Fish Cupcakes Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups.
• Make cake mix as directed on box, using water, oil and eggs. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Bake and cool as directed for cupcakes.
• Reserve 1/2 cup frosting in small bowl. Stir food color into remaining frosting. Place cupcakes on serving plate, fitting snugly together and forming fishbowl shape. Frost top row of cupcakes with reserved white frosting. Frost remaining cupcakes with blue frosting. Place gummy candies on frosting. Sprinkle candies at bottom of "fishbowl" for "gravel." Cut and shape fruit snacks to look like seaweed or water plants; place on cupcakes.

Steps:

• For the eyes: Place the malt balls cut side down on the work surface. Add a mini chocolate chip as a pupil to each ball by gluing with a little buttercream. Set aside.
• For the mouths: Place the small orange gumdrops on the work surface standing upright. Snip each gumdrop with scissors straight down three-quarters of the way through the candy to make the open mouth.
• For the tails and fins: Cut each orange gumdrop fruit slice in half horizontally to make 2 thinner slices. Cut 12 of these pieces in half crosswise to make fins. Make tails from the remaining 12 slices by cutting and removing a wide "V" into the concave side of the candy. Set aside.
• For the stripes: Unroll the licorice and cut twelve 2 1/2-inch strips and twelve 3-inch strips. Separate the two sides of each strip.
• To assemble: Frost each cupcake with about 2 tablespoons buttercream. Arrange a long and a short piece of licorice across one end of each cupcake, placing the longer piece toward the middle and the shorter piece toward the edge, about 1/4 inch apart to make a stripe. Repeat with another set of licorice pieces across the other end of the cupcake. Trim the licorice pieces so that they are even with the edges of the cupcake.
• Attach the eyes, mouth, fins and tails by pressing gently into the frosting. Carefully sprinkle with orange nonpareils, leaving the 2 white stripes between the licorice pieces free of orange. Repeat steps for all cupcakes.

Steps:

• For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with blue paper liners. Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with a round of parchment.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Beat the butter in a separate bowl with a electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 1 minute. Add the granulated sugar and beat until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, then beat in the vanilla.
• Beat in the flour mixture in 3 batches on low speed, alternating with the milk in 2 additions, then beat on medium-high speed until just combined.
• Spread half of the batter in the cake pan and divide the remaining half among the paper liners. Bake until the tops spring back and a tester inserted in the centers comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes for the cupcakes and 30 to 35 minutes for the cake layer. Let cool 5 minutes in the pans, then remove to a baking rack to cool completely.
• For the buttercream: Beat the butter in a bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high until light, about 1 minute. Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and salt and beat on low to combine, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the milk, a tablespoon at a time, to make a spreadable frosting. Add the food coloring, a drop at a time, to make a medium blue color.
• Frost the cupcakes with about half of the buttercream. Halve the cake layer crosswise. Cut a small "V" from the middle of the flat side of one piece to make a fish tail. Frost both layers with the remaining buttercream.
• For the decoration: Shingle the M&Ms on one half of each cupcake to make the fish scales (you will have enough for 2 cupcakes per color, with some of each leftover for the tail). Add a candy eyeball to each. Insert 2 red cinnamon candies on the opposite side from the scales to make fish lips. Halve 6 of the white gumdrops crosswise, then halve those pieces lengthwise to make half-moons. Stick 2 pieces of white gumdrop at the top and bottom of each cupcake for the fins.
• Stick a white gumdrop near the top of the cake fish head. Top with a black M&M, using a little frosting to make it adhere.
• Halve the red gumdrop crosswise. Halve one piece lengthwise to make half-moons and stick to the rounded side of the cake fish head for lips. Set the head at the left side of your serving tray. Follow the head with the cupcakes to make the fish body. Fit the tail on the tray at the end. Shingle the remaining M&Ms on the tail in stripes to make fish scales.

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine the first nine ingredients; mix well. Shape into 12 patties, adding additional water if needed; coat with the Italian bread crumbs. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook the patties until lightly browned, 4-5 minutes on each side. If desired, serve immediately with tartar sauce and lemon.

Steps:

• Place the potatoes in a large pot of water, bring the water to a boil. Let the potatoes cook until they are almost tender.
• Add the fish to the pot and let the fish and potatoes cook until they are both soft. Drain well and transfer the potatoes and fish to a large mixing bowl.
• Add butter, onion, parsley, and egg to the bowl; mash the mixture together. Mold the mixture into patties.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over a medium-high heat. Fry the patties on both sides until golden brown. Drain on paper towels before serving.

Steps:

• Peel and cut up potatoes.
• Place in pot with fillets and cover with cold water.
• Boil until the potatoes are"fork done".
• Drain off the water.
• Mash the potatoes and fish together.
• Mix chopped onion, eggs, and 1 tablespoon water.
• Add this to the fish and potatoes and mix well.
• Form the mixture into hamburger size patties.
• Season with salt and pepper and fry in well greased skillet until golden brown on both sides.

Steps:

• Mix together 125ml mayonnaise, 1 rounded tbsp roughly chopped capers, 1 rounded tsp creamed horseradish, 1 rounded tsp Dijon mustard, 1 small very finley chopped shallot and 1 tsp finely chopped flatleaf parsley. Set aside.
• Lay 450g skinned Icelandic cod or haddock fillet and 2 bay leaves in a frying pan. Pour over 150ml milk and 150ml water.
• Cover, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 4 mins. Take off the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 mins to gently finish cooking the fish.
• Meanwhile, peel and chop 350g Maris Piper potatoes into even-sized chunks. Put them in a saucepan and just cover with boiling water. Add a pinch of salt, bring back to the boil and simmer for 10 mins or until tender, but not broken up.
• Lift the fish out of the milk with a slotted spoon and put on a plate to cool. Drain the potatoes in a colander and leave for a min or two.
• Tip the potatoes back into the hot pan on the lowest heat you can and let them dry out for 1 min, mashing them with a fork and stirring so they don't stick. You should have a light, dry fluffy mash.
• Take off the heat and beat in 1 rounded tbsp of the sauce, then ½ tsp lemon zest, 1 tbsp chopped flatleaf parsley and 1 tbsp snipped chives.
• Season well with salt and pepper. The potato should have a good flavour, so taste and adjust to suit.
• Drain off liquid from the fish, grind some pepper over it, then flake it into big chunks into the pan of potatoes.
• Using your hands, gently lift the fish and potatoes together so they just mix. You'll only need a couple of turns, or the fish will break up too much. Put to one side and cool.
• Beat 1 egg on a large plate and lightly flour a board. Spread 85g fresh white breadcrumbs on a baking sheet. Divide the fish cake mixture into four.
• On the floured board, and with floured hands, carefully shape into four cakes, about 2.5cm thick. One by one, sit each cake in the egg, and brush over the top and sides so it is completely coated.
• Sit the cakes on the crumbs, patting the crumbs on the sides and tops so they are lightly covered. Transfer to a plate, cover and chill for 30 mins (or up to a day ahead).
• Heat 3-4 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil in a large frying pan. To test when ready, drop a piece of the dry breadcrumbs in - if it sizzles and quickly turns golden brown, it is ready to use.
• Fry the fish cakes over a medium heat for about 5 mins on each side or until crisp and golden. Serve with the rest of the sauce (squeeze in a little lemon to taste), lemon wedges for squeezing over and watercress.