Love letters
Decorative cupcakes ideal for expressing affection, featuring fondant hearts and royal icing for handwritten messaging.
Ingredients
Basic cupcakes (vanilla or lemon flavor (see p.18))
1 serving
Frosting (see p.16)
1 serving
Food coloring (red, orange, ruby red (gel is best))
As needed
Fondant
Golf ball size
Cornstarch
As needed
Royal icing (see p.16)
1 tbsp
Edible glue
As needed
Instructions
1
Prepare decorations
Prepare the cupcakes. Make the frosting and divide into three bowls, tinting each orange, ruby red, and red respectively. Divide the fondant into three portions and knead each into a color matching the frosting. Dust the work surface with a little cornstarch, and roll out each piece of fondant to about 3 mm thick. Cut out 4 small hearts and 4 small hearts per color. Place on a cornstarch-dusted tray to dry for at least 1 hour.
2
Apply frosting and attach
Frost the cupcakes so that there are four of each color, and let dry. On the orange cupcakes, use edible glue to attach a large ruby red heart, then attach a smaller red heart on top. On the ruby red cupcakes, attach a large red heart and a small orange heart. On the red cupcakes, attach a large orange heart and a small ruby red heart. Let sit overnight to dry.
3
Piping decorations
Prepare a piping bag fitted with a small round tip, and fill with royal icing. Arrange the cupcakes in three rows by color to plan the writing positions. Write "I" on one cupcake, "love" on another, and "you" on the third. Pipe small white dots around the edge of all cupcakes, and pipe one dot in the center of cupcakes without writing. Finish with a big kiss if desired.
