Grant Imahara’s Zombie birthday cupcakes
My friend Grant blows things up on Mythbusters, therefore you know you should have him on your team when the zombie apocalypse comes and believe me, it’s coming. We surprised him for his birthday, so I made him surprise cupcakes as in, Surprise! Zombies are coming to kill you.
For his birthday last year I made him Geoff the Robot cupcakes. Having a birthday around Halloween sure does provide some great decoration ideas.
I took the idea of a zombie cupcake apocalypse and used baby doll arms as zombie stand ins. Yes they sell just the arms alone and yes, it’s sort of frightening to see a bunch of doll arms all over your counter.
Using a picture of Grant and Jenny cosplaying as Glenn and Andrea from The Walking Dead, they sure do look scared and confused as the zombies start rising out the cupcakes to attack them. They’re just baby doll arms, guys! Wait, that’s almost scarier…Happy birthday Grant!
Grant Imahara’s Zombie birthday cupcakes
Ingredients:
cupcake ingredients:
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1-3/4 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups cake flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chocolate milk
ganache ingredients:
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prep a cupcake pan with liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla.
Alternately add the milk with the dry ingredients until combined. Spoon the batter into prepped liners, bake 15-17 minutes depending on your oven. Let cool on a wire rack.
While the cupcakes are cooling, start the ganache. In a saucepan over low-medium heat add the chocolate chips, heavy cream and vanilla. Watch carefully and when it starts to melt, start stirring. Keep on stirring until it magically turns into a glossy beautiful ganache. Let cool slightly.
Once cooled, spoon the ganache over the cupcakes, let set, then sprinkle the cookie crumbs over the ganache topped cupcakes.
Wash and fully dry the doll arms and plunge them into the cupcakes. Let the attack begin!
