.

Cone Method

Sit warm, fresh cupcakes out on a clean counter. Use a paring knife to cut a small cone shape from the center of the top of each cupcake, with the point of the cone reaching toward the middle of the interior.

Spoon cream mixture into the cone-shaped holes. Cut the pointed end of the cupcake cone piece off and place the top back on the cupcake to cover the hole.

Ice the cupcake to hide the marks from the hole. Store in a refrigerator until ready to serve.

Alien Cake Ideas

The good thing about baking an alien cake is that you get a lot of creative license to make the cake look however you want. Green tentacles, bulging eyes and other creepy features are likely to enter your mind when you think about aliens, so get creative and use those in your cake design. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Alien Head Cake

Make a cake that is shaped like an alien head. Aliens depicted in books and movies commonly have heads that are wide at the top and come to a point at the chin. Use a round cake to create the alien head. After the cake has baked and cooled, use a serrated knife to shape it into a point at the chin. Frost the cake with green icing, and use black frosting to create large, oblong eyes on the cake. If you want the cake to look extra creepy, place gummy worms on the cake to make it look like they are coming out of the alien's head.

Eyes

When bulging eyes come to mind when you think about aliens, use that as an inspiration for your cake. Bake a cake in the size and shape of your choice, and frost it in a color that coordinates with the rest of your party decor. Go to a local candy shop, and look for candies that look like eyeballs. If you can find different shapes and sizes, use those. Place the eyeballs all over the cake so that it looks like alien eyes are covering the cake.

Alien Body

Consider making a cake that looks like an alien's body. Use two square cakes to create the alien's body. Cut one of the square cakes into a triangular shape and place it onto the cake platter as the alien's head. Place the second square cake just below the head to serve as the alien's body. Frost the two sections with green frosting. Pipe alien features onto the cake, such as eyes and a mouth. Use licorice ropes to create the alien's legs and arms.

Cupcakes

When you don't want to make a large traditional cake, bake cupcakes instead. Bake your favorite cupcakes, and frost them in the color of your choice. Find candies or plastic figurines shaped like an alien. You can get them from your local party store or online. Place one candy or plastic alien on top of each cupcake.