Tie-Dye frosting !!!

I used the chocolate cupcake from this recipe and stuck with my tried-and-true fantastic, simple butter cream. Other than that, it all boils down to the how-to, which I’ve documented below. And just a note, the way you see me filling the piping bag with frosting (using plastic wrap) is how I do it every time I frost anything (from cupcakes to cookies to cakes). It makes the cleanup so simple, you’ll be finding things to pipe frosting on just to fill a piping bag this way. Um, ok, so that’s probably just me…but trust me, it will revolutionize the way you frost.

Speaking of frosting the cupcakes, here’s a short video showing a quick how-to on getting those beautiful swirls of frosting on top of the cupcake. Check out the step-by-step tutorial in the picture of the post for the actual tie-dyed frosting info.

You can tailor the colors in this tutorial to anything that will suit your theme – you could even do stripes of one single color to make, say, a pink and white tie-dyed frosted cupcake for a baby shower or something like that. The options are endless. What would be REALLY cool would be to make the cupcake itself tie-dyed with different colors of cake batter. But obviously I wasn’t on top of my game enough to plan for that. You should, though, and then you’ll be way cooler than me. Happy tie-dying!

Oven temperatures

Oven temperatures

130C = 250F = Gas mark 1/2

150C = 300F = Gas mark 2

180C = 350F = Gas mark 4

190C = 375F = Gas mark 5

200C = 400F = Gas mark 6

220C = 425F = Gas mark 7

230C = 450F = Gas mark 8

american measurements oz vs grams and ml

Imperial to metric

1 oz = 25g

4 oz = 100g

1lb = 450g

1 fl.oz = 30ml

5 fl.oz or 1/4pt = 150ml

20 fl.oz or 1pt =600ml

Oven temperatures

130C = 250F = Gas mark 1/2

150C = 300F = Gas mark 2

180C = 350F = Gas mark 4

190C = 375F = Gas mark 5

200C = 400F = Gas mark 6

220C = 425F = Gas mark 7

230C = 450F = Gas mark 8

American spoon measures

1 level tablespoon flour = 15g flour

1 heaped tablespoon flour = 28g flour

1 level tablespoon sugar = 28g sugar

1 level tablespoon butter = 15g butter

American liquid measures

1 cup U.S = 275ml

1 pint U.S = 550ml

1 quart U.S = 900ml

American solid measures

1 cup rice U.S = 225g rice

1 cup flour U.S = 115g flour

1 cup butter U.S = 225g butter

1 stick butter U.S = 115g butter

1 cup dried fruit U.S = 225g dried fruit

1 cup brown sugar U.S = 180g brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar U.S = 225g granulated sugar

how to measure?

Measuring accurately is probably the most important cooking skill in the kitchen. Home Economists in test kitchens spend many hours testing recipes with varying measurements in a process called 'tolerance testing'. A recipe must perform well even though the ingredient amounts are changed; if it fails, it is not published. Even though the recipes in cookbooks are quite 'tolerant', the cook still has to follow basic rules of measuring.

To begin, make sure that you have actual commercial measuring utensils. Nested (graduated) measuring cups are used for dry ingredients. Measuring spoons are needed - your stainless coffee spoon just isn't the correct tool! For liquid ingredients, you need a clear glass or plastic cup with a pouring spout.

Graduated measuring cups are made in 1/4 cup, 1/3 cup, 1/2 cup, 1 cup, and 2 cup sizes. Liquid measuring cups are usually either 2 cup or 4 cup. Measuring spoons usually range from 1/8 teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon, 1/2 teaspoon, 1 teaspoon, and 1 tablespoon. It's possible to find other more esoteric utensils including 1/8 cup, 2/3 cup, and very small spoons.

Here's a basic chart of measuring equivalents.

Dry Measuring Equivalents

1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons = 15 ml

1/8 cup = 2 tablespoons = 30 ml

1/4 cup = 4 tablespoons = 50 ml

1/3 cup = 5-1/3 tablespoons = 75 ml

1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons = 125 ml

2/3 cup = 10-2/3 tablespoons = 150 ml

3/4 cup = 12 tablespoons = 175 ml

1 cup = 16 tablespoons = 250 ml

Liquid Measuring Equivalents

1 cup = 8 fluid ounces = 1/2 pint

2 cups = 16 fluid ounces = 1 pint = 1/2 quart

4 cups = 32 fluid ounces = 2 pints = 1 quart

8 cups = 64 fluid ounces = 4 pints = 2 quarts

I remember liquid measurements this way: 2 cups in a pint, 2 pints in a quart, 4 quarts in a gallon. Memorize that!