Consider making decorative cupcakes instead of (or to go along with) traditional dyed eggs for Easter this year. The patterns are very simple to produce: Various pastel colors of royal icing are piped onto a cupcake, then quickly swirled or dragged with a toothpick. Modify the color scheme to make cupcakes for other holidays—red and green for Christmas, for example, or black and orange for Halloween.

　　

Ingredients

makes 24

　　24 One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes (page 152)

　　Royal Icing (page 315)

　　Pink, lavender, and yellow gel-paste food colors

　　

Step 1

Using a serrated knife, trim top of each cupcake to make level. Divide royal icing among bowls; tint each portion a different color using gel-paste food color (see page 304 for instructions). Transfer to paper cornets (see page 298).

　　

Step 2

For drawn lines (below, left): Outline the top of a cupcake with one color of icing, and then pipe more icing to flood (or fill) the inside. Working quickly, pipe four to five parallel lines with one or two different colors of icing over the first color. Use a toothpick to draw lines perpendicular to the piped ones, alternating between dragging downward and upward.

　　

Step 3

For a swirled effect (below, right): Outline cupcake with one color, and pipe squiggly lines inside the outline. Working quickly, fill in spaces with another color of icing to cover completely; use a toothpick to swirl the colors.

　　

Step 4

Allow icing to set, about 30 minutes. Iced cupcakes can be stored up to 1 day at room temperature in airtight containers (do not refrigerate).

　　Martha Stewart's Cupcakes