Hallowe'en excitement, probably part 1 as I'm quite excited...

I am in love with these skeleton cupcakes from the 52 cupcakes blog. I only wish I had the time this week to attempt to make the cute little skeletons, even just one!

I've also been given some fab little hallowe'en cupcake cases and Lily Vanilla's new book A Zombie Ate My Cupcake for my birthday. I love the Shattered Glass cupcakes - blood oozing out of the cake. I might try these and the Ghastly Gouls for trick or treaters on Sunday (not that we get many, so more cakes for me!)

I will be making Lily's meringue bones for Saturday's Hallowe'en party, as they'll go well with the theme. Hopefully I'll have time on Saturday to post a photo of them along with my volcano cupcakes....

Three words: Skull cake pan

My friend Paul sent me this link some time ago, but in the run up to Hallowe’en I thought it was time to share!

Check out Megan Reardon’s ‘Not Martha’ blog about the pan and her fabulous skull cake (left).

Sadly, I can’t find this pan available anywhere in the UK (it's made by Wilton,so check out your local supplier!). Although it is now back available in the US at prettypartyplace it will never ship in time for Hallowe’en (sigh).

Instead, I may have to console myself with this fabulous pumpkin cake tin from the cakes, cookies and crafts shop, which I love partly because the tin itself is also orange....

They also do some cute little cupcake stencils – ideal for decorating flat iced pumpkin cupcakes!

Flavour of the Month: Smashing Pumpkin

Inspiration struck while I was making the first big batch of pumpkin cupcakes for market on Friday and, lo, it is now called Smashing Pumpkin!

It's a pretty satrightforward recipe - just like a carrot cake really - from Susannah Blake's Cupcake book that mother-out-law loaned me. It makes really light and moist cakes.

For 12 muffin size cupcakes:
115g soft brown sugar
120ml sunflower oil
2 eggs
115g grated squash (I'd recommend small pumpkin or butternut for taste)
zest of 1 lemon
115g self-raising flour
1tsp baking powder
1tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 180c or 160 fan and line your muffin tin with spooky cases.
Break up sugar in a bowl so there are no lumps and beat in the oil and the eggs. It's goo to leave this while you grate the pumpkin as it seems to combine well after a little sit. Add grated pumpkin and lemon zest.
Sift together dry ingredients and fold into wet ingredients.
Fill cases 2/3 full.
Bake for around 20 minutes (I always check cupcakes at 17 minutes, and maybe give the tray a turn if your oven is - like mine - slightly warmer on one side than the other!)

I've topped with a vanilla buttercream in orange and black (although I was worried about the amount of black food colouring required so they were kind of dark grey really), but white chocolate topping or flat icing would work just as well.