Spider Web Cupcakes

Cooking Instructions

Heat the oven to 350°F.  Place paper liners into 24 (2 1/2-inch) muffin-pan cups.

Stir the flour, granulated sugar, salt and baking powder in a large bowl.  Add the shortening and 2/3 cup milk and beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Add the eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and beat for 2 minutes.  Pour the batter into the muffin-pan cups. 

Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean.  Let the cupcakes cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.  Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Beat the confectioners' sugar, butter-flavored shortening and half the remaining milk in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on high speed.  Gradually beat in the remaining milk until the frosting is desired consistency.

Reserve 1/2 cup frosting.  Tint the remaining frosting orange with the food coloring.  Frost the cupcakes with the orange frosting.  Tint the reserved frosting black.  Using a pastry bag, pipe the black frosting in a spider web pattern on the cupcakes.