The beginning stages of a True Blood-themed cupcake.
Iron Cupcake San Francisco, a monthly event that takes place at the ever-charming Leland Tea Company, is coming up this Monday and I’ve decided to enter as a baker for the very first time. The theme, for June, is berries and after much deliberation, I felt it was high time to pay homage to one of my favorite television shows – none other than HBO’s incredible original series, True Blood.
I always give credit where it’s due and while my original idea was a bit more vanilla (pun intended), Mike came up with the idea to create something truly incendiary that would tap into the grit that makes the show so spectacular. Without further ado, pictures of our practice round can be found below. I’ll reveal the final results in my coverage of the forthcoming Iron Cupcake because it is, after all, a competition and some things should remain shrouded in mystery. 
Oh, and thank you to Mike for offering up his place for baking. We arrived at my place only to discover I didn’t have all the cooking tools necessary. Whoops.
It's the super duper Apple mixer to the rescue.
One more use for the iPad: Reading out the recipe. Much more practical that a laptop.
Preparing to make vanilla cake batter from scratch. My Mom would be so proud that I didn't resort to Betty Crocker this time around.
Sifting the flour.
If there's one thing I can do properly, it's separating an egg yolk from the white.
Here's a better one: Photo by Mike Margolis.
I thought it would be "clever" to use aluminum cupcake wrappers to represent silver - a vampire repellent. I'm still available for hire, folks. Photo by Mike Margolis.
Extreme dork photography complete with a tripod.
Experimenting with different quantities and positioning of berries - all in the name of science. Photo by Mike Margolis.
Extreme dork photography, part 2: Me with a Canon 77mm 500D zoom lens that took the shot at the very top. Photo by Mike Margolis.
Using an immersion blender for the berries. In the future, we will not be using whipping cream.
A delicious medley of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries simmering on the stove unfortunately did not create the desired effect.
Taking a break while the cupcakes bake and indulging in some reflective photography.
I would not recommend making corn syrup from scratch - ever.
Delicious but doesn't quite look right. The frosting didn't come out either. Next time around, it will.
Two raspberries in the middle achieved the desired effect for the inside of the cupcake. Yes, it represents gory guts and blood in honor of the vamps.
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These look delicious, Kara! I can’t wait to see the final versions.
Marie Williams recently posted..Focusing on JUST one thing
Thank you, Marie! I was going to bring some home but the vanilla batter was a little bit baking soda-heavy and the marshmallow frosting fell flat due to the “homemade” corn syrup.
I’m confident the final batch will be amazing.
True Blood Cupcakes…can’t wait to try them Kara!
Excuse my English but, This post makes my mind spin at the speed of dark.