Brainstorming book-themed cupcakes
May 11, 2013 5:31 AM Subscribe
A group I belong to plans to have a book-themed Cupcake Wars party. Everyone's supposed to make a batch of cupcakes with a name based on a book title. Example: The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cupcakes.
I'd like to do it on a more interesting level than that, though. Help me brainstorm? There's also an ingredient aspect to the challenge, in the form of a list of ingredients you have to pick from, but it's a long list and includes sweet, savory, everyday and weird. So pretty much any title can be made to work. Of course, I'd love suggestions for interesting taste combinations too. But the main thing I want is a killer literary cupcake name.
I'd like to do it on a more interesting level than that, though. Help me brainstorm? There's also an ingredient aspect to the challenge, in the form of a list of ingredients you have to pick from, but it's a long list and includes sweet, savory, everyday and weird. So pretty much any title can be made to work. Of course, I'd love suggestions for interesting taste combinations too. But the main thing I want is a killer literary cupcake name.
Best answer: Amazingly delicious champagne mangoes are in the stores now around the U.S.. I would do "The Cupcake on Mango Street" including bits of the fruit and frosted in various vibrant shades of orange and yellow.
posted by third rail at 5:53 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by third rail at 5:53 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: If you went with "Charlie and the Chocolate Cupcake Factory," you could put all kinds of odd flavors in the cupcakes (all part of Mr. Wonka's experimentation, you know). Chocolate blueberry! Chocolate bubblegum! Death by chocolate!
posted by MonkeyToes at 6:02 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by MonkeyToes at 6:02 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: That's Nerdalicious might have some ideas to inspire you. (They showcase a lot of products but their cooking and baking posts are fantastic.)
posted by Room 641-A at 6:08 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by Room 641-A at 6:08 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: My Name is Red (Velvet) by Orhan Pamuk
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt - make half angels' food and half devil's food cupcakes
On the Road by Jack Kerouac - rocky road cupcakes
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl - peach cupcakes
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle - make that cool caterpillar out of the cupcakes!!
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad: vanilla cupcakes with a dark chocolate centre
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco - rosewater flavoured cupcakes with edible rose petals on top
posted by Salamander at 6:11 AM on May 11, 2013 [4 favorites]
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt - make half angels' food and half devil's food cupcakes
On the Road by Jack Kerouac - rocky road cupcakes
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl - peach cupcakes
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle - make that cool caterpillar out of the cupcakes!!
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad: vanilla cupcakes with a dark chocolate centre
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco - rosewater flavoured cupcakes with edible rose petals on top
posted by Salamander at 6:11 AM on May 11, 2013 [4 favorites]
Best answer: Cupcakes on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Like Water for Chocolate Cupcakes
A Song of Icing and Fire (is there such a thing as jalapeno cupcakes?)
A Clockwork Orange Creamcicle Cupcakes
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close to My Face Hole
Angry Candy-Stuffed Cupcakes
(Cupcakes) Galore
Life of Pie-Stuffed Cupcakes (these are my favorite cupcakes ever)
Queen of the Damned Good Cupcakes
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit You Can Put on a Cupcake
Four and Twenty Blackbirds (Bake in a Cupcake)
Oryx and Cake
Confessions of an English Cupcake Eater
Eat (Cupcakes), Pray (for Cupcakes), Love (Cupcakes)
Well, that was a review of my recently-read book list. That was fun. I'd do more but I have to go plan a cupcake party with my book club . . . .
posted by mibo at 6:25 AM on May 11, 2013 [3 favorites]
Like Water for Chocolate Cupcakes
A Song of Icing and Fire (is there such a thing as jalapeno cupcakes?)
A Clockwork Orange Creamcicle Cupcakes
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close to My Face Hole
Angry Candy-Stuffed Cupcakes
(Cupcakes) Galore
Life of Pie-Stuffed Cupcakes (these are my favorite cupcakes ever)
Queen of the Damned Good Cupcakes
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit You Can Put on a Cupcake
Four and Twenty Blackbirds (Bake in a Cupcake)
Oryx and Cake
Confessions of an English Cupcake Eater
Eat (Cupcakes), Pray (for Cupcakes), Love (Cupcakes)
Well, that was a review of my recently-read book list. That was fun. I'd do more but I have to go plan a cupcake party with my book club . . . .
posted by mibo at 6:25 AM on May 11, 2013 [3 favorites]
Best answer: Alright, this is fun, here's some more:
Red (Velvet) Harvest [also works for the Red Badge of Courage, etc.]
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
A Clockwork Orange
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Pudd'nhead Wilson
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
The Master and Margarita
The Grapes of Wrath
Or you could go high concept: instead of cupcakes, you just slap everyone in the mouth, hard, and tell them they're going to lose all their loved ones eventually, and that's "Where the Red Fern Grows" cupcakes.
posted by saladin at 6:27 AM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
Red (Velvet) Harvest [also works for the Red Badge of Courage, etc.]
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
A Clockwork Orange
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Pudd'nhead Wilson
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
The Master and Margarita
The Grapes of Wrath
Or you could go high concept: instead of cupcakes, you just slap everyone in the mouth, hard, and tell them they're going to lose all their loved ones eventually, and that's "Where the Red Fern Grows" cupcakes.
posted by saladin at 6:27 AM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Finnegan's Cake
Even Cowgirls Get the Blueberries
The Red Velvet Tent
The Hunt for Red Velvet October
posted by Fairchild at 6:30 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Even Cowgirls Get the Blueberries
The Red Velvet Tent
The Hunt for Red Velvet October
posted by Fairchild at 6:30 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: If you go with Finnegan's Cake, I hope you make these. They're a lot easier than they appear, and definitely tasty.
posted by troika at 6:36 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by troika at 6:36 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: If your recipe goes south or your cupcakes crumble or taste awful, you could call them Valley of Ashes cupcakes in honor of Gatsby.
posted by headnsouth at 6:48 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by headnsouth at 6:48 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: Gone With the Wheat - Rice Flour Cupcakes
The Cupcake of Dorian Grey- Very pretty on the outside, and then the darkest, blackest chocolate on the inside.
posted by myselfasme at 6:48 AM on May 11, 2013
The Cupcake of Dorian Grey- Very pretty on the outside, and then the darkest, blackest chocolate on the inside.
posted by myselfasme at 6:48 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: The unbearable lightness of being angel food cupcakes
posted by amtho at 6:56 AM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by amtho at 6:56 AM on May 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
Best answer: What's Eating Gilbert Grape Cupcake
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 8:05 AM on May 11, 2013
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 8:05 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: The Cupcake Also Rises
The Face in the Frosting
Great Delectations
The Great Cakesby
Chocolita
posted by jamjam at 9:04 AM on May 11, 2013
The Face in the Frosting
Great Delectations
The Great Cakesby
Chocolita
posted by jamjam at 9:04 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: I know lemon is already mentioned in the question itself but:
Infinite Zest Lemon Cupcakes
posted by Lorin at 9:11 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Infinite Zest Lemon Cupcakes
posted by Lorin at 9:11 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: A Tale of Two Cupcakes
Frankencupcake
The Woman in White (Frosting)
Alice's Adventures in Cupcakeland
The Old Man and the Sea (Salted Caramel)
Much Ado About Nutmeg
Leaves of (Lemon)Grass
The Icingman Cometh
posted by unsub at 10:46 AM on May 11, 2013
Frankencupcake
The Woman in White (Frosting)
Alice's Adventures in Cupcakeland
The Old Man and the Sea (Salted Caramel)
Much Ado About Nutmeg
Leaves of (Lemon)Grass
The Icingman Cometh
posted by unsub at 10:46 AM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: Cake 22
Thus Cupcake Zarathrustra
The Icing Man Cometh
A Raisin In The Cupcake
Angel Food & Demons
The Invisible Bran
The Batter Also Rises
War and Peach
The Poundcake and the Fury
Another for any failed experiments:
Cake Falls Apart
posted by eponym at 10:53 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Thus Cupcake Zarathrustra
The Icing Man Cometh
A Raisin In The Cupcake
Angel Food & Demons
The Invisible Bran
The Batter Also Rises
War and Peach
The Poundcake and the Fury
Another for any failed experiments:
Cake Falls Apart
posted by eponym at 10:53 AM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Lime of the Ancient Mariner
Brave New Swirl
posted by dogwalker at 1:40 PM on May 11, 2013
Brave New Swirl
posted by dogwalker at 1:40 PM on May 11, 2013
Response by poster: Oh my gosh, I am loving these! Thanks to you all I am now excited about this project! It kills me that there is actually a pie-stuffed cupcake. Thank you so much and please keep them coming!
posted by BibiRose at 2:14 PM on May 11, 2013
posted by BibiRose at 2:14 PM on May 11, 2013
Best answer: Secret Life of Bees (honey cake cupcake)
The Pit and the Penduplum (plum cupcake?)
The Master and Margarita (lime cupcake w/ a little salt)
The lottery (plain cupcakes, fill only one of the whole batch with chocolate chips)
The Phantom Tollhouse (chocolate chips and nuts)
Lord of the Flies (with chocolate chips and bacon)
If you accidentally burn them you can say it's Fahrenheit 451...
posted by donut_princess at 2:18 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
The Pit and the Penduplum (plum cupcake?)
The Master and Margarita (lime cupcake w/ a little salt)
The lottery (plain cupcakes, fill only one of the whole batch with chocolate chips)
The Phantom Tollhouse (chocolate chips and nuts)
Lord of the Flies (with chocolate chips and bacon)
If you accidentally burn them you can say it's Fahrenheit 451...
posted by donut_princess at 2:18 PM on May 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Ha! This is awesome.
-A Cupcake Orange
-From the Mixed Up Cupcakes of Mrs. Basil E.
Frankweiler
-A Heartbreaking Cupcake of Staggering Frosting
-The Handmaid's Cupcake (red, green, blue.)
-Eating Cupcakes in Tehran
-Love in the Age of Cupcakes
-Extremely Cupcake and Incredibly Close
-One Hundred Years of Cupcakes
-Cupcakelandia!
-A Cupcake In Time
-House of Cupcakes
-Ah, But Your Cupcake is Beautiful
-Portrait of the Artist as a Cupcake
-The Cupcake of Darkness (Heart of Cupcakes)
-The Cupcake in the Rye
-Do Cupcakes Dream of Frosted Sheep?
You also could decorate them in a "The Cupcakes of Narnia" theme.
The Lion, The Witch, and The Cupcake
Prince Cupcake (a crown)
The Voyage of the Cupcake Treader (a ship)
The Silver Cupcake (a silver chair)
A Horse and His Cupcake (a horse)
The Magician's Cupcake (magic top-hat)
The Last Cupcake
Or could do a "His Dark Materials" theme. A cupcake frosted half golden, half amber, with a subtle knife to cut them? Or just The Golden Cupcake.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 7:28 AM on May 12, 2013
-A Cupcake Orange
-From the Mixed Up Cupcakes of Mrs. Basil E.
Frankweiler
-A Heartbreaking Cupcake of Staggering Frosting
-The Handmaid's Cupcake (red, green, blue.)
-Eating Cupcakes in Tehran
-Love in the Age of Cupcakes
-Extremely Cupcake and Incredibly Close
-One Hundred Years of Cupcakes
-Cupcakelandia!
-A Cupcake In Time
-House of Cupcakes
-Ah, But Your Cupcake is Beautiful
-Portrait of the Artist as a Cupcake
-The Cupcake of Darkness (Heart of Cupcakes)
-The Cupcake in the Rye
-Do Cupcakes Dream of Frosted Sheep?
You also could decorate them in a "The Cupcakes of Narnia" theme.
The Lion, The Witch, and The Cupcake
Prince Cupcake (a crown)
The Voyage of the Cupcake Treader (a ship)
The Silver Cupcake (a silver chair)
A Horse and His Cupcake (a horse)
The Magician's Cupcake (magic top-hat)
The Last Cupcake
Or could do a "His Dark Materials" theme. A cupcake frosted half golden, half amber, with a subtle knife to cut them? Or just The Golden Cupcake.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 7:28 AM on May 12, 2013
Response by poster: Thank you so much, everyone! As soon as I saw Finnegans Cake I knew I would have to make it, because the party is close to Bloomsday. I'm thinking Bailey's frosting with the stout cake. These are going to fuel my book club snacks for ages. And be served in the coffee shop of my fantasy bookstore.
My partner has decided to make a savory entry: Children of the Cornbread, a bacon corn muffin with a harvest moon of raspberry jam in the middle.
posted by BibiRose at 7:31 AM on May 13, 2013
My partner has decided to make a savory entry: Children of the Cornbread, a bacon corn muffin with a harvest moon of raspberry jam in the middle.
posted by BibiRose at 7:31 AM on May 13, 2013
Response by poster: If you accidentally burn them you can say it's Fahrenheit 451...
Forgot to say-- with our baking skills, we may end up using this one!
posted by BibiRose at 7:34 AM on May 13, 2013
Forgot to say-- with our baking skills, we may end up using this one!
posted by BibiRose at 7:34 AM on May 13, 2013
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posted by saladin at 5:48 AM on May 11, 2013