Page 423 - Cupcakes

Frostings and Glazes

My friend Martha arrived in my kitchen exasperated. She had just been offered
cupcakes with canned frosting and couldn’t understand why anyone would take
the time to make cupcakes and not take the time to make frosting from scratch. If
you’re going to fall back on canned frosting, she declared, you should at least
“keep it a secret . . . and don’t bring the cupcakes to a potluck and embarrass
yourself!”

Strong words, perhaps, but true. I have always felt the same way about
making a from-scratch frosting even if you are taking shortcuts and doctoring up
a cake mix. There is no substitute for good frosting. You are far better off not
frosting—my children love warm cupcakes with nothing on them at all.