Tuesday, May 11, 2010

cookie monster pull apart cake

i think this is the perfect cake for a two year old!

you will need:
24 muffin papers
2 muffin pans(regular size)
your favorite cake recipe...or box mix
butter cream or canned vanilla frosting(if using canned, you'll probably want at least 2 cans, maybe 3--depends on how much you like!!)
royal blue gel coloring(i used wilton)
one recipe marshmallow fondant(to follow)
black gel coloring
rolling pin
extra powdered sugar for dusting
pastry bag with large star tip OR fork
cardboard or tray big enough to put your cupcakes on
tin foil(if using cardboard)

*bake off your cupcakes as the directions state...allow to cool completely.
*if using cardboard, measure how much you will need.  i taped two layers together for stability.  cover in tin foil.  also...be sure you have a place to store the finished product if you are making it ahead of time!
*arrange cupcakes on cardboard.  this may take some playing around...having a "cookie monster" refrence is helpful!
*prepare butter cream, or add food coloring to canned frosting(mix in one big bowl, not directly in the cans, or you'll end up with two different color blues!). i ended up using about half of the blue coloring to get the right "cookie monster" color!
*BE SURE TO LEAVE ENOUGH FROSTING WHITE FOR HIS EYES! 
*frost two cupcakes for the eyes
*start piping your stars.  this does not have to be neat!!  its good if its a little messy...it makes it look more like fur.  when you get to a gap, squeeze a little extra frosting in there, then pipe a few stars on top.
* if you do not want to use a pastry bag: smear frosting all over cupcakes, then rough it up with a fork!
*prepare marshmallow fondant:
Marshmallow fondant
1 cup mini marshmallows
1 tbsp water
1 1/2- 1 3/4 cup powder sugar

Place marshmallows in a standard 1 cup measuring cup and push down and pack them in. Place in a microwave safe bowl and add the water. Put in the microwave for about 20 seconds. Just long enough for them to soften and puff up. Take out and stir with a spoon until it is combined well. At this point it looks kind of soupy.(*at this point, if you can add your gel coloring, it will be easier to stir in) Then add the sugar and mix and fold until all is incorporated and it is no longer sticky. I take it out of the bowl when it gets to the point where most of the sugar is incorporated and I knead it in my hands. (*dust your hands and counter top with powdered sugar)This takes roughly about 5-7 minutes. Take a fondant roller or a regular rolling pin and roll out just as you would Wilton's fondant. You can get this fondant almost paper thin and it also repairs well. It's cheap, easy to work with, and tastes great too. *mine seemed a little soft, so i threw it in the freezer until it was firm enough to roll out)

*cut out two circles for the eyes(i used a large pastry tip)
*cut out a mouth--free hand are draw a template first--i recommend the template!! 
*place onto cupcakes; if desired-pipe a little more frosting around the mouth.


*note:  i only ended up using 23 cupcakes!  david really wanted one...how could i deny the birthday boy?!  i was only going to use it for the candles, so it was no big deal!
as an added bonus, i made chocolate chip cookies to place around him!


(p.s. you could easily make elmo with these cupcakes as well!)


and...its always good to have a helper:
WARNING:  your lips will be BLUE after you eat these!!  it doesn't last long though...so enjoy!!

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13 comments:

  1. I love this!!! Now...where can I find a spare 2 yr. old...

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  2. Best cake ever! Even at my age...which shall remain unspoken.

    He is precious!

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  3. Ah! So much fun! I bet he had the best birthday ever. What a great mother you are.

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  4. LOVE IT! LOVE the eyes! LOVE the COOKIES! Awesome touch!

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  5. this is such a fun cake! i definitely have some cookie monsters at my house:)
    I have a cake/goodies linky going on at my blog if you want to linkup that would be awesome
    http://lifewiththegrovers.blogspot.com/2010/05/birthday-cake.html

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  6. SOOO adorable (both the cake and your little man)!

    Thanks for linking up with What are little boys made of?

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  7. Tina, thanks for linking your cakes! That princess cake is awesome:)

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  8. i love this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I just did a whole cupcake blog this am if i had known that I would have listed you...

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  9. That if really cute! I'm not usually a big fan of cupcake cakes, but you did a great job! I love the cookies around it too!

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  10. This is adorable! I think I might need to make one "just because". :)

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  11. My daughter will be turning 3 and she asked for a cookie monster cake. I figured a pullapart would be best since there will be a lot of children attending. So I started searching online to get ideas of how I wanted it to look. Yours is the BEST by far! Can't wait to try this and the cookies around the face was a nice touch! I decided too make the cake a royal blue velvet. My daughter will be so excited her favorite color is blue :) Thanks for posting!

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