Basketball cupcakes 2026

Chocolate cupcakes with basketball decoration.

It was the end of another season for Bubby's basketball team and after the last practice there was a pizza party to celebrate. We were asked to contribute desserts.  Last year it was so much fun to make a cake, but this year I only had time for cupcakes. 

But they were fun to make too! And best of all, quick.

I used this recipe for Chocolate Cupcakes from Sugar and Sparrow. It's so easy and uses all pantry ingredients.  The batter is very liquid, and last time I made it the cups were 2/3 full and the resulting cupcakes were too big. This time instead of 12 I made 13. And even then, some of them were a bit too tall. So I think with this recipe I can try for 14 next time.  As it is, when they came out of the oven I had to smush down the tops of some of them that had domed a bit. I needed to be flat.

I used the usual recipe for buttercream, from Preppy Kitchen. I made one batch, reserving some to color brown for the stripes on the basketball, and coloring most of it an orange that approximates the color of a basketball. For this I used orange gel coloring, with a small amount of brown and a tiny amount of yellow. I think the color got close enough!

I piped a thick dollop of frosting on top of each cupcake using a Wilton 1/2 inch tip, then smushed them top down on a parchment-lined baking sheet and placed them in the freezer for an hour.  Then I peeled them off, and the frosting was flat and firm. I cleaned up any raggedy edges with a warmed small spatula, and piped the lines of the basketball using a Wilton #3 tip.  I would recommend to myself, however, to use a #4 tip next time. I had a bit of trouble piping the first couple of cupcakes, until I figured out the trick is to keep the frosting flowing, and turn the cupcake instead of trying to move the piping tip across the cupcake.

Cupcake closeup.

      Another cupcake.

More cupcakes.






Thirteen cupcakes were soon done and ready to go the next day.

There weren't as many people at the party as last year, and there were lots of cookies and other treats. So, it's really just as well I didn't go all out with a cake.  I didn't try any of these cupcakes, but Bubby gave it his seal of approval. 

And if he's happy, that's what matters!


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Earl Gray Cardamom Cake TO TRY

Image
  Ingredients Yield: 16 to 24 servings For the cake 1 cup/240 milliliters extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing the pan 1 ½ cups/300 grams granulated sugar 2 tablespoons loose Earl Grey tea (from about 6 tea bags) 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) 2 cups/480 grams sour cream or whole-milk plain Greek yogurt 3 large eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract  3 cups/384 grams all-purpose flour For the streusel 1 cup/128 grams all-purpose flour 1 cup packed/220 grams light or dark brown sugar 1 ½ teaspoons ground cardamom ½ teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) ½ cup/115 grams unsalted butter, melted Add ingredients to Grocery List Shop ingredients on Instacart Your first order gets $20 off and free delivery. Instacart terms apply. Ingredient Substitution Guide Nutritional Information OUR LATEST NEWSLETTER Miso and Mushrooms and Leeks, Oh My Get the Cooking Newsletter Opt out or  contact us  anytim...
Read more

Nordic Ware Spice Cakes

Image
Mini spice cakes with a Fall theme Wondering what to make for a small gathering on my patio to welcome Fall, I remembered my Nordic Ware pan.  I got it on sale at Sur la Table while visiting my sister in Arlington VA a few years ago, and I remember using the recipe that came with the pan to make some pretty tasty spice cakes.  I couldn't find the recipe, but a quick internet search uncovered it.   Here  it is, under the name Mini Harvest Spice Cakes.  I'm writing it below for future reference: INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 cups flour 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1 Tbsp cinnamon 1 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg 1 cup sugar 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 3/4 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled 2 eggs, room temperature 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 cup milk DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare pan with baking spray containing flour or butter and flour. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and spices. Using a standing mixer, cream sugar and butter unt...
Read more

American Buttercream

Image
Piping bags ready to go! Cake frosting has been a lifelong fascination of mine, odd as this may sound.  Growing up, there was a Swiss bakery in town where most people bought their cakes, and the bakery used what I now know to be Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC).  To add to the deliciousness they would cover the sides of the cake with slivered almonds. At birthday parties it was customary to serve the cake with a scoop of ice cream. Sheer heaven! But not for me!  It was very upsetting at the time that my own cakes were always frosted with a thin, sugary frosting, a type of glaze that only set on the top, instead of the rich frosting on my friends' cakes. This was because my father disliked what he called "greasy frostings", ie butter-based frosting.  And so for the rest of my life, I never shied away from rich buttercream frostings and enjoyed them probably all too frequently! Most baked goods you can buy are frosted with American Buttercream . Whether it be lemon fl...
Read more