Presenting your Cupcakes

CUPCAKE BUFFET

A cupcake buffet is perfect for a casual party or dessert-time amusement for kids and adults alike. Bake a couple different kinds of basic cupcakes and leave them unfrosted. Whip up a few types and flavors of frostings and set them out in bowls, each with a butter knife or small icing spatula. Finally, set out a few options for garnishes—colorful sprinkles, chopped toasted nuts, shredded coconut, crushed toffee bits, shaved chocolate, fresh berries—and allow your guests to choose, frost, and decorate their own cupcakes to suit their own tastes.

Frosted cupcakes with decorations or garnishes require minimal effort to dress them up for serving. For casual gatherings, simply set the cupcakes on colorful napkins. For fancier affairs, place each cupcake on small a hors d’oeuvre plate or on a saucer of a color and shape that flatters the cupcakes’ design. To present a grouping of cupcakes, arrange them on a large, flat tray or platter. For a grand presentation, arrange the cupcakes on a cake stand or on a tiered cupcake stand designed just for the purpose.

If you need to transport cupcakes, consider baking and frosting the cupcakes in advance and refrigerating them so that they’re cold and firm, and therefore less likely to be damaged during travel. Set the cupcakes back in the muffin pan so that they are stable, then tent them with a large sheet of foil. As an extra precautionary measure, toothpicks can be inserted into each of the four corner cupcakes before tenting with foil. (The toothpicks will help prevent the foil from touching and marring the cupcakes’ surfaces.) Another good option is a flat, wide container that’s deeper than the cupcakes are high, like a cake or pie box from a bakery. Try to pack the cupcakes fairly tightly—too much space and they’ll tip over. The best and safest option for transporting cupcakes, however, is a cupcake carrier with a solid lid and handles that will protect the cupcakes from any sort of in-transit damage.

Packing a single frosted cupcake for a lunchbox is always a conundrum. A single cupcake carrier offers the perfect solution, but a clean pint-size plastic deli container works as well. Set the cupcake on the overturned lid and cover with the inverted container, pressing it securely in place. The cupcake will be well protected, and since it’s sitting on the lid, not inside the container, it’s easy to remove. To pack a single cupcake as a gift, place it in a colorful Chinese-style take-out container, and, of course, embellish with a bow.