Our family has been spending a lot of time at the ballpark this summer, and I couldn’t be happier about it. Our Arizona D-backs are having a good season and we are fostering a love of baseball in both of our kids. Every time I go see a baseball game, I learn something new. For instance, did you know that the Arizona Diamondbacks offer birthday party packages? The D-backs are providing me with a Birthday Suite so that I can bring you first-hand knowledge of the whole experience. Our party won’t be for a few weeks still, but I wanted to show you some of the party prep I’ve been up to. Not to mention, make sure you know about the Arizona Diamondback Birthday party packages so you can get your own summer birthday experience scheduled, ASAP!

You can find all the details over the at the Diamondbacks Birthday page but let me give you some highlights.

• 3 packages to choose from: Ballpark Seating, All-You-Can-Eat, or Private Suite
• $10 Cold Stone Creamery gift certificate for the birthday child
• Personalized birthday message up on the right field interactive screen
• Perks ranging from $10 D-bucks per ticket up to a private restroom and free parking. The extras are determined by the birthday package, so check out the site for full details.
• The packages fit a wide range of budgets so don’t get scared off thinking it’s out of your price range. For about the price of a pizza parlor birthday party package, you could treat your Diamondbacks fan and their friends to an unforgettable birthday party.

Between concessions and catering options, the food for this party is handled. We are permitted to bring in a cake though, so that’s where I have been spending my party prep energies. What’s better for an Arizona Diamondbacks birthday party than D-backs cupcakes?

My passion is for creating cute food so I really wanted to come up with some unique ways to create baseball themed cupcakes. After some brainstorming and trial and error, I made caramel covered pretzel baseball bats and sandwich cookie baseballs. I found the awesome Diamondback cupcake picks at my local cake supply store. The baseball hats were generic cupcake picks that I added the D-backs logo too. You can never take a party theme too far in my book!

For all of these cupcakes, you will need to start with frosted cupcakes. Whatever flavor you like best. I like white frosting because it makes everything else pop. I also sprinkled each cupcake with black jimmies and red jimmies. Let’s decorate some baseball cupcakes!

Caramel Baseball Bat Pretzels

Ingredients:

• Pretzel Sticks – 1 per bat
• Individually wrapped caramel squares – 1 per bat

Directions:

1. Unwrap one caramel and microwave for 7 seconds on high.
2. Pull a small corner off the caramel and set aside for the baseball bat handle.
3. Pull and stretch the softened caramel into a rectangle shape approximately the length of the pretzel stick.
4. Mold the caramel around the pretzel stick and form a baseball bat shape: thicker and rounded at the top, thinner towards the base. There will be a seam on the backside of the bat where you pressed the caramel together. Once it is on top of the cupcake, you won’t be able to see the seam.
5. Take the remaining bit of caramel and roll in your hands to make a short snake shape. Wrap the caramel around the base of the baseball bat to form the handle.

Mini Sandwich Cookie Baseballs

Ingredients:

• Mini Vanilla sandwich cookies
• Red Candy Writer

Directions:

1. Remove one side of the cookie sandwich and flip it over so the flat side is facing out. Re-assemble the cookie sandwich.
2. Melt the chocolate inside the candy writer by placing it in a cup of hot water and gently kneading the candy pen.
3. Draw two semi-circles on each cookie to represent the laces on a baseball.
4. Set the cookie aside and allow the candy to harden.

Next up are the baseball caps!

AZ Diamondbacks Baseball Cap Cupcakes

Materials:

• Baseball Cap Cupcake Picks
• Sticker Paper – White or Clear
• Diamondbacks Logo

Directions:

1. Size the Diamondbacks logo to 1/2 tall” and print on sticker paper.
2. With small detail scissors, cut out the logo. I prefer clear sticker paper for the project, so you don’t have to cut such fine details. The drawback is that white sticker paper will yield a much more vibrant image.
3. Place the sticker on the baseball cap pick and insert into the iced cupcakes.

These cupcakes were so fun and easy to make. I like that you can take combine store bought items like the cupcake picks with your own touches to make a truly customized party.

We are so ready and excited for our Arizona Diamondbacks birthday party. I’ll back in just a few weeks with a run down of how everything went at the party and what you can expect when you host your birthday party at a D-backs game. Until then, Go D-BACKS!