I would say to do just what you're thinking. Whip it with confectioners sugar until it reaches a more sturdy consistency.

Adorable! Are those edible? Could you possibly glue a lollipop stick (which you can buy in bulk from Michael's) to the back and stick it into the cupcake for more rigidity?

Bestyears, not only that, she will custom make them with any title(s) you want. Yes, they are edible fondant (I edited my post, you are right, first time it did not make that clear). So I don't want/need to ruin the edibility with a stick.

I'm curious if anyone has ever used canned icing to pipe decorations. I get mixed input.

ETA - OMG I have three fairly lame threads in a row right now. I look so needy LOL. I should have combined them in a "Miscellany" post!

ETA, again - BTW I did come across what I think looks like a brilliant way to get a fondant look, my m/w icing so it is pourable. Won't work for my project but worth trying! https://sweetcsdesigns.com/the-easiest-way-to-frost-a-cupcake-ever/

Those edible toppers are adorable! I've never seen such a thing. Would be really cute for a book club get-together too.

I haven’t used canned icing in a long time but I always found it too soft to keep its shape. I think if you’re going to the trouble to whip canned icing in a mixing bowl you might as well use a homemade buttercream. Pre load your piping bags in advance and you can refigerate them a day or two. Be sure to let them stand at room temperature before using.

Mtn (sigh) , either we don't hear from you at all or you hog the whole forum....... :)

I agree that it would be almost as quick, and so superior tasting, to make your own buttercream. Aside from a terrible (to me) chemical taste in the canned frosting - it tends to melt at room temperature and the amount of icing sugar that would be necessary to avoid this would make the frosting sickly sweet.

When we have ordered cupcakes with edible fondant images, the fondant was placed horizontally, on top of the icing, not stuck in the icing.

Mounting the books on a lollipop stick will not affect their edibility. All kids know how to eat a lollipop candy and they don't eat the stick. I think that is the absolutely perfect solution to your dilemma!

You could make a batch of cream cheese or buttercream frosting the day before. I have done this a few days in advance and refrigerated until the day I want to frost. Then just get it out to come to room temp.

Or you can make it the night before and cover it and store in a cool dry space to use in the morning. I only get a crust on the frosting if I use Crisco, not usually an issue with buttercream.

I have not found canned frosting to hold its shape. What if you used the microwave frosting idea you posted and then put a gumdrop on top and propped the fondant book on the gum drop.

Maybe see if a food store sells the icing they use in the bakery section. Those obviously hold up well since they sit in a case. Plus, whatever frosting they use tastes almost marshmallowy and the kids love it. My son (7) will only eat the food store bakery section frosting that tastes like marshamallows.

Maybe even just have them do the whole tray for you and give them the fondant to place. . I have always found kids don’t eat homemade cupcakes which annoys me when I spend time making delicious ones for a party and I see whole cupcakes the plates going in the trash.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream really holds up well and generally does not crust over. I don't know if it will hold the weight of the fondant, but generally it is the strongest. It is what I use with my russian tips. Oh, and it takes great as well... lighter than an american or italian buttercream

No to canned icing. As others said it isn’t stiff enough. Can you adhere the fondant decorations to the sticks ahead of time using royal icing?

If you have Publix in your area they sell their wonderful buttercream in the bakery. Yummy!

The poured fondant look seems contrary to what you are looking for with the piped frosting dollop to hold the fondant book. And a bit messy -- for you and for kiddos to hold and eat. I'd stick to your original idea. Grocery store canned icing will not hold and I think I have a vague memory of trying to stiffen it up and it being a big mess. Easier, better and much more certain results to do a quick uncooked buttercream. If you leave the butter our overnight, I think it would be quicker to whip it up in the morning than to let it come to room temp before piping (though you can be doing other things while it warms up).

Honestly, I'd want to make them the night before and would think the decorations should hold that long. You are dealing with butter or other fat and sugar for the most part -- not water. The edible inks are used for sheets that go directly on frosted cakes and not run. I think the books should be fine overnight. Any ink that would smear would be inside the dollop -- not the top part, so place them and don't move them around. Contact the seller to verify -- test one or two in advance if you can.

I made these cookies for our library grand re-opening with edible wafer paper

FWIW, I might be tempted to make things easy on myself and just dip the cupcake tops in icing/frosting and place the fondant decorations on flat - sort of like Martha's photo shows.

TBH, though, I usually bring cupcakes to events unfrosted and frost them just before serving, since it's so easy to mess up the frosting in transport. But that's usually where there's a kitchen area to work in.

Auction? Keep it flavorable and homemade. Then buy some card holders like florists use in arrangements to hold your cute toppers. Hopefully the toppers aren’t too thick.

I agree with the others, make the buttercream, and make it a bit more stiff (less liquid), and frost the night before.

I have never added anything other than a decoration on a toothpick or similar, but I would think any thin ‘crust’ that developed would actually be better for holding the thin fondant book in place, no? Just don’t try shifting it around after putting in place.

Piping gel !! I've only recently learned about it, but it stabilizes whipped cream, or frosting, wonderfully. Add a tablespoon or two to your (own) frosting.

Suero, I have seen that with the thin wafer paper, not w fondant toppers. Plus you want kids to be able to see them at their eye level. I am trying to make them look as much like the photo as possible.

Oly, delilah, I know, but I really want them like they are. I prefer the idea that it is all edible.

I only get a crust on the frosting if I use Crisco, not usually an issue with buttercream. (annette) Really, that is encouraging.

Local, that is interesting, but I think the books look better surrounded by icing --- tastier

I have always found kids don’t eat homemade cupcakes. OMG, really? Ive not seen that (as long as you dont make them basil lemon or somesuch! But I do see that most of them are just as happy with the fake stuff.

Okay , Gooster, so what is your recipe pretty please? : )

Tannatonk, nope.

Lacatx, You make good points about it running. I think I will do them the night before (late maybe). Oh and the fondant idea wasnt for this, i just came across it and thought it was neat.

Martha, so cute!

Carol, yeah, there wont be any way to do that. But Ive been making cupcakes for this event for years and have become export at transport, LOL!

Maddie, not an auction for the cupcakes, it is for cakes. I've not let myself go down that particular rabbit hole!

Outside, another good point. I am just being very picky and from experience trying to anticipate issues. Everything always goes more smoothly in MarthaStewartLand.

Oh, mtn, no secrets here. I generally have used the MS variant but they are all pretty similar -- only the flavorings really vary. Here's the Pioneer Woman doing an excellent job with the description of the technique. If you add butter too fast you just need to beat it some more -- it can take the overbeating.
https://thepioneerwoman.com/food-and-friends/swiss-meringue-buttercream/
There is a shortcut version that uses pasteurized egg whites, but the precooking step works. You can make ahead and store it in the fridge, and then warm it up and beat it a little bit.

mtn- I checked the seller's site and since she's a Culinary School graduate who specializes in advanced baking and pastry why not email her and ask what she recommends?

The Swiss Buttercream looks devine! If possible, I would do a test run. Make a small batch of the icing, pipe on a few cookies/cupcakes and refrigerate the leftovers overnight. Follow Gooster's instructions, bring icing to room temperature and pipe some more samplles to compare. My only other thought would be to email your etsy seller and ask what kind if icing she used. Yum!

As suggested above, another solution might be 'gluing' a lollipop stick or toothpick to the back of the decorations with some royal icing or icing sugar paste...?

I would do them the day before...make swiss meringue...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJpD_HLXXsI

Pipe it so it looks like a brain, because they're books...(adorable, btw)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWBODcFqiCc

But make your brain off center a bit, and immediately rest the "book" against the brain so that the bottom only is resting on cake, the back resting on the frosting. Like a leaning book...The back should stick to the frosting for stability...so do one at a time so the frosting doesn't dry out.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream frosting is the absolute best. Once you make it you will never make anything else. The only time it didnt work for me was when I tried to make it strawberry flavored and I didnt reduce the strawberry compote enough.

I see lots of different buttercream recipes, and I don't mean flavors. Ingredients AND techniques! great idea to email the seller, done

When I became addicted to the Great British Baking Show, and determined to learn the difference between the buttercreams, I found this Serious Eats article very helpful.

The edible books are adorable! Who knew there was such a thing?! Just last week I made cupcakes for an event. I used the Sally's Baking Addiction chocolate buttercream frosting. (According to the Serious Eats article linked above, it would be an American buttercream.) It was delicious and easy, and although I frosted the cupcakes the day before, they did not develop a crust by the time we served them the next day. They actually tasted better the day after they were baked and frosted. Good luck!

I wanted to follow up on a few points.

First of all, i never realized that "American Buttercream" is what we've made since I was a kid, ie the recipe on the 10x sugar box! Too funny.

I did a lot of internet searches on how to make sure your buttercream is "sturdy enough" for the look I want, and I tested it over easter by making some cupcakes and frosting.

I ended up using this recipe: https://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/vanilla-buttercream-icing/

It uses a combo of butter and shortening, to which my DH said "blech" when we had to run out to the store to get some. But everyone loved the icing and the texture was perfect. I also added 1T of meringue powder, based on other recipes I had seen.

I had to buy a special M1 tip, and it takes some getting used to, but these were the first ones (i used one book that was a little misshapen for my trial; even left in overnight the ink on the book did not run).

I also experimented with putting stripes in the piping bag; i loved this and will try again with much thinner stripes.

Nice job! (I need to stay away from these delicious threads tho...)

I took a cake decorating class and was told that "buttercream" frosting was Crisco and sugar plus flavoring....I never made that. Where I'm from, frosting is basically butter and sugar...plus flavoring. My brain won't let me eat Crisco, but bring on the butter, apparently :)

Penny, it helped a bit that you can buy organic shortening now, instead of the cringeworthy blue can ...

I intended to use this recipe only for the charity donation cupcakes (it part since it is outdoors... i did not want an icing avalanche in the hot sun!). I thought for family I would use only butter. But everyone liked it, go figure.

Those look wonderful!

So adorable!

Lovely.

So cute! And now I want a cupcake.

Off topic but...are your kitchen counters wood? I am currently obsessed with kitchen counters since we're redoing ours in the fall.

Oh hey, Sue. I'm thinking ... wood??? Then I realize you are looking in the background. They are handhewn cherry (they kind of have subtle ridges in them) and they were a custom thickness. Because they are my sink surround too, they are coated in marine varnish. I found some photos here:

This is the vendor --- at 3:09 he describes hand hewing. https://www.brookscustom.com/portfolio-view/premium-wide-plank-video/
Also on their website is the kitchen counter they did in my old house, which was also cherry but lighter, normal thickness and with a custom brass rail i spec'd.

Hey, same toaster!

Mtn, I never realized there were differences in buttercream frosting either. It was all butter and powdered sugar and vanilla to me and whatever I thinned it with. I guess the shortening is to help it survive in warmer weather, which makes sense. Anyway, your cupcakes are adorable, but they have and glad they passed the family taste test.

Beautiful counters! Thanks for the pictures.