The Quick 10: 10 Interesting Cupcake Flavors

I have the honor of making cupcakes for a friend's upcoming wedding in two weeks, so I have been testing various flavors and frostings lately. It's a tough gig, I know. I'm leaning toward chocolate with strawberry frosting (made with real strawberry puree, yum), vanilla bean with orange frosting, and red velvet. There's nothing very exotic in my recipe stores. But that could change"¦ the next friend who requests cupcakes may very well end up with a Red Bull-Bloody Mary. Enjoy!

1. Beer cupcakes with bacon cheddar frosting. Cheese in cupcakes is nothing new - cream cheese frosting is delightful. But cheddar? That's a bit different.

2. Honey Baked Ham cupcake.

At first glance, you might think this is simply ham with pineapple on top, but let me assure you, there's a honey-flavored cupcake inside that edible liner. Recipe

here

. Let me know if you attempt it.

3. Red Bull-Bloody Mary.

This one comes courtesy of my favorite cupcake shop in Des Moines,

Carefree Patisserie

. I guess when you need a pick-me-up after a night of imbibing but you're not quite ready for true hair of the dog, you can give this a shot.

4. Sweet Pea Cupcakes.

I think these actually sound kind of tasty"¦ and I love the color.

Want to try it?

5. Tomato Soup.

The Yellow Leaf Cupcake

in Seattle is certainly not lacking in flavor varieties, but Tomato Soup just might be the most original. If they could come up with a grilled cheese cupcake, they would have the perfect pairing for a rainy day.

6. Whiskie Bits sour cupcakes. Like your cupcakes with a little more kick? Whiskie Bits in San Francisco may have what you're looking for - malt whiskey cake made with sweet potatoes, Asian spices and hazelnuts, topped with whiskey sour cream cheese frosting.

7. Thanksgiving. And it's not quite what you think - there's no turkey and it's not topped with gravy. It's a sweet potato cake base studded with pralines and "frosted" with toasted marshmallow and cranberry. You can find this at Bleeding Heart Bakery in Chicago, but only during the appropriate season.

8. Diamond.

How does it taste like diamonds? Because it's

sprinkled

with the gems, of course. It will only set you back a little more than

$150,000

9. Goat fig merlot.

Speaking of Chicago, a shop called

in the Gold Coast area sells a savory cake made with goat cheese, fig and merlot. Not your typical birthday party fare, but it sounds actually sounds quite tasty.

10. Green Monster.

I'm no Red Sox fan, but I have to admire the town pride

Kickass Cupcakes

of Boston exhibits. They sell a chocolate cupcake with a Sam Adams Cream Stout ganache center and green chocolate beer frosting. "¨

What's the weirdest cupcake you've ever tasted or made?