Icing On The Cake

Cupcakes (the kind that are everywhere) seem to all be drowned under a mound of buttercream icing. Now, I love buttercream icing at least as much as the next penguin (and, having previously made extra solely so that it can be eaten without the bother and distraction of cake, think it’s pretty evident I’ve got nothing against it at all), but it just doesn’t belong on a proper cupcake.

Proper cupcakes are the kind that are (or taste like they were) made by a mum. Preferably your own. Like these ones (not by my mum, but still lovely):

Picture: beehandmade

The best (bought) cupcakes, I think, come from Blackheath Bakery Patisserie (and as that is a long way to go, even for wonderful cupcakes, they become even more appealing as they are so infrequent).

The Kitchn asked just the other day where the line is between cupcakes and muffins – perhaps this is a low tolerance (moi?!), but once you put buttercream on it, I think it’s an iced muffin. Kind of the opposite of the lipstick-on-a-pig argument...