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["Buttercream:", "", "With an electric beater / stand mixer, beat the butter until smooth.", "", "Sift in half the powdered sugar and mix until combined with the butter and it looks creamy.", "", "Sift in remaining powdered sugar beat until thoroughly combined.", "", "Beat in milk, vanilla and salt.", "", "If coloring, add a small bit of coloring at a time until you reach desired shade.", "", "Tip: Paste color is stronger than gel, which is stronger than liquid, so it depends on the type of coloring you use as well as brand, so it's best to add a small amount at a time.", "", "Pipe, smear, decorate with frosting as desired.", "", "Tip: Simple buttercream forms a crust when exposed to air, so if making ahead, cover bowl with clingfilm, then give frosting a quick mixing before using.", "", "Assemble:", "", "Fit the star tip to your piping bag (either with a coupler, or simply snip the end of the bag and drop the tip inside and push out the end until it fits snuggly)", "Fill your piping bag with green frosting.", "", "Make sure all the frosting is pushed down near the end, then twist the top of the bag where you'll be holding and squeezing the bag.", "", "Tip: I find it best to be able to hold the cupcake still with one hand and squeeze the piping bag with one hand, so don't overfill the bag so that you have good control of it. Otherwise, if you're not yet confident enough to pipe with one hand, you can ""stick"" the cupcake down to your counter with a little bit of frosting to keep it from moving/twisting while you pipe.", "", "Pipe as you would a normal cupcake swirl, but not from the outer edge of the cupcake, about halfway in.", "", "Pipe the frosting round, then up and round on itself, about 4 or 5 swirls, piping the circles tighter as your near the top.", "", "Once piped, decorate and top with little gumpaste stars."]
