Mother's Day Cupcakes

When it comes to Mother's Day, you can't go wrong with a gift of delectable cupcakes. This is one gift that she'll enjoy bite after delicious bite. In this hub, I put together some of my favorite recipes, photos, and tools needed to make Mom the best cupcake gift ever.

When trying to decide on a cupcake design, think about what she loves. Is she into purses or shoes? Maybe she loves gardening? Whatever her interest, you can incorporate it in the cupcakes by using picks shaped like birdhouses, purse-shaped sugar decorations, etc. And be sure to make her favorite cake flavor....my husband knows that I am a chocoholic so chocolate is always part of the Mother's Day equation. If your Mom doesn't love cake, you can always go with some iced Mother's Day cookies instead ..... they would be a hit with me too!

These Blooming Treat Daisy cupcakes from Wilton are super easy to make if you do what I do….use store-bought cake mix and a couple tubs of vanilla frosting (instead of making everything from scratch). Buy Mom’s favorite flavor of cake along with some fun cupcake liners like the flower or pink stripe ones available from Amazon. Mix and bake the 24 cupcakes according to the directions on the outside of the box. Cool them on a wire rack.

I find that when I am mixing several colors of frosting, one tub of icing just isn’t enough so I always buy 2. Use the first tub of vanilla icing to frost the cooled cupcakes. Divide the 2^nd tub of icing into 3 bowls (2/3 pink, 1/3 yellow, 1/3 or a little less green). Use food coloring to achieve the desired colors in the ratios previously noted.

To decorate, use an open star #21 tip to make a yellow rosette in the middle of each cupcake. Then use a #18 tip to make the 6 pink rosette flower petals. Use a leaf tip to make one or two leaves on each cupcake and Voila! you have beautiful daisy cupcake that any Mom would love to receive.

TIP – don’t have a piping bag and tips? You can use simple Zip-loc bags filled with icing. Cut a very small hole in the corner of the bag and you’ll be able to at least write MOM on the cupcakes in your favorite color. The other option is to buy pre-made royal icing or sugar candy decorations to put on top of each cupcake.

You can see lots of creative Mother's Day cupcake ideas in the photograph below. Many of them feature fondant letters (mini cookie cutters are used to cut the letters out of sheets of fondant) to spell out the word Mom.

 This youtube video shows how to create a Mother's Day cupcake bouquet step-by-step.  You use your favorite mix to make the cupcakes and then follow the instructions in the video to make buttercream icing.  They show you how to make begonia type flowers on top some of the cupcakes and pink carnation type flowers on the other cupcakes.  Gorgeous!

If your Mom isn’t a big fan of sweet treats, how about giving her the gift of relaxation! A spa gift basket filled with luxurious bath and body products, aromatherapy candles, and some soothing tea will surely be a hit. If you really want to blow her away, you could offer to clean the house while she is taking a relaxing soak in her tub. I know I’d be thrilled if someone did this for me and it is one of my favorite gifts for her!

Even if Mom likes sweet treats, you might not have the time or patience to whip up a batch of cupcakes. If so, you could always swing by a local bakery to pick up some cookies, cupcakes or a Mom cake. Or you could order up a Mother's Day gift online that can be delivered right to her door. Just choose a gift that coincides with her interests be it reading, gardening, scrapbooking, or shopping.