Star Wars Themed Teacher Appreciation Cupcakes - May 2012

I made these Star Wars themed cupcakes for my son, Caleb's, 4th grade switch teacher.  She had decorated her room with a Star Wars theme that year (much to the joy of my kiddos) and I'd heard her mention that R2D2 was one of her favorite characters.  So, I thought that R2, C3PO, and some lightsabers would be a nice set of cupcakes for her.

Oooo... shiny!  :)

These cupcakes are from the same batch as the other teacher's cupcakes we made (see the post Teacher Appreciation Tulip Cupcakes); just chocolate cupcakes baked, cooled completely, and iced with a big swirl of buttercream piped on with a large open star tip.

To make the lightsabers I tinted fondant red, blue, and gray.  I rolled the red and blue into long snakes the size I wanted the lightsaber blade to be.  I tapered one end of the snake for the end of the lightsaber.  Then I rolled the gray fondant into a small snake the same width as the red and blue blades.  I used water to attach the gray hilts to the red and blue blades.  I set them aside to dry for awhile.  Later I used a black food coloring marker to make the black markings on the hilts.  I inserted the ends of the lightsabers into the icing making them cross at the blades.  I put a little water on the spot where they crossed to help them stay together.  If I was doing it again I would've inserted part of a toothpick into the end of the hilt to stick into the cupcake.  This would've helped them to stay in the position I wanted without falling down.  I guess if I wasn't traveling with them it may not be as necessary.

To make R2-D2 and C3PO I rolled out some white fondant fairly thin.  I let it dry just a bit so the food marker would move smoothly on it.  I used a black food marker to draw R2-D2 and C3PO.  For C3PO I then used some of my gold airbrush food coloring to fill in the lines, and then I did the same with silver for the silver leg.  For the wires in his torso I used food markers to draw them in.  Most of R2 I just left white, but I did use the silver airbrush food coloring and a blue food marker to fill in the necessary places.  As I said with the lightsabers, if I was doing this again, I would definitely use something to make these figures a little sturdier on the cupcakes.  I would secure a wooden skewer or a lollipop stick to the back of the pieces so that I could insert the stick into the cupcake instead of just the fondant.  Traveling with the fondant pieces just stuck into the cupcakes was a little stressful.  :)  C3PO's leg actually broke a bit, but it was low enough that you couldn't tell.

I really liked the look of these cupcakes.  Caleb's teacher absolutely loved them!  Yay!  :)

(I created my animated name at this site.)

This is the Droid Cake You're Looking For... - April 2009

I made this 3D R2-D2 cake for my son, Caleb's, 7th birthday.  For the same party I also made him a lightsaber cake (see the This Weapon is Your Life post).

This R2-D2 cake was made practically the same way that I made an R2-D2 cheesecake a couple years before.  See the post A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away....

More pictures and details to come... :)

[Right now I'm just trying to get everything on the blog, then I'll go back and fill in details; you can read a little longer explanation here if you want. BUT if you have any questions in the meantime, in general or about this cake, please feel free to email me by clicking on the 'Contact Me' tab at the top of the page and using the email address found there, and I will try to get back with you as soon as possible. Or you can always ask questions or leave a comment about this cake by clicking the comments link at the end of this post. :) ]

R2-D2 Cupcakes - April 2009

I made these R2-D2 cupcakes for my son, Caleb, to celebrate his birthday with his 2nd grade class at school.

First I baked, cooled, and iced the cupcakes.  Then I used food coloring to tint my buttercream icing the various colors I would need to draw R2-D2.  I started by piping everything that would be gray, which was almost everything.  I looked at a picture of R2-D2 and just tried to get the basic lines and shapes that I thought would portray him well without trying to pipe every compartment and detail.  Next I filled in the other details with the blue, black, and red icings.

I was happy with how these little droid cupcakes turned out, and Caleb was really excited about bringing them to school!  Everyone enjoyed them.  :)

A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away - June 2007

I made this cake for my brother-in-law, Josh's, birthday. (It was at the same party as Valerie's Wizard of Oz cake - see the I've a Feeling We're Not in Kansas Anymore post).  He likes Star Wars a lot, so I thought this would be good for him.  One of the bigger surprises for him was that this cake was made all out of cheesecake, which is his favorite.

To make this cake I just followed a cheesecake recipe and lined the pans I needed with parchment paper.  I used three 6 inch round pans and 1 half of a ball pan.  Before I stacked the cakes I covered one of the empty 6 inch pans with foil and put it on the board upside down.  Then I stacked the cakes on top of the pan.  That way when I put the legs and feet on it would give the feeling of empty space below R2-D2's body, since in the movie he is suspended in the air from his legs.  I just used classic white icing (tinted when needed) to ice and decorate it.

The legs and feet I shaped out of foam core board, covered with foil, and iced along with the rest of the cake.  For the blue and red lights (Logic Display and PSI) on R2-D2's dome I cut pieces of foil into the right shapes and then just painted over them with food coloring gel.  It gave it that reflective shiny look while still having the appropriate color (just remember to remove them before you serve the cake :) ).  The brown hoses on the feet are made out of fondant.  With it being made all out of cheesecake this cake was heavy, you would have thought you were picking up a real metal droid!  :)



(The legs and feet before they were covered and iced.)