Ants on a Cupcake + Busy Bees

Waiter, there’s an ant on my cupcake!” That was one of the comments I got on twitter last night after posting these “Ants on a Picnic” cupcakes from What’s New, Cupcake?. =)

But wait… these are the kind of bugs that you actually WANT at your party! You know… the kind that are made from chocolate covered almonds and dark chocolate frosting and that aren’t really bugs at all! Added bonus… they come bearing CANDY FRUIT.

I love the idea of serving these up as a sweet, creative ending to your family picnic, summer BBQ, or a fun “bug themed” birthday party!

And if the picnic ants are feeling a little lonely as the only bug at the party, you can give them some company with this adorable Busy Bee Hive, which is also perfect for Bee or Garden-themed baby showers:   

These little “Bees” are made up of black jelly beans, sliced almonds, and yellow & black frosting.

The “Hive” is constructed of vanilla cupcakes topped with hexagon-shaped sugar cookies covered in yellow decorating sugar. To create the “honeycomb” effect, the center portion of the dough was removed from each sugar cookie before baking. This step also creates the perfect space for drizzling a little honey before topping with an adorable jelly bean bee. GENIUS!

For detailed DIY info on these treats and lots of other fun cupcakes, check out What’s New, Cupcake? by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson. (Only about $9 at Amazon!)