Bakery-Style Icing

I have a toddler flashcard app on my awesome Windows Phone 7, and my little man is just slightly obsessed with it. He flips through those flashcards as fast as his little fingers can move, in search of one flashcard in particular: Cupcake.

This particular picture of a cupcake is heaped with swirly frosting and has a smattering of sprinkles, and Jack thinks this is the most beautiful cupcake ever.

And then he obsesses about cupcakes, and is shocked to find that we don't regularly keep them in stock around here. We're clearly awful parents.

While shopping recently, the J-man found some Valentine's cupcake liners AND some sprinkles, so I promised him we'd make really pretty cupcakes. Prettier even than the picture on that flashcard.

And we did.

Bakery-Style Icing
Makes enough icing for about 18 cupcakes

1 cup shortening (I used butter-flavored)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used clear so I didn't tint my icing)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
4-5 tablespoons milk or half and half

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine shortening, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 30 seconds.

2. Stir in half the powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons milk or half and half. Beat with a mixer until well combined and fluffy. Stir in remaining powdered sugar and 2-3 tablespoons milk or half and half, until icing has desired consistency.

3. Use as desired. I used a large star tip to pipe the icing onto the cupcakes.