Buttercream Cupcakes

Today, let's talk about cakes. There's a current cake trend that I am absolutely head over heels in love with. They're made of buttercream flowers. Here, take a look:

via Nana Cake

via The Cake Blog

via bossacafez

Aren't these breathtaking? Who would not love to receive a cake like this? I wanted to try my hand at making these, perhaps in a smaller scale using cupcakes.

I made some frosting, tinted it with some food color, and piped different kinds of flowers (on a square of parchment paper). You'll find lots of tutorials on making buttercream flowers like here and here. Then I put the tray of flowers in the freezer to help set them up and makes them easier to handle. 

Then I put them on top of cupcakes (the cupcakes had a thin layer of white frosting). Because the flowers came from the freezer, I just peeled off the parchment square and gently placed each flower on the cupcake. I used a spatula to help me. Then I piped some leaves in the empty spaces.

It was my first attempt and I'm quite pleased with the results. It's a lot of work! But this style of frosting turns any cake or cupcake from blah to TADA!