I’m sure no one is surprised that I am finally reviewing a Martha Stewart cookbook. Her latest series of cookbooks include pictures for every single dessert, which is something I wish all cookbooks would have. In Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes, we are given 175 recipes for all types of cupcakes for any mood or occasion. The easy to follow recipes are grouped into categories like “Swirled and Sprinkled”, “Filled and Layered”, or “Piped and Topped”, plus special sections for holidays, celebrations, or dietary needs. While most of the recipes require very little specialized skills beyond baking, some call for intricate icing piping, marzipan shaping and coloring, or even spinning sugar into 3-D webs, which is completely out of my league.
I have tried a handful of recipes from Cupcakes, and most of them were very successful. The Allergen-Free Chocolate Cupcakes were perfect for a party for guests with special diets. Warm Blackberry-Cornmeal Cupcakes make a terrific brunch item in the summer, and the Brown Sugar Pound Cakes are great for freezing ahead of time and spooning the icing over the whole batch right before serving. The only recipe I tried that wasn’t a crowd-pleaser was Mrs. Kostyra’s Spice Cupcakes. I hope Martha can forgive me that no one liked her late mother’s recipe! Still, I literally have a list of recipes that I intend to try out: Black Forest Cupcakes, Amaretto-Pineapple Cupcakes, and the Cookies and Cream Cheesecakes, to name a few. Check it out, even if it’s just to drool over the pictures!