"For the Horde!" Cupcakes

Prepare yourself, I am about to reveal just how geeky I am...

Today, I'm going to show you how to make...

Here it goes...

World of Warcraft Horde cupcakes!

 

If you haven't been enlightened already, World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) created by Blizzard Entertainment.  It is an incredibly addictive game that has taken over the lives of many gamers since the it was first released in 2004.  When you begin playing the game, you must choose between two factions that are at war: the Alliance or the Horde.  The Alliance is a group of creatures bonded together by their commitment to nobility and justice, while the Horde is a group of outsiders bonded together for survival.

My husband and I have played World of Warcraft off and on for years, and we have always played on the Horde faction.  I'm showing off my Horde pride! 

These cupcakes consist of three basic elements: dark chocolate cake, dark chocolate frosting, red horde symbols.  Below is how I made each element and assembled them all together.  Level your cooking skill by making these cupcakes with me.

1. Bake Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

The Horde's colors are red and black.  Naturally, Horde cupcakes need to be dark chocolate, and as dark as you can make it.

I'm not going to lie; I was pressed for time, and the appeal of these cupcakes is the design, so I made devil's food cake mix from the box.  If you want to make your cupcake from scratch, you can find a delicious recipe at the link below.
http://www.wowhead.com/item=33925/recipe-delicious-chocolate-cake

I used tin foil wrappers because it reminded me of the iron armor characteristic to the Horde faction.  I have to make sure my cupcakes are well-protected.

 
While your cupcakes are baking and cooling, you can make your Horde symbols and frosting.

2.  Make Candy Horde symbols

To make the Horde symbol, all you need is a bag of red candy wafers or melts.  You can find them in the baking section at any craft store, like Hobby Lobby or Micheal's.  They are saturated with color and they taste like white chocolate.  Numnumnum.

A.  Place 1/2 cup of red candy wafers in a bowl.  

B.  Microwave for 30 seconds on 50% power.  Stir.  Repeat until wafers are melted.  You can also use a double boiler to melt the candy wafers, if you prefer.

C.  Allow candy to cool for 1 minute.

D.  Scoop the melted candy into a pastry bag with a small round pastry tip.  Use the smallest tip that you own to ensure that you do not lose the detail in the design.  I used a size 3 tip, but I would have preferred a size 1 or 2.  Instead of a pastry bag, you can also use a freezer sandwich bag to save some money.

E.  Print out two pages of 2" tall Horde symbols to utilize as a stencil.  Just Google "horde symbol," and then copy and paste your favorite symbol into a word document several times.  Print out a few extra symbols, in case a symbol gets broken.

F.  Place your Horde stencil on a baking sheet and secure with tape.  Place a piece of wax paper on top of your stencil and secure with more tape.  You don't want the wax paper or the stencil sliding around while you are trying to make your candy Horde symbols.  Don't judge how dirty my baking sheet is; it is well-loved.  

G.  Pipe Horde symbols with your red candy using your stencil.

H.  Place Horde symbols in the freezer for at least 10 minutes to allow them to set.

3.  Make Dark Chocolate Frosting

Even when I do used boxed cake mix, I still make my own frosting, since it tastes so much better.  Once you start making your own frosting, you won't buy the frosting in a can from the grocery store again.  To make fudgy dark chocolate frosting for 24 cupcakes, you will need:

• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup Hershey's special dark cocoa powder
• 12 Tbsp butter (softened)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

A.  Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl (sugar and cocoa).

B.  Combine wet ingredients in a another small bowl (milk and vanilla).

C.  In a medium-sized bowl, cream butter on a medium speed until fluffy.

D.  Slowly add dry ingredients, alternating with wet ingredients, to creamed butter while beating at a low speed.  Add vanilla.  Beat until combined.

4.  Assemble Cupcakes

A.  When the cupcakes are still a little bit warm from the oven, dip cupcake into frosting.  The slight amount of heat from the cupcakes will melt the frosting just enough to create a flat, smooth surface for your horde symbol.

B.  Take your Horde symbols out of the freezer and carefully remove them from the wax paper.  Stick the Horde symbols onto your cupcakes with the side that was touching wax paper facing upwards.  The side that was touching wax paper will look more flat and clean than the other side.

Level up!  You have finished your delicious chocolate Horde cupcakes.  Serve them to your friends who love World of Warcraft at a party or just for fun.  If you each spend at least 5 seconds eating them, you all will become Very Happy for 1 hour.