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Win (or make your own) Fourth of July cupcakes!
June 30th, 2009, 8:54 am · 22 Comments · posted by Suzanne Broughton, Contributing Writer
Fourth of July is coming and what’s a better way to celebrate than with cupcake kabobs!
Baking cupcakes day in and day out for my company, Meringue Bake Shop, I look forward to finding fun ways to mix it up and break the monotony. Sometimes it’s by changing up the flavors, sometimes it’s by finding new ways to decorate, or it’s finding new ways to eat them!
Cupcake kabobs are easy, fun and inexpensive to make. Using your favorite cake recipes or buying box cake mix, these kabobs come together with minimal effort. They are a fun project to keep your kids busy at your 4th of July BBQ. And they look great and are delicious! There are instructions on how to win a dozen just in time for the Fourth at the bottom of my post, but if you feel up to making them yourself, here are the directions.
What You’ll Need
• White cake batter (your recipe or box mix — make sure it’s white, not yellow)
• Red Velvet cake batter (your recipe or box mix –- Duncan Hines sells a red velvet cake mix)
• Blue food coloring (I used Wilton Sky Blue, which can be found at Michaels)
• 12 or 24 cup Mini cupcake pan (Michaels sells these or I’ve also seen them at Target for $10)
• Cooking spray
• Large marshmallows
• ¼ cup of water
• White frosting (your recipe or container of Funfetti 4th of July frosting)
• Bamboo skewers
• Assorted sprinkles and colored sugars in patriotic colors
• Fruit –- strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, bananas whichever you prefer
Begin by making your white cake batter as directed by your recipe or the directions on the box. Split the batter into two bowls and tint one of the bowls with 3 drops (or 1/8 tsp) of blue food coloring. Keep the other bowl white.
Note: If you can’t find or don’t want to make red velvet, you could split the white batter into thirds and tint one of the other bowls with red food coloring.
Fill your cupcake wells up ¾ of the way. Spray your pan with cooking spray (liners are not needed since you’ll be taking them off anyway so save yourself a step). Bake a few batches of mini white and blue cupcakes. Let them cool in the pans for 10 mins then transfer them to a cooling rack.
Repeat the same process for your red velvet cake.
These mini cupcakes can be made at least 2 days in advance. Once they’ve cooled completely, put them in a plastic storage container with a sealed lid and leave at room temperature or in the fridge.
Prepare for assembly
Put the white frosting in a bowl and microwave until soft and smooth, about 15 seconds. Pour the sprinkles in separate bowls. For these kabobs, I used 3 bowls –1 for red sugar, 1 for blue sugar, and 1 for a mix of red, white and blue sprinkles and nonpareils. Get ¼ cup of water. You can leave this in the measuring cup. Put the large marshmallows in a bowl. Cut up your fruit into bite size pieces. Put your cooled cupcakes on a plate.
Assembly
Take a mini cupcake and dip the top into the warmed frosting. Then dip into the sprinkles. Do this with all the mini cupcakes. You may need to reheat the frosting if the cupcakes start to get stuck in the bowl. Just reheat in 10-second increments until it’s smooth again. Keep dipping until all the cupcakes are done.
Grab a large marshmallow and dip one end into the water. Let any excess water drip off then dip one end into the red colored sugar. Turn it over and dip the other end into the water. Let excess water drop off then dip into the blue colored sugar. Set aside to dry.
Take one bamboo skewer in your hand and slide a red cupcake down leaving at least 1” of skewer in your hand. Next, slide a marshmallow down, then a piece of fruit (for this skewer I used strawberries). Take a white cupcake and slide that down on top of the piece of fruit, followed with a marshmallow and another piece of fruit. Top the skewer off with the blue cupcake. Continue this until you’ve made as many skewers as you’d like.
Kids will love assembling these! Just be careful of the points on the bamboo sticks. And keep plenty of paper towels handy as the frosting tends to get onto little fingers. Or if need be, these can be made a day in advance as long as you use non-browning fruit. Store in a plastic container with a tight lid until ready to display.
Mmmm delicious! Trust me, these will be a hit at your 4th of July bash!
If you don’t have time to make these delicious kabobs or want something for the grownups, contact Meringue Bake Shop for your 4th of July cupcakes. Each dozen comes with a mix of red velvet and vanilla cupcakes topped with buttercream and patriotic decorations for $30.
The cupcakes will be available for pick up on Friday July 3 evening or Saturday July 4 after 12 p.m. in Orange. Give us a call at 714-927-7686 or send us an email at kristin@meringuebakeshop.com for more information and to place your order. Let us know you heard about us on OC Register!
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Far too domestically challenged to make your own cupcakes? Want to win a dozen cupcakes (not Kabobs)? Tell us what you are doing this Fourth of July and you will be entered to win. You will have to do something — pick them up in Orange — but besides that, all you have to do is enjoy them. Thanks Kristin!
22 Comments
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Oh my gosh, these are too cute. If I was more organized these would be the perfect activity for our yearly block party. Maybe next year. So that’s what we’re doing; a neighborhood block party with lots of games for adults as well as kids (see how I put adults first) and lots of food and music.
We are going to the annual block party BBQ held in my parents neighborhood. My dad is always the grill master and helps organize the whole thing so we usually show up early and help out with the decorating, too. Lots of games for the kids, music, and a chili cooking contest which we’re going to finally enter this year. Afterwards we’ll probably watch the fireworks at the high school near our house.
We have to drive through Orange to get to my parents house and I’m sure those cupcakes would be a big hit if we win.
(I’d make some myself, but I have a chili receipe to perfect.)
You win, Julie! I had Emily pick out a name. (Since it was a smaller giveaway I didn’t want to spend the $5 for random.org.)
Hope you have a great Fourth!
Kristin,
Your cupcake kabobs look great! Your so creative. Thanks for the recipe and step by step instructions! I might have to try making them.
Doh, major spelling error. MY BAD.
*You’re so creative!!!!
I love your cupcake kabobs. Our 4th of July tradition has always been to watch the fireworks in Yorba Linda with our families. But this year, both of our families are out of town, so we will have to start a new tradition. Maybe sit on our roof and watch all of the fireworks in the area.
Yum!!!!! I would love those…might have to make some, might have to win some. I will pick winning!
We are hosting a barbeque for a few friends at our house in Fullerton, and going to the Fullerton fireworks display. I’d love to have Fourth of July cupcakes to share with everyone!
I am all about winning fabulous desserts! And guess who is in charge of dessert for 4th of July??? Me!
This year our entire family is doing a swim & BBQ at the in-laws! Tons of food, family & fun! After dinner we’re headed down the street to watch the huge fireworks display at our local park…its going to be a great day enjoyed with family & friends.
We’re having family over for a barbecue and we’ll spend some time in the new gazebo that was built by the family for my mother!
Unfortunately, my wife will have to work the holiday weekend, so most likely the girls and I will be going to the Fred Kelly Stadium fireworks show…not much else planned, so the cupcakes could come in handy!
We are heading up to my mom’s house for a pool party on the 4th. I’m making cupcakes (not as good as yours) and hamburgers. It’s an all american bbq day with lots of fun, family and friends. We usually find a place to watch fireworks and have root beer floats too! I love 4th of July!
We have “Uncle Jerry’s Backyard BBQ Extravaganza” in my dad’s backyard. We have a volleyball game, food, water fights, food, kids screaming with delite, food, and then backyard fireworks (still legal in Buena Park!)….we have been doing this over 30 years that I can remember and I’m so happy that my 2 1/2 year old daughter is learning the tradition. Friends and family come from all over ~ no one needs an invite, you attend one time and you are “forever invited” to Uncle Jerry’s on the 4th. I think I look forward to this day even more than Christmas. Good Times are had by all!
I am going to make these for the 4th of July Picnic I am attending at a friends house! There should be plenty of kids to enjoy them, I may just make everything and have the kids assemble them.
That’s one of the things I love about this treat is you can make everything in advance and then leave it on a table for kids to assemble themselves. Its an activity that keeps them busy and you get deliciousness out of it!
Those look amazing and I may just have to make them!
For the 4th we are heading up to Lakewood, where we will attend a front-yard BBQ/Potluck and set off lots of dangerous fireworks. I will be sitting well out of the danger zone with the kids.
Hi everyone! Thanks for your comments!
Perfection! If I win, can I pretend like I made them myself?
Our neighborhood here in HB holds an annual block party. It’s going to be great, with a taco bar and bounce house for starters. Afterwards, we walk down to the beach to watch the fireworks. We love keeping it local.
We’re going to a party on the beach with my family. We’re hoping to be able to keep our two year old awake long enough for him to see fireworks for the first time!
This giveaway is closed. I’ll announce the winner and send them an email shortly. Thanks everyone for the great ideas for the Fourth!
Thanks everyone.
We always attend the Huntington Beach parade in the morning and then hang out at my mom’s until the fireworks off the pier at night.
Hope everyone has a safe and happy time.
Hi Suzanne….I just wanted to say thanks for posting this recipie/idea for the cupcake kabobs. I made them for our bbq on Saturday and they were a complete hit! Thank you for sharing!