A colourful Moon Mist-flavoured cupcake that tastes just like childhood—filled with a caramel waffle cone filling, topped with Moon Mist-flavoured whipped cream frosting, and a shark fin-shaped piece of waffle cone.
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A little while ago, my son’s best friend’s mom asked me if I would make cupcakes for her son’s shark-themed birthday party. I’ll accept any excuse to bake for other people so I immediately agreed, and because I’m the kind of person who loves to go all out for a birthday party (at least as far as baking goes) I offered to make a few flavours. The birthday boy chose Cookies ‘n’ Cream, Moon Mist, and S’mores, so I developed three cupcake recipes that combine a cake, a filling, a frosting, and a shark fin-shaped cookie topper to go with each flavour.
Moon Mist is a fun and colourful ice cream flavour that Nova Scotia is known for, combining grape, banana, and bubble gum flavours. It’s been both of my kids’ favourite ice cream flavour since we moved here a couple years ago, and kids (and probably lots of grownups, too) all over the province look forward to ordering scoops of it every summer.
I think these cupcakes taste just like childhood (even if you didn’t grow up in Nova Scotia). These have a Moon Mist-flavoured cake that is filled with a caramel waffle cone filling, topped with a light Moon Mist-flavoured whipped cream frosting, and decorated with a homemade waffle cone cookie topper shaped like a shark fin.
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Why You’ll Love Moon Mist Shark Cupcakes
- It tastes just like the ice cream. You’ll use a combination of LorAnn flavouring oils to make the cake and whipped cream frosting taste just like a scoop of Moon Mist ice cream. If this is an ice cream flavour you grew up with, these cupcakes will taste just like your childhood!
- The cake is fun and colourful! l’ll show you how to make different colours and flavours of cake batter from one batch of batter, then fill the cupcake liners with a little bit of each batter for a fun marbled effect.
Tips for Success
- Cut the waffle cones while they’re still warm. As soon as you pull a waffle out of the waffle cone maker, you need to quickly cut the shark fins out—if you let the waffle cone cool it will get brittle and crack if you try cutting it.
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FAQ
How long do Moon Mist cupcakes last?
Eat within a few hours of baking, and store leftovers in the fridge to eat within 2–3 days.
Can I freeze Moon Mist cupcakes?
You can freeze the plain unfilled and un-decorated cupcakes for up to 3 months.
Can I make this gluten-free?
Yes, just swap out a gluten free all-purpose flour replacer such as Cup4Cup wherever all-purpose flour is called for.
Can I make this dairy free?
Yes, swap out a vegan butter or margarine anywhere butter is called for, and a dairy free cream such as cashew or coconut for the caramel. For the frosting, use a vegan vanilla frosting recipe as the base before adding the flavouring oils and colour.
Can I make this egg free?
Use a vegan egg replacer for the cookies and cake.
Can I make this vegan?
Yes, see my notes above for making this recipe dairy & egg free. Make sure you use vegan granulated sugar (surprisingly, most granulated sugar is not strictly vegan!)
Moon Mist Shark Cupcakes
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 325˚F (160˚C). Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Add 215 g all-purpose flour, 1 ½ tsp baking powder, and ¼ tsp fine sea salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and mix on low speed until combined.
- Add 63 g unsalted butter and mix on medium speed until the mixture looks sandy. Add ¾ cup whole milk, 133 g granulated sugar, ¼ cup neutral flavoured oil, ½ tsp vanilla extract, 1 large egg and 1 tbsp Greek yogurt or sour cream and mix until well combined.
- Divide roughly between 3 bowls (this doesn't have to be exact, just eyeball it). To the first bowl, add 5 drops purple food gel5 drops pink food gel, and ¼ tsp LorAnn's grape flavouring oil and mix. To the second bowl, add 5 drops yellow food gel and ¼ tsp LorAnn's banana cream flavouring oil and mix. To the third bowl, add 5 drops sky blue food gel and ¼ tsp LorAnn's bubblegum flavouring oil and mix. Adjust the colours as desired.
- Add one small scoop of each colour of batter to each muffin cup, and swirl with a toothpick for a marbled effect. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before filling or decorating.
- Preheat a waffle cone maker, and place a silicone mat on a heat-proof surface. In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 large egg whites, 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract, 28 g honey, 35 g brown sugar, 50 g granulated sugar, ¼ tsp fine sea salt and ¼ tsp baking soda until combined. Sift in 85 g all-purpose flour and fold in until combined.
- Add a couple tablespoons to the waffle cone maker. Close, and cook for 3-4 minutes or until cooked through and golden brown.
- Immediately remove the waffle and place it on the silicone mat. While the waffle is still warm, use a circular cookie cutter about 2-3" in diameter to cut out a pair of overlapping circles to make crescent moon shapes. Use a knife to cut the crescent moons into shark fins. You may need to go over the cuts a few times before they go through. It's very important to cut the shapes out while the waffle is still warm, or it may crack.
- Save the waffle cone scraps for use in the caramel waffle cone filling.
- Take the leftover waffle cone scraps from making shark fins and crush them in a Ziploc bag with a rolling pin, or in a food processor. Aim for irregularly-sized pieces (no larger than ¼").
- Add 75 g heavy (whipping) cream, 20 g whole milk, ½ tsp vanilla extract, 20 g corn syrup and pinch fine sea salt to a small saucepan and stir together. Gently warm over medium-low heat. You want this mixture to be nice and warm by the time you're ready to add it to the caramel, but don't bring it to a boil.
- While the milk mixture is warming, add 38 g granulated sugar and 40 g corn syrup to another saucepan. Cook over high heat until it reaches a deep amber colour, swirling the pan carefully to help the sugar colour evenly.
- Carefully pour in the warm milk mixture (it will bubble and spatter), and clip on a candy thermometer. Cook until the mixture reaches 225˚F (107˚C). Remove from the heat, and stir in 26 g unsalted butter until melted and smooth. Fold in 75 g crushed waffle cone bits.
- Add 2 cups heavy (whipping) cream and 2 tbsp instant vanilla pudding mix to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or a large bowl if using a hand mixer. Whip to stiff peaks.
- Add 5-10 drops sky blue food gel, followed by 5-10 drops LorAnn's banana cream flavouring oil, 5-10 drops LorAnn's grape flavouring oil, and 5-10 drops LorAnn's bubble gum flavouring oil. You may want to add the flavouring oils just a little at a time and mix them in, test the flavour, and decide if you want to add more flavour.
- Remove the center from a cupcake using a cupcake coring tool or an extra large piping tip. Fill the cavity with some caramel waffle cone filling, then pipe a couple large swirls of bubblegum whipped cream frosting. Sprinkle on some blue sanding sugar or sprinkles if you like, then nestle in a waffle cone shark fin.
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