It’s hard to think about but the holidays will be here before we know about. Just a few months and you’ll soon be invited to holiday parties and gatherings. For cupcake lovers we know what that means: making yummy cupcakes! Every cupcake lover wants to be prepared to bake for the holidays.

One of the biggest challenges about baking cupcakes for the holidays is that more people are baking during this time than ever before. Many people who rarely bake – do so during the holiday time. So it can be hard to find ingredients and supplies. This is where being organized becomes so important. It can mean the difference between baking a batch of your favorite peppermint and hot chocolate cupcakes – and running out to the store in the middle of the night hoping they have that one ingredient you think you are missing (that’s actually in the back of the cabinet). Don’t waste time, energy and money this holiday season. Let’s get organized to bake cupcakes!

Begin by thinking about what cupcake supplies you already have. Can you find them in under 10 minutes? If you can’t….its time to work on a better organization system. Whether you have an enormous kitchen or a tiny one, every cupcake baker needs a system that works for them. This can mean getting shelves or clearing a shelf just for your cupcake supplies. It may mean organizing other baking supplies so you can see what else you have. But taking this step is quite helpful – because you won’t need to rebuy what you already have and you’ll find things quickly.

Consider your current and upcoming cupcake needs. Perhaps you know you are bringing cupcakes to your child’s school party this fall. Or you are doing cupcakes or another large event. You’ll need something to carry your cupcakes in so they won’t get squashed or stick together. Keep in mind how many cupcakes you need to make and how you are transporting them. Some cupcakers may also want to buy a cupcake display tier so their cupcakes look pretty.

Remember that holiday baking causes a great demand on popular items – so get there early. Buy dry goods items like cake mix, flour and sugar or candy toppings weeks in advance so you are sure you have the exact items you want for your cupcakes. This will make it far easier to make your cupcakes than repeated visits to the store to get ingredients.

(c) photo Daniel West

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Do not declare today an AFD (Alcohol Free Day), save that for tomorrow, and bake some of these fantastic cupcakes!  They are of course alcohol infused and enriched cupcakes.

Because cupcakes do not always contain alcohol (unless of course you are buying from the Butch Bakery in NY) they are some what of a novelty and always likely to cause some discussion at a party.  However all that said, we encourage responsible service of alcoholic cupcakes

1. VODKA – Chocolate Red Skin Vodka Cupcakes

E Cupcake has produced these amazing red skin and vodka inspired cupcakes by soaking red skins in vodka till they dissolve into a ‘funky syrup’.  The verdict was generally that these cupcakes were pretty good and I think they look great!

2. BAILEYS – Bailey’s Irish Cream Cupcakes

Mmm, these cupcakes not only feature Baileys inside the cupcake but also in the buttercream frosting.  As you can see from the design, Cupcake Rehab has made these specifically for St Patrick’s Day, but they would be perfect for any party!

3. JACK DANIELS – Jack and Coke Cupcakes

Many would argue that to have Jack without coke is just not right, that these two drinks are destined to be together.  So it is no surprise to find them hanging out together in these delicious looking cupcakes by Baking for Neighbors.

4. BEER – Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

No list would be complete without crossing off at least one beer cupcake!  Here we went for a hearty stout cupcake in these Guinness ones here by Pinch My Salt.  Now I am not sure they taste as great as they look, but I kind of want to try them anyway!

5. RED WINE – Red Wine Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Our final cupcake of the alcohol enriched variety is these great looking Red Wine infused cupcakes by Scrumptious Photography

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Can you name all the games depicted in the cupcakes below? This was a fun New Years Eve party idea that was taken by Z Andrei

How many games can you identify? Some are easy and others might be difficult if you weren’t playing video games in the 80′s

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photo credit: kcdsTM

Want a fun and eye catching way to celebrate New Years with cupcakes? Just spell it out. You can use rolled fondant and cookie cutters to spell out the words “Happy New Year” or you can just buy the candy letters and numbers found at your local grocery store. Using rolled fondant is not that difficult and you can find it at your local craft store like Michaels or Jo-Ann’s. Wilton makes a set of small number and letter that you can find at Amazon that are perfect for cupcakes. I use them for customizing birthday cupcakes and cakes.

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Party Hat Cupcakes

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