Cupcakes in a Jar

These are just so cute and practical. They’re also perfect for class parties and birthday parties since it’s a delicious, messy cupcake in a neat and tidy jar. 

I thought of this because it was my friends birthday and all he asked for was a batch of my cupcakes. I contemplated how I could do this since he lives back in Henderson and I’d have to ship them. That’s where I thought of putting them in a jar. They shipped GREAT and were still fresh 2 days later when they got them. I might also add that they put them in the freezer and ate them for several months. 

So whether you’re doing a party, saving a treat for later, or just want to be dang cute, make these cupcakes in a jar!!

What you Need:

1 recipe of your favorite cupcakes, mine is here

1 recipe of your favorite frosting, mine is here

Toppings of your choice, mine is Dulce de Leche

Kerr Half Pint Wide Mouth Jars, 12 count. They look like this. You can usually find them in grocery stores in the canning section. I’ve never been able to find them in Walmart or Target, so you’re better off looking in a regular grocery store. You need to make sure they are this kind or something similar to it. Make sure they have straight sides and are 1/2 pint. They are the perfect size.


Directions:

Clean out jars with hot soapy water and let dry. Mix up your cake mix. Spray jars with nonstick baking spray (I use this.) Fill jars about half full. You don’t want them topping the jar because you need room for your fillings in the jar. These were a little too full. I had to cut a little out to make all the ingredients fit.

Baking time will vary, but bake them at 350 degrees and after about 15 minutes, keep a close eye on them. Once they spring back when touched, remove them from the oven to cool for about 5-10 mintues.

Then pop them out of the jars to cool completely. They should release very easily if you’ve used the spray. You might need to run a knife around the edges to help them out. Once they’ve completely cooled, cut them in half.

Then layer them with the frosting and toppings. Start with the bottom part of the cake, pipe in frosting, layer whatever toppings you like, then put the top of the cake on and repeat the layering one more time.

It should look like this when you’re done:

Then you pop the lid on and voilà!! You have a cupcake in a jar!! It’s most cute when you cut out craft paper for the lid and decorate it with some ribbon around the lid. It’s even cuter when you attach a plastic spoon to the lid with the ribbon. PERFECT party gift!!

Rainbow Cupcakes

These were really fun and the kids LOVED them! I made them for a dinner with a rainbow theme and it really brought it all together.

They’re not hard at all and actually didn’t take that long either. You just separate out a white cake mix into 6 different bowls and color them with the colors of the rainbow. That’s it! Then I topped them off with my whipped cream cheese frosting and rainbow sprinkles.

1 box white cake mix (and all the ingredients listed on the box)

Make the cake according to box directions. Separate into 6 different bowls and mix in  red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple food coloring gels into the different bowls. Spoon about 1T of each color into each cupcake liner, trying to layer the colors. I ended up using 1/2 the batter in full sized cupcakes and half in mini cupcakes. Mini cupcakes are always so fun, especially for parties! Then top with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows.)  I topped the regular cupcakes with rainbow sprinkles and the mini ones with one Skittle. 

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting:

16oz (2 blocks) cream cheese, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1 t vanilla

1 cup cold heavy whipping cream

2T powdered sugar

Cream together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Whip until very light and fluffy with your whisk attachment. In a separate bowl, whip the whipping cream and 2T powdered sugar  until stiff peaks are formed. Fold into the cream cheese mixture. DO NOT OVERBEAT. When incorporated, pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Enjoy the colors of the rainbow!!

Snickers Cupcakes

I love a good Snickers now and then. So then I though…why not a Snickers cupcake?!

So I made some. And they’re my new favorite:) A moist, fluffy cake filled with caramel then topped off with a light, whipped peanut butter buttercream.

Cupcakes:
1 box devil’s food cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 t vanilla

Peanut Butter Frosting:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 t vanilla
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1-2 T whipping cream

1 can Dulce de Leche

2-3 regular sized Snickers bars for garnish

For the Cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line pans with cupcake liners. In a large bowl, combine all cake ingredients except the cake mix and mix until smooth. Stir in cake mix. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full and bake about 17 minutes or until cupcake springs back when tapped. It’s RARE that I bake mine longer than this. Make sure you know your oven and DON’T over bake!!

Once cooled, open the can of Dulce de Leche. Microwave in a bowl until warm and loose. Pour into a piping bag, fitted with the fill tip. Fill the cupcakes with the Dulce de Leche.

For the Frosting:
With the whisk attachment, beat the butter until basically white – about 4 minutes, scraping down the sides often. Add the peanut butter and beat another 2 minutes. Add vanilla and slowly add the powdered sugar until frosting becomes thick. Add whipping cream until desired consistency is reached. You want to make sure you add enough whipping cream to get the frosting nice and fluffy and not dense. Pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Use the rest of the Dulce de Leche and drizzle over the frosting. Top with a small piece of Snickers. Enjoy!!!

*From Your Cup of Cake

Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting

These little babies gave me my first paid cupcake job:) I made them, someone tasted them and then asked me to make them for a birthday party. I filled a few with the lemon curd, then decided they were better topped with the curd because the blueberries made the cake so moist.

And plus, the cupcakes don’t rise so much, so fill those babies full! The whole batter should fill a 24-cupcake tin.

But see how pretty and summery they are?! Perfect for a non-chocolate option. Then top them with my new absolutely favorite fluffy and delicious whipped cream cheese frosting. I’m loving the frosting because it’s still cream cheesy, but it doesn’t have butter so it holds up REALLY well at room temperature and isn’t as heavy.  The end result is a pretty heavenly cupcake! The tang from the curd, the moistness from the blueberries, the lightness of the frosting…who wouldn’t pay for these?!

Lemon-Blueberry Cake
2 cups plus 6 T flour
2 t baking powder
1 t salt
3 cups fresh blueberries (reserve 24 blueberries if you want to use them for garnish)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whole milk
2 t vanilla
1 t lemon juice
1 t lemon zest
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare muffin tin with cupcake papers.  Sift dry ingredients into medium bowl. Transfer 1 T flour mixture to larger bowl. Add fresh blueberries and toss to coat them with flour. Set remaining flour mixture and blueberries aside.

Stir whole milk, sour cream, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest in small bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar, until pale yellow and very fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time, until well combined. Mix in flour mixture alternately with milk mixture, starting and ending with flour mixture. Stir until just combined. Gently fold in blueberries. Divide batter equally among cupcake cups.

Bake until toothpick inserted into center of a couple cupcakes comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in pans on racks for about 10 minutes, then put onto racks until completely cool. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Lemon Curd
*If you’re going to fill the cupcakes, I suggest doubling the recipe. But if you’re just going to top them with the curd, one batch is plenty.
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
zest of one large lemon
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 t cornstarch
pinch of salt
6 large egg yolks

Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium-low heat.  Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and zest.

Mix together the sugar, salt and cornstarch and add it to the pan.  Whisk in the egg yolks until smooth and return to heat. Cook over medium-low heat for roughly 10 minutes until the mixture has thickened and coats the back of a spoon. Do not allow the mixture to boil.

Once thickened, strain the mixture though a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl. Allow to chill in the refrigerator completely before using. Stir before using.

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
16oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup heavy cream, cold

Beat the cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth and fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream to nearly stiff peaks. Fold the whipped heavy cream into the cream cheese mixture. Do not over beat. Pipe onto cupcakes topped with lemon curd. Enjoy!!

*PS: I added about 1-2 t of lemon juice to this frosting for this particular recipe. It gave it a hint of lemon, without overpowering. You don’t want to add too much because the lemon curd is VERY lemony.

*Cake and curd adapted from theregoesthecupcake.com
*Frosting from Not So Humble Pie

Hot Fudge Cupcakes

We were invited to dinner and were asked to bring the dessert. I always like being over the dessert:) I wanted to bring something that was fun for kids, delicious and of course, something I've never done before. Cupcakes are just so fun for kids so I decided to go with another twist on a cupcake. These are chocolate cupcakes, dipped in hot fudge, iced with a chocolate cream cheese frosting and the topped with a drizzle of more hot fudge. These quickly became my new favorites! They were just so decadent and perfect.

1 recipe your favorite chocolate cupcakes
1 recipe hot fudge (recipe follows)
1 recipe chocolate cream cheese frosting (recipe follows)

After cupcakes are made and cooled, carefully dip the tops into the hot, hot fudge. Set aside to cool. Top with cream cheese frosting. Drizzle with more hot fudge and if you're feeling super crazy, chopped chocolate. You won't be disappointed!

Hot Fudge Recipe:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1/3 cup cocoa powder
3 cups sugar
1 (12oz) can evaporated milk
1 t vanilla

Combine butter, cocoa powder, sugar and evaporated milk in a saucepan over medium heat. While whisking constantly, bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes, or until very thick. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe:
2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 t vanilla
3 1/2-4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder

Cream cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add vanilla and mix well. Add powdered sugar and cocoa powder and mix until smooth.

Hi-Hat Cupcakes

These were so fun and turn out SO fancy. My kids especially loved them since I made them mini. They're basically just a chocolate cupcake with vanilla buttercream, dipped in chocolate. They would be perfect for any party and everyone LOVES them!

Your favorite chocolate cupcakes made and cooled

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

3-4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 t salt

1 T vanilla

About 4 T milk or heavy cream if needed

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

3 T vegetable oil

Beat butter for a few minutes with a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed. Add 3 cups of powdered sugar and turn your mixer on the lowest speed (so the sugar doesn’t blow everywhere) until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and 2 tablespoons of milk/cream and beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining milk 1 tablespoons at a time.

Pipe onto cooled cupcakes. Place in the fridge while you melt the chocolate.

In a microwave safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips with oil. Microwave in 15 second incrememts, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted and smooth.

Holding each cupcake by its bottom, dip cupcake in the chocolate to coat frosting, allowing excess to drip off. Transfer to a baking sheet fitted with a wire rack. Spoon more coating around edge of cupcake and any exposed frosting; none of the frosting should show. Let cupcakes stand at room temperature 15 minutes. To make the chocolate set, place in fridge and allow to cool until hard.

Idea from Martha Stewart and frosting from Savory Sweet Life

Tres Leches Cupcakes

Me, I'm not much of a fan of Tres Leches. But we live in a world where a lot of people are. And I sometimes do what people want cause it makes me happy. This was a request from the hubs...he likes tres leches. And I have to say - not bad, not bad. If you're a Tres Leches fan, you must try these! Oh, and that Dulce de Leche whipped cream...DIVINE. These definitely hit the spot!

For the Cake:

1 box French Vanilla cake mix

1 small box French Vanilla pudding

1 cup sour cream

1 cup buttermilk

4 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup evaporated milk

Start by making the cake. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a cupcake pan by lining it with cupcake liners. Mix the cake mix, pudding, eggs, sour cream, milk and oil in a standing mixer and beat until well incorporated (about 2 minutes) while scraping the sides. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Place in preheated oven and bake for 18-20 minutes until tops spring back when touched.

While cupcakes are in the oven, prepare the Tres Leches mixture: mix the whole milk, evaporated milk, and condensed milk.

Remove cupcakes from oven. Immediately poke several holes in each cupcake with a skewer stick or knife.

Drizzle Tres Leches mixture over each cupcake, waiting for it to absorb, using all of the mixture evenly between eachcupcake.

Dulce de Leche Whipped Cream:

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4-1/2 cup dulce de leche (found in the mexican isle in the grocery store)

3 T powdered sugar (or more depending on how sweet you like it)

Combine all ingredients in a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on medium-high until soft peaks form. Pipe over cooled cupcakes. Store extra cupcakes in the fridge.

Cake Batter Cheesecake Cupcakes

Yeah, yeah...I know the 4th of July is over, but why can't we celebrate it longer than the actual day? Especially when I was gone on vaca during the holiday? 4th of July or not, these can be made for any occasion. Funfetti cake has to be THE funnest and best cake out there. My family LOVES it. Now when you add a cheesecake center and a cakebatter-cheesecake frosting...NOW you're talkin!! Such a fun, different cupcake that everyone is sure to love!

For the Cake:
Funfetti cake batter (Use your favorite homemade or box version - fully made batter)
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 24 muffin tin with festive liners.

Spoon cake batter into each tin until it is half full. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, egg, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until smooth. Spoon one spoonful over top of each cupcake. Bake for about 15 minutes or until set.

Cake Batter, Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 stick butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 t vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup white cake mix (MIX - NOT BATTER)

In the bowl of a mixer, beat butter, cream cheese and vanilla until smooth. Add powdered sugar and cake mix and beat on low until just combined. Increase speed to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes. If frosting is too thick, mix a bit of heavy cream or milk until desired consistency is reached.

Once cupcakes are cooled, frost generously. Enjoy!!

* From Confessions of a Cookbook Queen

Nutella Cupcakes

I was itching for a new recipe, but being Sunday I needed to use what I had on hand. Somehow I had Nutella. Have you had Nutella? It's amazing. It's rapidly becoming one of my favorite spreads. I love the nutty, chocolaty, smooth taste. There's really nothing like it. It was the perfect ingredient for cupcakes:) I decided to go with a basic chocolate cupcake recipe, fill it with Nutella and then top it off with a Nutella cream cheese frosting. This might be my new favorite cupcake recipe! I got SO many compliments on these and I can't deny it...I couldn't keep my hands off them, especially when I did half the batter as mini cupcakes - perfect one bite treat:) If you love Nutella, you must try these!

For the Cake:
1 box chocolate fudge cake mix
1 small box white chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 small jar Nutella

For the Frosting:
2 packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1 t vanilla
1/4 cup Nutella

Start by making the cake. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a cupcake pan by lining it with cupcake liners. Mix the cake mix, pudding, eggs, sour cream, milk and oil in a standing mixer and beat until well incorporated (about 2 minutes) while scraping the sides. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Place 1 teaspoon Nutella on top of each cupcake batter. Place in preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until tops spring back when touched. Remove from oven and cool on a cooling rack.

For the frosting cream cream cheese and butter until really smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl often. Add vanilla and Nutella and beat until very creamy. Add powdered sugar - enough to get your desired spreading consistency. Personally I like it a little thin and creamy instead of stiff like icing. Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes. Enjoy!!

Peanut Butter Stuffed Hot Fudge Cupcakes

One of my favorite things is peanut butter and chocolate. To me there's nothing better. This cupcake really reminds me of a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup. The frosting is the perfect balance of salty peanut butter and sweet. Oh, and the hot fudge is the perfect touch. It sets up perfectly for a cupcake like this. If you're having a peanut butter and chocolate craving, you should definitely make these!

Cake:
1 box chocolate fudge cake mix
1 small box chocolate fudge pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Peanut Butter Frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups powdered sugar (you may want 1 more cup depending on how sweet you want it)
2-3 T whipping cream (may need more to reach your desired consistency)
1 t vanilla

Hot Fudge Sauce:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1/3 cup cocoa powder
3 cups sugar
1 (12oz) can evaporated milk
1 t vanilla

For the Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 cupcake tins with liners. To prepare cupcakes place the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, milk and sour cream into stand mixer. Beat until well combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Scoop batter evenly into 24 cupcake liners. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cupcakes are cooked through, a toothpick comes clean from center. Remove and let cool.

For the Frosting:
Cream butter and peanut butter together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add powdered sugar with mixer on low speed and gradually add milk and vanilla. Beat until frosting is smooth. If too thick, add more milk; if too thin, add more sugar.

For the Hot Fudge Sauce:
Combine butter, cocoa powder, sugar and evaporated milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes, or until very thick. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

After cupcakes have cooled completely, take the core out to prepare to fill them. Drizzle some hot fudge sauce into the center and then fill the rest of the hole with peanut butter frosting. Then dip the tops of the cupcakes into the hot fudge sauce. It sets up pretty fast, so it shouldn't be too messy. Top with peanut butter frosting and then drizzle with hot fudge. It might seem like a lot of work, but believe me...IT'S WORTH IT!!

*Peanut Butter Frosting adapted from Tasty Kitchen

Caramello Cupcakes

I woke up at 5am this morning with an idea...what about a Caramello Cupcake? I don't know about you, but Caramello is one of my most favorite candy bars!! When I was younger it was my candy bar of choice...every time. I don't know how you can go wrong with chocolate and caramel. So that's why I thought it was a MUST to do a Caramello cupcake. Soft caramel on the inside encased in a decadent, soft, moist and chocolaty cupcake then topped with a light, whipped milk chocolate frosting (check out the secret ingredient:) and a drizzle of caramel. Yum!!

And do you see my new purchase? I love it!!! I would recommend a cupcake stand to anyone and everyone. This one holds 24 cupcakes and it's incredibly sturdy. I can put it on the front seat floor in the car and not worry at all about it tipping over. I found it at my new favorite store...Home Goods. If you have this store anywhere near you, you must go! Also...don't you love my flowers? I'm pretty sure I have the greatest husband in the world...a "hope you have a good day" gift. I live for times like those:)

Just look at that ooey, gooey caramel!! The best part is that when it cools it firms up, but is still very soft so when you bite into the cupcake it oozes all down your chin...my kind of treat!

1 recipe of your favorite chocolate cupcakes (I would recommend this one...it's the only one I use now)
6 Caramello candy bars
Caramel Ice Cream Topping (NOT the syrup)
1 bag Caramel Bits (unwrapped caramel balls used for cooking - found by the chocolate chips and they look like this)
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 recipe Chocolate Buttercream (recipe follows)

Make cupcakes, cool and scoop out center (a good tool for this is the Cuisipro Cupcake Corer - It works wonderfully.) In a microwave-safe bowl place the entire contents of the Caramel Bits and the whipping cream. Microwave for 2 minutes, stopping every 30 seconds to stir. Let cool about 5 minutes. You can either put it in a piping bag to fill the cupcakes or just scoop with a spoon. I actually preferred to do it with a spoon. As the caramel cools even more, it will seep into the cupcake. After about 5-10 minutes I actually went back and filled the cupcakes again with more caramel and used it all up. Pipe with chocolate buttercream frosting. Then drizzle with Caramel topping. Top the cupcake off with a square of a Caramello candy bar. Enjoy the gooey goodness!!

Chocolate Buttercream:
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) butter, softened
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 t salt
2 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 t vanilla
2 T milk
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup Ovaltine

Cream together butter, cocoa powder and salt. Butter mixture will be very thick. Turn off the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add powdered sugar. Turn mixer on low and mix in powdered sugar while adding milk and vanilla extract. As the sugar incorporates, raise the speed of the mixer to beat the frosting. Beat until smooth. In a 1-cup measuring glass, stir together heavy cream and Ovaltine. Turn mixer speed to medium and pour cream mixture into frosting in a slow, steady stream, until you’ve reached your desired consistency. You may not need the full amount of Ovaltine and cream. Spread or pipe onto cupcakes. This makes enough to pipe 24 cupcakes. **This frosting recipe from Joy the Baker

Chocolate Mousse Filled Snickers Cupcakes

These are absolutely, positively the most delicious cupcake I've ever had. You should make them immediately. They might seem too "chocolatey" and sugary, but in fact they're not. They're perfection. Don't fight it...just give in and indulge in the most sinful, delectable cupcake you've ever tasted!!

Cake:
1 box Devils Food cake mix
1 small box chocolate fudge pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Mousse Filling:
2 cups whipping cream
2 cups melted chocolate chips

Butter cream Frosting:
1 stick butter, softened
2 1/2-3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 t vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 cupcake tins with liners. To prepare cupcakes place the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, milk and sour cream into stand mixer. Beat until well combined, about 1 1/2 minutes. Scoop batter evenly into 24 cupcake liners. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cupcakes are cooked through, a toothpick comes clean from center. Remove and let cool.

2. To prepare mousse, whip heavy cream with a stand or electric mixer until looks like whipped cream, until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in melted chocolate that has cooled for 5 minutes. Continue folding until well combined then transfer batches into a piping bag. When cupcakes have cooled press the tip of the piping bag into the center of the cupcake about 1 inch then press mousse into center. It doesn’t take much, just one firm squeeze is perfect. Continue filling all the cupcakes.

3. To prepare frosting, beat the butter, powdered sugar, cocoa and vanilla until well combined and a nice frosting consistency. You might need to add a tablespoon or 2 of milk to get the consistency you need. Spread over cupcakes then top with chopped Snickers.

*From Picky Palate

Oreo Cupcakes

These are super good! They are also fun for the kiddos. It's a mix of cupcake, marshmallow and cookies that does NOT disappoint! Next time I think I would add a little more marshmallow cream because when it bubbles up and gets a little toasted and a little chewy and is oh so delicious. The basic cupcake mix is simply AMAZING! If you want you could just bake the cupcakes without putting a whole Oreo in the center - that would be delicious also. They are the perfect cupcake for a party and you bet I'll be serving these at my next one!

1 French Vanilla cake mix
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup oil
4 eggs
1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
5 Oreo cookies, crushed plus 24 whole Oreos for inside cupcakes
1/2 cup marshmallow cream, plus 1/2 cup to layer inside

Cream Cheese Frosting recipe, found here

6 Oreos, crushed for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using your stand mixer, beat the cake mix, water, oil, eggs, pudding mix, cream cheese, 5 crushed oreos and 1/2 Cup Marshmallow cream until well combined, about 1 minute.

Line muffin tin with paper liners and place 1 tablespoon of batter into the bottom of each cup. Layer with an Oreo (pressing down into the batter) then a dollop of marshmallow cream, then 1 more tablespoons of batter. Should be about 3/4 full. Don’t fill more than that or you’ll have a mess in your oven.

3. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until just golden brown and cooked through. Let cool completely. Frost and sprinkle with crushed Oreos.

Makes 24 normal size cupcakes

*Adapted from Picky Palate

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

These are just the perfect definition of Summer! After I made these I realized that I probably could have just made a french vanilla cake and added lemon juice and zest and it would be just as good or even better. Also, the original recipe called for a strawberry buttercream frosting, but after seeing how involved it was I opted to just use my own strawberry cream cheese frosting and it was delicious. Either way, the combination of lemon with strawberry is just awesome!!

3 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs, at room temperature
3 Tbsp lemon zest (from 3 lemons)
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (from 1-1.5 lemons)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
Strawberry Cream Cheese frosting, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare muffin tin by either spraying with baking spray or lining with paper liners.

Whisk flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside. Cream butter and sugar on a high until pale, light, and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly before adding the next one. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla. Turn mixer to the low, and add the dry ingredients in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk in two batches. Mix only until just incorporated.

Fill each muffin cup ~3/4 full. Bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer shows only moist crumbs attached, rotating the pans at the halfway point. Allow cupcakes to cool completely in the pans before removing.

Yields: 24 cupcakes

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 stick butter, softened
1 t vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup strawberry feezer jam (homemade is the best way to go, but if you don't have it, you can get it at any grocery store)

Cream cream cheese and butter until there are no lumps. Add vanilla and powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add jam and beat again until well incorporated.

*Cupcakes from Dinner and Dessert

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

I found this recipe on Dinner & Dessert. I was so intrigued by the title that I had try them. The actual cupcakes were more of a muffin consistency - dense and not as sweet - but it ended up being great because the frosting is sweet. I usually don't like buttercream frosting, but decided to try it instead. I ended up making a cinnamon cream cheese frosting also. They both turned out GREAT! Either one is delicious. So if you like cinnamon and snickerdoodle cookies, then you will LOVE these cupcakes!

Cupcakes:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups cake flour (recipe here if you can't find it in the store you went to like me...)
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 T cinnamon
1cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 t vanilla
1 1/4 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners or grease well. Sift together both flours, baking powder, salt and 1 T cinnamon.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of milk, and beating until combined after each.


Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean (about 13-15 minutes for me). Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

Cinnamon Frosting:

20 T (2½ sticks) butter, softened
2½ cups powdered sugar
1/8 T salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons heavy cream (I used half and half)
2 tablespoons cinnamon (or to taste)

In standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat butter at medium-high speed until smooth, about 20 seconds. Add powdered sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds. Scrape down bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined, about 15 seconds; scrape bowl, add vanilla, cinnamon, and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 10 seconds, then increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:

2 (8oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened

½ c. butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla

4½ - 4¾ c. sifted powdered sugar
1 T cinnamon

Beat cream cheese, butter, vanilla and cinnamon until light and fluffy. Gradually add 2 c. powdered sugar, beating well. Beat in enough of remaining sugar to make frosting of spreading consistency. Yields 3 cups.

*Cupcakes and Cinnamon Frosting from Dinner & Dessert

Magic in the Middle Cupcakes

I started out wanting to make these cupcakes that I saw on Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice that were chocolate with a caramel frosting...but I remembered that I've been wanting to try "The Best Frosting I've Ever Had" from The Pioneer Woman. It just seemed so peculiar...I had to try it to see what the whole fuss was about! So I decided to half both frostings and try them both. I used the cupcake recipe from Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice (and the idea to hollow out the middle) and then used the frosting recipe from The Pioneer Woman. I ended up making both frostings, but the caramel one was just WAY too sweet for our tastes!! We LOVED the recipe for the cupcakes though! They were a little crisp on top but very moist in the center. Now let me just tell you...this frosting is UNREAL!!! I swear I've never had anything better! I first tried it when it had only been whipping for like 30 seconds and thought...it's not that good, but kept it whipping in the mixer. I let it whip for like 5 minutes on medium-high and the end result is just indescribable! You really can't know unless you try it. It's fluffy and the flavor is delicious. This frosting is definitely going to be my ONLY go-to recipe for vanilla frosting. It's just that good.

Chocolate Cupcakes

2 cups flour
1/3 cup coca powder
3/4 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1/2 cup butter, room temp
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 t vanilla
2 eggs
3 oz semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled (I used chocolate chips)
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the cupcake pans by greasing or placing paper liners in them.

Whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl; set aside.

In a mixer on medium beat butter until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add sugar gradually, beating until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down bowl occasionally. Beat in vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in cooled chocolate.

Beat in flour mixture in 4 additions alternating with the milk. Begin and end with the flour mixture and beat briefly until smooth on low.

Fill cupcake wells 3/4 of the way. Bake about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool in pan 10 minutes then remove to wire rack to cool completely.


Frosting

1 cup milk
5 T flour
1 t vanilla
1 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar (NOT powdered sugar!!)

In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. (If in a hurry, place the saucepan over ice in the sink for about 10 minutes or so until the mixture cools or just place in the fridge.) Stir in vanilla.

While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Then add the cooled milk/flour/vanilla mixture and beat until it all combines and resembles whipped cream (I let it go about 5 or more minutes with the whisk attachment on the mixer.)

To hollow out cupcakes, use a small sharp knife to cut out the center at an angle so the piece you cut out looks like a cone and is about an inch long. Fill in the hole with frosting (I just used a butter knife.) Cut the end off of the "cone" and put the lid back on top of the cupcake. Then frost as usual! Enjoy...it's such a fun twist on normal cupcakes!

*Cupcakes from Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice
*Frosting from The Pioneer Woman

Candy Cane Brownie Bites

Such and great Holiday treat!

1 9x13 brownie mix
20 Candy Cane Hersey Kisses
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 T heavy cream
5 original candy canes crushed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and scoop into mini muffin tin that has been generously sprayed with non-stick spray about 3/4 way full. Press kisses into the center of the brownie batter, but not all the way to the bottom, some of the tip should stick out the top. Bake for 15 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Let cool completely.

Melt chocolate until melted and stir in cream until creamy and smooth. Dip tops of brownies in chocolate and then in crushed candy canes. Enjoy!

*From Picky Palate.

Oreo Cheesecakes

These are SO easy and really good! I got them from Baking Bites and she did them with Halloween Colored Oreos and they were SUPER cute for a Halloween treat! Sadly, when I went to the store, I couldn't find them, but they are just as good with normal Oreos!

1/2 c sugar
2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
3 eggs
1/2 c milk
2 t vanilla
1 T flour
1 1/2 c chopped Oreo cookies
16 whole Oreos

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl, beat together sugar, cream cheese, eggs, milk and vanilla until very smooth. Blend in flour. Stir in chopped Oreos. Place one Oreo in the bottom of each muffin cup. Top with 1/4 c batter. Bake for 16-19 minutes until cheesecakes are set. Cool in pan. Chill cheesecakes for at least 2 hours.

*From Baking Bites.

Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins

These are AMAZING! And the perfect fall treat. You can have them in the morning with no cream cheese frosting as a tasty muffin, or you can frost them up and have the perfect go-to dessert.

Muffins:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1 heaping cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional!)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease 12 muffin tins.

Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry blender until all incorporated. In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg, and vanilla. Pour pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Add raisins. Fold gently until mixture is just combined. Pour into greased muffin pan—batter hardly ever fills all twelve unless you keep it down to 1/2 full. Sprinkle generous amounts of cinnamon-sugar over the top of each unbaked muffin.
Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool. Ice with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/4 cup softened butter
4 ounces cream cheese
1/2 pound powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients on high until soft and whipped. Spread onto completely cooled muffins, or place into a large pastry bag with a large star tip and go crazy!

Store in fridge, as icing will soften at room temperature.

*From The Pioneer Woman

Mini Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

How cute are these?!?! I am absolutely in LOVE with them! They are the perfect baby shower food...dainty and all. The frosting is a little creation of my own and it's the perfect combination of cream cheese to strawberry. Definitely try these!

1 French Vanilla cake mix (the only kind I use now)
1 8oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 stick real butter, room temperature
1/2 t vanilla
1-2 cups powdered sugar
1/4-1/2 cup homemade strawberry Jam (or store bought...but only if you must!)

Make cake mix according to box directions and bake in a mini muffin tin (I didn't use muffin liners.) Remove from oven and let sit in pan for a few minutes and then remove to cooling rack and cool completely.

Cream cream cheese and butter until smooth with no lumps. Add vanilla and powdered sugar until desired consistency is met (I like my cream cheese frosting to taste more cream cheesey than sugary...so I usually always add less powdered sugar than the recipe calls for.) Stir in strawberry jam. You can add more or less depending on how you like it. You can also add food coloring to make it more pink or even red. Spoon into pastry bag or corner of a Ziplock bag and pipe onto tops of cupcakes. SOOO YUMMY!!!

*My own little creation*