Easy Cupcakes

Here’s a pretty basket for Mother’s Day that includes a cute handle made from licorice.

What You Need: 1 cupcake; yellow frosting; shaved coconut tinted green; large confetti sprinkles (these are by Wilton); small candies or mini M&MS; colored licorice stick (this is a Twizzlers Rainbow Twist).

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Arrange large confetti sprinkles in flower shape, with five petals each, and place smaller candy in the center. Fill in with tinted coconut. Insert ends of licorice in either side of cupcake for handle.

Most moms would love to be presented with tasty, pretty cupcakes on Mother’s Day. But if you’re not up for fancy basketweave cake decorating techniques, try these easy flower basket cupcakes.

What You Need: 1 cupcake; chocolate icing; shaved coconut tinted green; candy flowers (any kind).

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Carefully position coconut grass in a dome shape so that what’s left (the brown background) is in the shape of a basket with handle. Add flowers and you’re done!

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with festive cupcakes featuring the colors of the Mexican flag. (Tip: You can buy little Mexican flag picks or simply search the Web for printable flags and make your own using toothpicks.)

What You Need: 1 cupcake; white or off-white frosting; green sugar; red sugar; Mexican flag pick; strip of cardstock or index card; scissors.

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Cut a strip from cardstock or index card about 3/4″ wide. Holding strip slightly above cupcake to block off the center, sprinkle green sugar on the left side of the cupcake and red sugar on the right side. Add Mexican flag pick to center.

A mess ‘o marshmallows makes this silly sheep.

What You Need: 1 cupcake; chocolate frosting; about 20 mini marshmallows; 2 black, candy-covered licorice pieces (such as Good ‘N Plenty); 2 blue mini M&Ms; bit or red licorice or other candy.

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Arrange marshmallows in two concentric circles, leaving a little space in the middle for eyes and mouth. Add M&M eyes and red candy mouth. Add candy-covered licorice for legs.

All you need are candies for these cute and quick panda bear cupcakes.

What You Need: 1 cupcake; white frosting; 2 black (licorice) Necco wafers; 2 black M&Ms; 2 white jellybeans; 1 black jellybean; bit of red string licorice.

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Place M&Ms near top for ears. Use dab of icing to attach white jellybeans to Necco wafers for eyes. Add black jellybean nose and licorice mouth.

Here’s a pig cupcake with a nice, big snout. All of the decorations are candies, so no need for pastry bags, tips or piping!

What You Need: 1 cupcake; pink frosting; 1 pink Mentos; 2 black or dark brown M&Ms; 2 pink Jordan almonds or candy-coated chocolate eggs; 2 brown mini M&Ms.

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Stick Jordan almonds near top of cupcake for ears. Use dab of icing to attach 2 mini M&Ms to Mentos for snout and place in center of cupcake. Add M&M eyes.

This sweet cat cupcake gets its furry appeal from shaved coconut. The ears are marshmallows! You could also tint the coconut and make other colors of kitties — even calico!

What You Need: 1 cupcake; white frosting; shaved coconut; marshmallow; 2 blue mini M&Ms; chocolate sprinkles; pink jellybean; kitchen shears or scissors.

How to Make It: Frost cupcake. Sprinkle with coconut. Cut marshmallow in half, width-wise. Pinch one piece slightly to make point at end. Trim part of wide end off so the ear is shorter and more triangular. Dip sticky side in chocolate sprinkles. Repeat for other marshmallow half and place both ears near top of cupcake as shown. Add M&M eyes and jellybean nose. Select six longish chocolate sprinkles and place three on each side of nose for whiskers.