Monarch butterfly inspired cupcakes: Bake with Us(FWS)

Celebrate pollinators in the sweetest way! Western monarch inspired cupcakes anyone? 🦋🧁❤️There are three populations of monarchs but today we're focusing on the western population! Western monarchs migrate to the coast of California where they spend the winter. We can all do our part to help the monarch by planting native milkweed and nectar plants that provide food, shelter and fuel for migration. Watch the audio described version.Learn how to make other wildlife inspired treats.

Ingredients

• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tbsp. meringue powder
• 9-10 tbsp. water, room temp.
• Black, orange, and white food coloring

Directions

1. Pour powdered sugar, meringue powder, and 9 tbsp. of water into a large bowl. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat icing ingredients together on high speed for 1.5 – 2 minutes. When lifting the whisk up off the icing, the icing should drizzle down and smooth out within 5-10 seconds. If it’s too thick, beat in more water 1 Tablespoon at a time. 
2. Divide icing into three separate bowls. Add black food coloring to one bowl, white food coloring to another bowl, and orange food coloring to the third bowl.
3. Trace a monarch butterfly design onto the back of a piece of parchment paper. Be sure to keep the wings, body, and antennae separate from each other since you will be piping these parts individually and assembling them later.
4. Use the black icing in a piping bag to trace the lines of the butterfly wings and to create the body and antennae.
5. Use the orange icing in a piping bag to fill in the butterfly wings. You can use a toothpick to help smooth the icing to the edges of the black.
6. Use the white icing in a piping back to create the dots on the wings.
7. Let the butterflies harden on the parchment paper overnight.
8. Carefully lift the different butterfly parts off the parchment paper.
9. Put the body on the frosting of a cupcake and then gently stick the wings on either side. Stick the antennae in at the top of the body.
10. Enjoy!

Recipe inspired by Sally's Baking Addiction