Martha Does Cupcakes

From devil's food to candied hazelnuts, Martha Stewart knows how to turn out tasty cakes.

By Tim Fischer | Friday, 14 August 2009 | 09:35

MARTHA STEWART’S CUPCAKES

175 Inspired Ideas for Everyone’s Favorite Treat

By Martha Stewart

(Clarkson Potter, $24.99)

Just when you thought there couldn’t possibly be anything left to write about cupcakes, along comes Martha Stewart, adding her expertise to the subject.

Every mouthwatering photo (more than two dozen photographers contributed to the book) makes you want to run to your kitchen and bake any one of the 175 recipes. The book’s layout is easy to use, with eight chapters ranging from the simple to the over-the-top. The “Swirled and Sprinkled” chapter has classics such as “Devil’s Food Cupcakes” and the obligatory “Red Velvet.” The final chapter, “Celebrations,” has cupcakes for more adventurous bakers, including “Candied-Hazelnut Cupcakes or “Spun-Sugar Crowned Cupcakes.” Throughout, Martha will hold your hand with step-by-step instructions for making and decorating every one of these treats.

Some of Martha’s recipes, whether in her magazines or her books, can sometimes be discouraging because of expensive, hard-to-find ingredients or complicated instructions. But these are cupcakes. Little more than eggs, butter, sugar and flour—ingredients found in almost anyone’s kitchen—are all that are called for. I made a batch of the “Red Velvet” cupcakes and found the instructions straightforward and easy to follow and the end result delicious.

A great chapter tells you how to display your creations for parties and for gift-giving. Read a little further and you’ll find templates and clip art that you can use to make your displays even more creative and fun.

The “Basics” chapter is one of the most informative I’ve read in a long time. It has all the usual information about what ingredients to use, which butter, salted or not, which size eggs you’ll need, all the usual baking guides with pan sizes. But the best paragraph in the entire book is on Page 294, where you’ll read how to adapt any recipe to make a standard-, mini- or jumbo-sized cupcake. Such an easy thing to share but often not included in books. Thanks, Martha.

So while summer is still here, bring the kids and a copy of “Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes” into the kitchen and bake your way to cupcake heaven.

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Comments (1)

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I'm not convinced that Martha will ever lure me away from Rose Levy Beranbaum. Besides, if Martha's recipes work, doesn't that mean she stole them from someone else?

Kate Coe , August 17, 2009