Witty, one-of-a-kind, imaginative cupcake designs using candies from the local convenience store, no baking skills or fancy pastry equipment required. Spotting the familiar items in the hundreds of brilliant photos is at least half the fun.

America's favorite food photography team shows how to create funny, scary, and sophisticated masterpieces using a ziplock bag and common candies and snack items. With these easy-to-follow techniques, even the most kitchen-challenged cooks can:

• raise a big-top circus cupcake tier for a kid's birthday
• plant candy vegetables on Oreo earth cupcakes for a garden party
• trot out a line of confectionery "pup cakes" for a dog fancier
• serve spaghetti and meatball cupcakes for April Fool's Day
• bewitch trick-or-treaters with eerie alien cupcakes
• create holidays on icing with a white Christmas cupcake wreath, turkey cupcake place cards, and Easter egg cupcakes