Canada Day cupcakes!

We went to our friends' place for a Canada Day barbecue on Saturday, and I offered to bring dessert. I think it's becoming pretty clear to everyone that I absolutely LOVE to bake. I decided to try something I've never made before, Red Velvet cake. Well, cupcakes rather. I used a recipe from Martha Stewart, figuring there's no way she'd put her name on something bad, right?

I was mostly right. The cupcakes were good, the icing was delicious, but if I am being really critical, I'd have to say they could have been a bit more moist. They weren't saw dust dry or anything, but definitely could have been better. Half of them are sitting in my freezer right now, and my mom tells me they might be moist once they are defrosted. We shall see!

Anyway, you can find the recipe here. I couldn't believe how much food colouring was required! If using regular food colouring you needed a whole bottle. I used the gel type colouring, and used a 1/2 teaspoon. Look at how bright it is!

I then topped them with cream cheese frosting, piped on using an icing bag and tip 1M. It's so simple and really makes a big difference in the presentation :) I also used some red sprinkles to really up to festive factor.  Sadly, I didn't take a picture with the sprinkles for some reason... They were really yummy!

How did you spend your long weekend?