This project has been in the works for a long time . . . since November I believe . . . well before baby London was born that’s for sure!  I had recently started Cookies Cupcakes and Cardio, and my good friend Janine informed us that her baby shower was going to be January 9, 2011, so of course I jumped at the chance to volunteer (hog) creating the dessert treats!

I have spent countless hours obsessing over the perfect way to decorate the cookies . . . Google Images is a wonderful and horrible place to find yourself lost in.  My talent level restricts me to simple decorations, but hey, I did it!  Learning something new is always good for the brain.

Last weekend I conquered the cookies . . . I had to make the ahead of time!  I’m learning that blogging and the pictures that need to go with a blog, slows down the baking speed quite substantially.  Also, since I’m entering uncharted territory, I wanted to give myself plenty of time to screw it up!

I went with Maple Cream Sugar Cookies as I discovered at Christmas time that they are a tasty alternative from the typical sugar cookie.  I found Baby themed cookie cutters, and off I went!

I think they are beautiful for my first attempt at something like this!  Hahaha…if I don’t say so myself 😉

This weekend, I had to decide which flavour of cupcake to go with the cookies.  I have been dying to make my own Funfetti, so when I came across a post by C&C Cakery, I realized it had to be destiny.  Also, there are no strawberries in all of Cranbrook in the middle of January . . . therefore no Martha Strawberry cupcakes for us, which was my first pick.

The hint of almond makes these cupcakes extra delicious!  They are fun, light and perfect for so many occasions.

I’m sorry I don’t have any pictures of the process of these cupcakes.  My camera battery was dying and had to be charged.

Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes

(adapted from C&C Cakery)

1 1/4 cups AP flour (I used cake flour)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large egg whites (room temperature)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup skim milk + 3 Tablespoons skim yogurt
1/4 cup rainbow sprinkles

1) Preheat your oven to 350C. In a small bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

2) In a large bowl with an electric mixer, whip together your butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the egg whites, one at a time, until thick and white. Add your extracts and mix again.

3) With a spoon, slowly mix in your dry ingredients and milk/yogurt mix, alternating between the two. When everything comes together (taking care not to over mix), add the sprinkles and lightly fold in a couple times. Again, do not over mix.

4) Spoon in the batter to liners and bake for about 20 minutes, or until your tester comes out clean. Set out to cool before icing.

I decorated the funfetti cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Icing.  I thought about exploring with a raspberry flavoured icing, but figured with the funfetti, perhaps simple was better.   I made the icing swirl with Wilton’s 1M tip.  If you put a dot of icing in the middle of the cupcake, then swirl starting around the outside, you will get a beautiful, classic icing swirl on your cupcakes.

To personalize London’s cupcakes, I used a small circle cutter to cut out fondant and cut out the letter the night before.  Set the fondant out to dry out for a couple of hours.  Place on top of the cupcake just prior to serving.

This cute little cake stand was a gift from Gretchen for my birthday!  Thanks.  It is so perfect for staging shots.  It originally came with a blue ribbon, but I swapped it out for pink to match this shoot.

Photo experimenting!

On to the party!

London and I. I'm a little bit stunned in this picture! Perhaps it is because baby showers involve games. Ugh. I played though!

Here’s proof that me, I, myself actually held a baby!  She is so cute.  Congratulations Janine and Tyler.

You have a beautiful new baby daughter.