FLORAL CUPCAKE BOUQUET

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1. Bake cupcakes: Bake and cool cupcakes following recipe instructions.
2. Decorate rose cupcakes: These cupcakes are a simple two-tone gradient rose using a 2D tip. To make them, prepare a decorating bag with a 2D icing tip.
3. Divide your buttercream frosting into two parts, one slightly larger in quantity. Tint the smaller portion with Pink Gel Food Coloring. Leave the other (larger) portion the natural off-white buttercream color. Spread the pink frosting around the inside edges of the decorating bag. Fill the middle of the bag with the white frosting.
4. Pipe a rosette on top of the cupcake by hold the bag straight up, with the tip just slightly above the surface, starting at the center of the cupcake. Squeeze to form a star, then without releasing pressure, use a circular motion to pipe a tight circle around the starting point of your rosette until you reach the edge of the cupcake.
5. Decorate hydrangea cupcakes: These are two-tone blue and white hydrangeas using a 2D tip and white sugar pearls. To make them, prepare a decorating bag with a 2D icing tip.
6. Divide your buttercream frosting into two equal parts. Tint one portion with Blue Gel Food Coloring. Leave the other portion the natural off-white buttercream color. Spread the blue frosting around the inside edges of the decorating bag. Fill the middle of the bag with the white frosting.
7. Starting on the outside edges of the cupcake, pipe star-shaped petals by holding the bag straight up, with the tip just touching the surface. Squeeze and let the icing build to form a flower petal. Stop squeezing before pulling tip away. Repeat all the way around the cupcake, then filling the center with more petals until the cupcake surface is completely covered.
8. Place a White Sugar Pearl in the center of each star-shaped petal.
9. Decorate chrysanthemum cupcakes: These are single-color chrysanthemums made using an 81 tip. To make them, prepare a decorating bag with an 81 icing tip.
10. Tint your buttercream frosting with Orange Gel Food Coloring (or Golden Yellow Gel Food Coloring done on the darker side) and add to the decorating bag.
11. Hold the decorating bag at an angle on the outside edge of the cupcake with the tip just touching the surface and the rounded end down (looking like a smile). Squeeze firmly and pull out 3/8- 1/2 in. Lift up and away slightly as you release pressure for each petal. Repeat, turning the cupcake as needed to form the first row of petals around the edge of the cupcake. Pipe a second row of petals like the first row. Petals should be placed between the petals of the previous row, slightly overlapping. Continue piping rows of petals, gradually moving the decorating bag so that each row angles upward a little more than the row below it until the cupcake surface is completely covered.
12. Decorate zinnia cupcakes: These are two-color zinnia flowers made using a 104 tip for the petals and a grass tip (233 or similar multiple opening tip) for the flower center. To make them, prepare one decorating bag with a 104 icing tip and a second decorating bag with a grass tip.
13. Divide a small portion of your buttercream frosting into a separate bowl. Tint the larger portion fuchsia using Rose Gel Food Coloring as the primary color, then adding a small amount of Violet Gel Food Coloring until you’ve reached your desired color. Add to the decorating bag with the 104 tip. Tint the smaller portion dark yellow using a combination of Orange and Yellow Gel Food Coloring. Add to the decorating bag with the grass tip.
14. To make the petals, hold the decorating bag with the fuchsia frosting (and tip 104) at a 45° angle at 3:00 (9:00 for lefthanded decorators) with the wide end lightly touching the outside edge of the cupcake; narrow end pointing out and angled slightly upward. Squeeze and move the tip in a loop that ends back at the starting point of the petal. Stop squeezing and pull the tip. Repeat until the outside edge is covered in petals, then repeat with another row of petals inside, slightly overlapping the first row. Leave an opening in the center of the cupcake.
15. Create the flower center by holding the decorating bag with the yellow frosting (and grass tip) straight up in the center of the cupcake with the tip about 1/8 in. above the surface. Squeeze the bag and pull up and away until the icing strands are at your desired length, then stop pressure and pull the tip away. Repeat to fill the center of the cupcake.
16. Assemble the cupcake bouquet: Arrange seven cupcake flowers together on a cake stand or serving tray in a circular cluster with one cupcake in the center with six cupcakes surrounding the center cupcake. Prepare a decorating bag with a 352 or 353 leaf tip.
17. Tint your buttercream frosting with Green Gel Food Coloring and add to the decorating bag.
18. Add leaves in the gaps between the cupcakes and around the edges of the bouquet. Hold the bag at a slight upward angle from the surface. The two points of the tip must be vertical (so that it looks like an open beak). Squeeze hard to form the base of the leaf. As you squeeze, slowly pull the tip slightly upward (this will give the leaf a little lift). Relax pressure as you pull away to form a leaf point. Stop squeezing before pulling the tip away. Repeat, layering onto other leaves as needed, until you have filled in the gaps and have added your desired amount of leaves to the outside edges of the bouquet.