Tips from the "Cupcake Doctor"

• To make orange Halloween-type frosting, use a 3-to-1 ratio of yellow to red.

• For less mess, use an ice cream scoop with a spring lever to fill the cups with batter.

• Fill the cups 2/3 to 3/4 full of batter, depending on the recipe. They will rise during baking.

• To transport cupcakes, choose frostings or glazes that harden, not those that smear easily. If you don't have a cupcake holder, can pack them in a 13-by-9-inch brownie pan — all the better if it has a snap-on lid.

Or arrange the cupcakes on a serving plate. Stick a toothpick in the center cupcake and in the outer cupcakes. Drape plastic wrap over the cupcakes and toothpicks, with the picks protecting the frosting. (Tupperware's cake carrier has indentations for cupcakes. Sur La Table also sells a cupcake holder.)

• For lunch boxes, pack a cupcake in a 1-cup round plastic container with a snap-on lid.

• For an easy filling, spoon 1 tablespoon of your favorite fruit jam or an unwrapped Hershey's Kiss on the cupcake batter before baking.

• To frost petite cupcakes, spread frosting with a short metal spatula or the back of a soup spoon.

• For a sleek look, frost cupcakes with cooked frosting while the frosting is still warm.