To ask for cupcake help?

[Workyticket]

Ds' school is having a cake thing on Friday. He really wants to take some cupcakes in and they apparent need to be animal themed.

However we (he's 9) are shitter than shit at icing cakes and have limited time (I'm not in from work till 6 on Thursday!)

Can anyone suggest the easiest animal themed cupcakes we could make that he'd still be happy to carry in to school?

Also - I can make decent, fluffy sponge for cupcakes but they don't particularly taste of much. Do you add anything to yours? As in flavouring?

He's had a rough couple of weeks and I'd love him to be proud of us making something with as little hassle as possible as I'm shattered and limping towards rhe end of term

Buy some ready made cupcakes and stick
Animal biscuits on top!

Could you order these Barefoot Baker Safari Animal Edible Cake Toppers with Lion, Tiger, Elephant, Hippo, Monkey & Dog www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B087YYTHMP/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_Q0FH7321RJ8MDT38VCRM?psc=1&_encoding=UTF8&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Or these Made4You African/Jungle Animals Edible Cupcake Toppers - Stand-up Wafer Cake Decorations (Pack of 24) www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01D0AI3SM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_HCN45J6CQWEXS9RKMDGJ?psc=1&_encoding=UTF8&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Otherwise I’d be looking at simple animal and one colour icing …like this pig

Or this sheep

Bit of orange food dye and flavouring, orange icing and black icing stripes... tiger cupcakes.

Me personally would buy some mini Colin caterpillar rolls from M&S but if your keen to do your own you could do chocolate cupcakes and add a few sprinkles and M&S do a bag of mini Colin faces, add one to the top of each.

Vanilla extract is enough - use two eggs, weigh them (cracked in a bowl) and then measure the same weight if SR flour, sugar and butter. 1tsp baking powder 3tsp vanilla extract.

169 for 15-20 mins will give a nice cake.

One sec and I’ll give you a pic if easy animal cupcakes to try.

You can get cutters for brightly coloured fondant icing... Let me dig out a link.
Vanilla extract (not essence) - it's pricy but you don't need much and can transform a cake.
Enjoy your baking and don't forget to lick the bowl.

I'd buy some plain cakes (sainsbury do them for £1for 8/12 can't remember how many now ) and let him ice them as ladybirds/butterflies with icing pens

FMM Mix n Match Animal Face Icing Cutter - Create Hundreds of Different Designs https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07F2HXYBG/ref=cmswwrcppapiglttiSX0JB8CHGRQ2KCCG928B
Could be fiddly. Or these:

VONUOBEY 8 Pcs Baking Pie Cookie Cutters Fondant Sugarcraft Animal Shape Cake Decorating Plunger Cutter Mold Crust Cutters https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09B63B17M/ref=cmswwrcppapigltti7D96NY4ZJNFNE5J25EYE

These are all quite easy

Chocolate mini muffins (bought). Giant chocolate buttons stuck in side at 3 and 9 o clock for ears. Melted chocolate blob for muzzle. Writing icing in black for eyes and smile.

= monkey.

Make butterfly buns?

Thanks - just off to put ds to bed

I'm absolutely fine with making the cakes (I use the weigh the eggs method too 😋)

It's just the decorating and flavouring I'm shite at! My mam never baked and we never took bake sale stuff in to school 😔

Ops yeah, like in the pic above 🤦‍♀️

Zebra or tiger - just stripes . We did reindeer for a xmas faur one year - quite easy. Choc icing, curly wurly bits for antlers, choc buttons with white choc drop eyes, and bit of red as a nose (glacé cherry, wine gum).

Basic buttercream cupcakes with Percy Pigs on top

You can make lions with popcorn and moose with mini pretzels. Both are very easy, just google them and the pictures should be pretty easy to copy :)

Sheep/bunnies - mini white marshmallows and a bit of melted chocolate on a toothpick - something like this

I agree that it’s a good idea to buy ready made plain fairy cakes, then just decorate.

White icing made into a panda face with black dot eyes and a nose and mouth.

Yellow icing, draw some eyes and use jelly sweets as little beaks for chicks.

Orange icing with spots or stripes of black for leopard or tiger cakes, or with white and black icing stripes for zebra cakes.

Spiders? Chocolate icing dipped in chocolate sprinkles, add edible eyes and liquorice lace legs (I know kids tend to hate it but I love it and it works!)

Or white icing, oreo on top, stick on eyes and ice 8 legs.

Ladybirds could be easy too.

Alternative black and white sponge in the case for 'surprise' cows

Or line them up in a ~ sort of shape, all in different shades of green. One red for the head (add eyes etc) and it's the Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Buy animal sweets and stick them on the top.

Or do chocolate chip cakes and say that they’re Dalmatian themed.

Butterfly cakes (cut the top off the cake, squidgy of buttercream then make wings with the off cuts).

I saw someone do a lady bird cake but used an Oreo cookie and some red roll icing and some eyes. Looked really good and so easy.

Sheep, mini marshmallows and black icing in a tube

get some round wafers with piccies on - dab of icing wafer on top

Or don't do icing and make them choc chip or something. Keeps the sugar rush down