Analyse's 2nd Birthday - part 2 - the Cookie Monster(R) cupcakes

    Back on May 16th, I told you about the plan for Cyndi's sister Emma to make the big cake, and how they had requested that I make some cupcakes for the big event. Cookie Monster(R) cupcakes, to be precise.  In that posting, I had also shared links to postings from other sites, which I was using as inspiration boosters. Today's posting is all about the cupcakes I made.

   But first, some pictures.
   Analyse (pronounced Auna-lease) having some one on one fun with uncle Brent -

   Brent and Analyse "getting" 'Auntie' Kayla -

     Grandpa and Grandma's hearts are not the only hearts this adorable imp has gotten a-hold of. ;->

   Now, on to the cupcakes -
   I made the cupcakes themselves using the same Chocolate Cake Recipe that I had used for her birthday cupcakes last year. You can find the recipe HERE.

   But I did not use the same frosting this year, didn't want to tackle turning chocolate frosting blue.
   This years frosting:

   1 stick Butter
   8 ounces Cream Cheese
   2 teaspoons Vanilla
   2 1/2 lbs. Powdered Sugar
   2 *tiny bottles of blue food coloring
   enough milk to get it to a kind of thick, yet squeezable consistency. (real exact, huh? ;-p)

    *tiny bottles of blue food coloring - the outside of the package reads "1 fl. oz". The package contains four little bottles of various colors. So my question is, is each bottle 1 fl oz. - or - do the contents of the four bottles together equal up to 1 fl. oz. ?   At least you know what size box the bottles came out of.

   Stick the butter and cream cheese side by side in your mixing bowl and microwave them, till they are soft enough to blend together smoothly. I'm not stating a time, since every microwave works at different strengths.
   Blend in the vanilla while your mixing the other two.
   Add 1 pound of the powdered sugar. Blend it all of the way in.
   Add 1 bottle of the blue food coloring and blend it all of the way in.
   Add some milk.
   Once everything is all smooth again, add more powdered sugar. Then the other bottle of food coloring. Then more milk. Then the rest of the powdered sugar. Till you get the consistency you desire.

    { This batch did 4 dozen cupcakes, without enough left over to ice a graham cracker. }

  Step by step with the frosting -
      Spread frosting flat style over the top of all the cupcakes. This helps seal them. And then when your applying the fur looking frosting, you won't have to be concerned about any cupcake top peeking through.

     Stick the cupcakes in your fridge for a good ten minutes or so. This will help 'harden' the applied frosting up, so that it doesn't move when your applying the fur looking part.

      One of the blogs that I had used for idea gathering, had suggested using the small hole tip for your frosting tube. I did not think that my eyes would stay focused long enough to get through too many cupcakes at any one sitting, doing it that method. So this 'Ms. Vertigo' adapted the idea. And for the record, it worked so-o-o easily. And turned out looking so-o adorable. That even if I ever do get over wearing this title, I shall still make them using this method. ;-)
   What method? oh yeah. o;-p. I used the 'star tip'. Only instead of putting the star down and releasing it, I kept squeezing and pulling the tube up and away. Doing so put varying depths into the fur, besides making it striped. Actually, it really did look fur like! (I was so-o thrilled!)

    I had had Brent pick me up two bags of the Nabisco(TM) Mini Chips Ahoy! (R) Choc. Chip Cookies from the gas station. I cut these in half and stuck them cut side towards the cupcake into the frosting to resemble his mouth.
    Don't worry or fret if the cookie doesn't break evenly, or if one side breaks into more than one part. Your talking about Cookie Monsters(R) mouth here! ;-p Just sort of squeeze pieces together and it still looks appropriate!

     Now for his eyes.
     ALL of the other blogs I had looked at (even the ones that I hadn't really cared for their finished product) had used marshmallows cut in half for the white part of his eyes. I 'planned' to do the same. Yup, you guessed it. Yet again my 'plans' took turns.
     There weren't any marshmallows in our pantry. I had totally forgotten that I had used every last one of them up, when I made those Rice Krispie(TM) eggs around Easter time. Bother!
     'That's right.... Brent has that bag of over sized ones they had taken camping with them last weekend.'  "Brent ...." "Kayla took them home with her". Bother!  'Do I call Brian and ask him to pick some up, do I wait and add them tomorrow....'.
      As I was walking back through the dining room towards the kitchen, my eyes spotted the small bags of Life Savers(R) that I 'had' planned on using for... but had never gotten made. "Oh Lord, Thank-YOU! Those will adapt great!"
     And man did they!
        
     I put a small amount of frosting into the hole of the Life Savers(R).

     Then stuck the point of the choc. chips into the frosting.

      Stuck the eyes straight up, yet at a backwards slant, into the frosting above the cookie mouth.

     Wa-LA! Cookie Monster(R)!!!  :-)

      Actually, bunches of Cookie Monsters(R)  ;-p

      When Brent opened the fridge early the next morning, it was to spot four dozen cookie monsters looking out at him.  o;-p   Seeings how they were going to travel some distance, I wanted to make sure they were good and set up!  It worked!

      For the record, yes, the taste of the Life Savers(R) did bleed into the frosting. Some liked it, others did not. But ALL said that the eyes were so adorable that I should make them that way again next time!!
      And did you know that Life Savers get kind of soft and the edges get kind of un-soft (sorry, not sure how to describe it)  in heat?  The frosting stayed the same, but the eyes changed. NOT bad, just comical. Fitting!

      Another for the record - it took me right at two hours to make (decorate) these -  from the time I started mixing the frosting, till I was done washing the mixing bowls. I thought that was pretty good for me and four dozen cupcakes!

       I'll close this posting with another picture of our adorable impy grand daughter. She had commendered somebody's hat, and another person's necklace.....

     Oh how she get's us laughing! Daddy was having her her show us her different expressions/faces.

     This concludes part 2 of Analyse's 2nd Birthday - the Cookie Monster(R) cupcakes
     Part 1 had been - the banner.
     Coming soon in a posting on this site -
     part 3 - the food we took
     part 4 - fun pictures from the party

   {  As always, you can see any of the pictures larger by clicking on them }

  : - ) ~ ~   : - ) ~ ~   : - ) ~ ~   : - ) ~ ~   : - ) ~ ~   : - )
Special Thanks to:
~ Byron and Cyndi for requesting that I make them.
~ Brian for letting me. And for your enthusiastic response the first time you saw them!
 I enjoyed doing it so much!
~ Benson, for your encouragement and smiles along my process.
~ Brent for picking up the food coloring and then the cookies for me.
~ To everybody who saw the cupcakes and got so excited over how they looked.
~ To my friends whom are also readers of my blog, whom have been inquiring when I am going to get these postings up ;->
~ And last, but not least, by any stretch of the imagination - Thank You Lord, for all of it!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to: 
~ "Recipe Swap Sunday('s)" are hosted by Cassity, at 'Remodelacholic' (http://www.remodelaholic.com)
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/) 
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://prairiestory.blogspot.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s)", hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/)
~ "Foodie Friday('s)" (#2), are hosted by Bianca, at 'Little Brick Ranch' (http://www.littlebrickranch.com/)
~ "Sweets For A Saturday", hosted by Lisa, at 'Sweet As Sugar Cookies' (http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com)