Black Forest Cartoony Cupcakes

They don't look too foreboding and black foresty though, do they? They kind of look like Pink Forest cupcakes! I love how cartoonish these turned out; half with pink buttercream blobettes (I keep using that word but it's the best thing I can think of to describe the frosting shape!), half of them dipped in fancy hot pink mini round sprinkles. I also thought the pink ones ended up looking like my pal Cuppie, pictured here with an orange kitty. Cuppie is the ridiculously cute cupcake buddy illustration created by Cakespy's super-awesome Jessie Oleson!

I made these for Becky, who ordered them for her boyfriend Michael's birthday party. These cartoony Black Forest cupcakes are dark chocolate cupcakes with a maraschino cherry in the middle, topped with pink buttercream (I used the syrup from the maraschino cherries to tint and flavour it) and a shiny, glossy red syrup-soaked cherry on top. Those red cherries always remind me of Shirley Temples, or fancy drinks you would get as a kid when going to a fancy steak restaurant, a cherry and maybe a slice of pineapple poked with a colorful plastic sword hanging across the top of your multicoloured, extra-sweet drink...