I recently hosted a party and served these cute cupcakes for my tiny friends. I gave them a little hint beforehand, as I told them the week before the party that I was saving my dog’s poo to use as chocolate frosting for the cupcakes.
Cakes
The cupcake batter is low in sugar and fat and has a fairly light flavour, as I didn’t want anything too rich. The cupcakes are fluffy and light in taste and have a firm consistency after baking.
Chocolate Frosting
For the topping I made a buttercream cheese frosting and mixed it with cacao powder. I then filled a piping bag with the frosting and piped little poo-shaped swirls slightly off centre onto the cupcakes.
I used edible gold metallic dust to make the poo look a bit more festive. I think the gold went quite well with the colour of the chocolate. I dipped the side of a food brush into the metallic dust and then tapped the stem of the brush with my hand, which helped the dust to fall onto the frosting without touching the swirl itself.
There are also spray versions of edible metallic dust and glitter on the market that I can recommend! I already had this one at home, so I wanted to use it.
Alternative for Chocolate Frosting
I have good news for those who want the poo swirl but don’t feel like going through the hassle of all the steps. There is a simple alternative: Philadelphia Milka Chocolate Spread! It’s the one in the purple Philadelphia package.
If you use it, whisk the spread in a bowl until it’s smooth and loose enough to pipe. Then transfer it to a piping bag or a ziploc bag and pipe the swirls onto the cupcakes!
Dog Cut Outs
For those who missed the announcement, I became a proud dog owner this summer! The dog pictured is my new roommate Barney.
I tried several times last couple of weeks to take pictures of him going for a number 2, but I failed most of the time. He either wouldn’t look at me, he would be done before I could grab my camera, or it was simply already too dark outside. But one time, while walking with my cousin, I managed to take a picture and knew it was the one I could use.
I then used Procreate on my iPad to remove the background. I added a light peach coloured border around him and exported the file as a JPG. I copied and pasted the image multiple times into Pages, a program similar to Word, and saved the document as a PDF. Then I had it printed at the copy shop around the corner.
I used small scissors to cut out the images as precisely as possible. Then I used a hot glue gun and some short skewers to stick them together, all while being supervised by the star himself.
I have made the PDF document with Barney cutouts available to download. You can download it here!
Cupcake Moulds
I used green and red cupcake cases that I still had at home. I thought they were colourful and looked nice. I placed them in my muffin tin and filled each one a little over 3/4 full. I used a cookie scoop to do this, so I wouldn’t spill any batter.
Planning
These cupcakes can easily be made 1 or 2 days ahead. I frosted them the night before the party so the chocolate poo could firm up a bit overnight in the fridge. I added the metallic dust and the dog skewers on the morning of the party.
Quantity
This recipe makes around 8 to 9 cupcakes. You can use the multiplier in the recipe card to increase the quantities.
I hope you like them as much as I do! I would love to see a picture if you make them. Please DM me on my social media channels or feel free to send me an email.
Dog Poo Cupcakes
Adjust servings here:
Equipment
- muffin tins
- cupcake cases
- piping bag with round tip or ziplock bag
- mixer
- Mixing bowl
Ingredients
CAKES
- 45 grams all purpose flour
- 10 grams cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 2 eggs medium size
- 1/4 tsp vanilla essence
- 50 grams sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
CHOCOLATE FROSTING
- 50 grams butter soft
- 70 grams powdered sugar
- 1/4 tsp vanilla essence
- 3 tsp cream cheese
- 2 tbsp cacao
- 3 tbsp heavy cream
- a pinch salt
- edible metallic dust or glitter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
- Separate the eggs. Add the egg whites to a bowl and add half of the sugar. Mix until soft peaks form and the egg whites are fluffy and light.
- In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks with the other half of the sugar until well combined.
- Add the vanilla essence and a pinch of salt to the egg yolks. Mix briefly.
- Add the egg yolk sugar mixture to the egg whites and mix briefly until combined.
- Sift the dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch and baking powder) into a separate bowl. Mix them together with a whisk or fork. Then gradually add the dry ingredients to the fluffy egg mixture.
- Place the cupcake cases in a muffin tin and fill them with the batter. Leave around 1 cm (0.5 inches) of space below the rim to allow the batter to rise.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 175°C (350°F). Use a clean skewer to check if the cupcakes are fully baked. The skewer should come out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the muffin tin for around 5 to 10 minutes, then carefully transfer them to a wire rack.
CHOCOLATE FROSTING
- Beat the softened butter in a mixing bowl using an electric mixer. Add the cream cheese, vanilla essence and a pinch of salt. Mix until combined, then add the cacao powder and mix until the frosting turns dark brown.
- Use a spatula to transfer the frosting into a piping bag. Pipe small poo-shaped swirls onto the cooled cupcakes. You can pipe them in the centre of each cupcake or, as I did, slightly off centre to leave more space for the dog skewers.
- Dip a food brush into the metallic dust (skip this step if you're using edible glitter spray). Hold the brush just above the poo swirls and tap the handle with your hand to release the dust onto the frosting.
- Insert the dog skewers into the cupcakes.
Notes
Enjoy!
& Barney