How to Frost a Cupcake with a Piping Tip

I absolutely love frosting.  All kinds of frosting.  In fact, to me, cupcakes are merely a frosting delivery service.  The more frosting on a cupcake the better in my opinion.  The question I probably get asked the most is,  "How do you get the frosting swirl on your cupcakes and what type of decorating tip do you use?"  It's no big secret.  My favorite piping tip is an Ateco #885.  

Ateco 885 Tip

It's a very large tip that I discovered at NY Cake and Decorating Distributors in New York City.  If you are in NYC and love cake decorating and baking supply stores this is a must stop.  This tip uses a large amount of frosting and gives your cupcakes a beautiful swirl.

Wilton M1 Tip

I also use the Wilton M1 tip.  It's a smaller tip but still gives a nice swirl and a lot of cupcake bakers use this tip.  It's available at most Michael's Craft Stores or any store that carries Wilton cake decorating supplies and tips.  It's also a part of the Wilton Cupcake Decorating Kit available at Walmart.

I always use a 16" decorating bag and large coupler with my tips when I frost cupcakes.  If you have never used a decorating bag don't be afraid to take the leap.  You can handle a lot of frosting in a decorating bag and won't have to continually refill the bag as you frost your cupcakes.  Here's a great little video to show you all you need to know about the various types of piping bags.

I was going to make a little video showing you how I do my frosting swirls but You Tube and the internet is full of videos showing all you need to know.  Jamie over at My Baking Addiction was kind enough to share the following video.

 Cupcake Piping How-To from My Baking Addiction on Vimeo.

Here are two more videos showing how to pipe cupcakes.  One with the M1 tip and the other showing four styles used in England to frost cupcakes.  There are plenty more videos on You Tube if you still want to see more demonstrations.  The best way to learn is by doing.  So grab yourself a piping bag and your favorite decorating tip and start practicing.

Enjoy your frosting!