If there is one thing one thing I have learned from my kids is that they are very picky about their food. My kids, nieces and nephews, in fact all toddlers now, do not settle for just about anything I set in front of them. This rule also applies to cupcakes.

I find it curious how they pass over the plain, unfrosted ones I have stocked in my refrigerator. They always go for the ones I spent the most time designing. My Sister shared a ‘mommy secret’ with me: make the food look attractive and the kids will eat it, no questions asked. After all, that was how they introduced them to vegetables.

With this in mind, I have come up with a few rules of my own whenever my kids, nieces and nephews are at home and begging me for cupcakes.

1. Appeal to their sweet tooth. I have learned to make the most decadent chocolate cupcake (one I wouldn’t eat myself without feeling guilty for my expanding waist) for the kids. While this may not be the first they see, it will guarantee that they will keep coming back.

2. Get good tools. A variety of tubes and tips are at my disposal, and with them I can make hundreds upon hundreds of designs.

3. Color, color, color. The kids seem to always be attracted to the ones with the most vibrant colors, even if the frosting was just made with simple swirls.

4. Add texture. A good enough cupcake and a good enough frosting should already make the pastry creations compelling to eat, but the deal-clincher is to add candies.

Following these rules, I now have an arsenal of tools and candies stocked at my home. I do sneak out for some one or two pieces of candy on bad days, but the rest – they’re for kids only.