Duck in a Pond Cupcakes
- 12 small orange gumdrops
- 3/4 cup yellow-tinted fondant
- 2 tablespoons semisweet chocolate chips, melted
- 12 Go-To Vanilla Cupcakes
- 2 cups Vanilla American Buttercream
- 1/2 cup Avocado-Tinted Frosting
- Blue sanding sugar
- Special Equipment: Skewer; Pastry bag; #235 Wilton fuzzy tip
- For the beak: Stand an orange gumdrop on its base.
- Snip with scissors straight down about three-quarters of the way through to make the mouth.
- Trim around all sides of the gumdrop to decrease the size and shape into a tapered beak.
- Repeat to make remaining beaks.
- For the duck: Make a 1/2-inch ball with some of the yellow fondant for the head.
- Attach the beak to the head by inserting it into the ball and reshaping around it.
- Form the remaining fondant into a teardrop shape.
- Dab the bottom of the head with water and attach to the side of the teardrop, toward the big end.
- Repeat to make remaining ducks.
- For the eyes: Dip a skewer in the melted chocolate and make 2 small dots on each duck head for eyes.
- Set aside.
- To assemble: Frost the cupcakes with the buttercream.
- Place the avocado-tinted frosting in a pastry bag with a #235 Wilton fuzzy tip.
- Hold the bag straight up, with the tip 1/8 inch above the surface.
- Squeeze to form grass on the top of the cupcake, and then stop squeezing and pull the pastry bag up, making grass blades about 1/2-inch long.
- Repeat around the edges of the cupcake to form a ring of grass.
- Repeat with remaining cupcakes.
- Sprinkle the center of the cupcakes with blue sanding sugar to make the pond.
- Place the ducks in the center and press gently to adhere.
orange gumdrops, chocolate chips, vanilla cupcakes, vanilla american, avocadotinted frosting, sanding sugar
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/duck-in-a-pond-cupcakes.html (may not work)