Candy Corn Cupcakes

What makes a pumpkin smile? Candy Corn of course!!

As promised, today is all about candy corn cupcakes!! If you haven’t already, make sure you enter to win an awesome McCormick Halloween Treat Basket. Find out more details on the prize and how to enter here.

Candy Corns have been, and always will be, the quintessential fall candy. I’m not sure what I like best about them….the bright fall colors, the taste of pure sugar, or the fact that they are perfect for decorating cupcakes with!

Today’s Recipe and Decorating ideas are super easy and perfect to do with your little ones at home. I love this recipe because you bake candy corn right into the cupcake! They come out gooey and delicious – not to mention they look so festive!

Candy Corn Cupcake

For this cupcake, I use a traditional vanilla cake recipe. If you want to make this even easier, you can use a box mix.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Vanilla Cake Batter (or Box mix)
• Vanilla Frosting (or Can Frosting)
• 2 ½ cups of candy corn
• McCormick Yellow Food Coloring
• McCormick Red Food Coloring
• Fall colored sprinkles
• Cupcake Liners
• Piping Bag
• Start Tip for frosting

Ok, now that we have all of our necessary ingredients, let’s get started.

1. Start by chopping up 1 cup of candy corn. I did this with a knife, but a food processor would work well too. You want medium size chunks.
2. Pour the chopped candy corn into the vanilla cake batter
3. Measure out 3 tbs of fall sprinkles. Pour sprinkles into the cake batter.
4. Mix the candy corn and sprinkles thoroughly into the cake batter
5. Pour cupcake batter into your cupcake liners and bake for 15-18 minutes or until the tops of your cupcakes are slightly brown.
6. Let cool for 20-30 minutes.

Chooped Candy Corn

Candy Corns Baked Right In the Batter!

Let’s makes some frosting while we are waiting for our cupcakes to cool.

1. Take the vanilla frosting, whether it is canned or homemade, and divide it into 3 bowls.
2. In one bowl, use 3 drops of McCormick’s yellow food coloring and mix well – set aside
3. In one bowl use 3 drops of McCormick’s yellow food coloring and one drop of McCormick’s red food coloring. Combine well until you get the perfect color orange.
4. Using a spatula or spoon, spoon some yellow frosting into the left side of your piping bag. Fill the other side with orange frosting, and top with the remaining white frosting.
5. Swirl the frosting onto your cupcake and decorate with candy corn!

Be creative with your candy corn decorations – possibilities are endless!

Hope you and family enjoy this fun fall recipe. Let me know how your candy corn cupcakes turn out!

Stay Sweet. Xoxo

Red Velvet Cupcakes

What is better than a moist chocolate cake? I’ll tell you….a moist chocolate cake, colored red, and topped with the creamiest cream-cheese frosting you could imagine. That my friends, is better than moist chocolate cake!

Red Velvet cake and I used to have a bittersweet relationship…I could never get the recipe right. That was until I found a recipe that I actually like. I adapted this recipe from Bobbly Flay’s show “Throwdown with Bobby Flay” . Enjoy the recipe, and enjoy all the praises you get when you pass these little guys out. Happy tuesday!!

My Red Velvet Masterpieces

Red Velvet Cupcakes (adapted from “Throwdown with Bobby Flay”)

Makes 16 Large cupcakes – 24 regular size cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 4 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 1 ½  granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 3  large eggs
• 2 tsp of red food coloring
• 1/8 cup of water
• 2 tsp of vanilla
• 1 ¼ tsp of vinegar (white or apple cider)

Directions

Preheat oven 350 degrees F.

Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder into a bowl and set aside. (**Sifting is very important here – I usually skip sifting, but I don’t skip it in this recipe because without sifting, your cupcakes won’t be fluffy and moist.)

In a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix oil, sugar, and buttermilk until combined. Add eggs, food coloring, vinegar, vanilla and water and mix well. Add the dry ingredients a little bit at a time and mix on low, scraping down sides occasionally, and mix until just combined. Be sure not to over mix, or the batter will come out tough.

Line a 16-cup cupcake pan with paper liners, scoop the batter into the liners and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 to 30 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean. Let cool

Creamy Dreamy Crean Cheese Frosting

• 2 packages of 8 oz. Cream Cheese
• 3 cups of powdered sugar
• 1 tbs of vanilla extract
• 2 Sticks of unsalted Butter

Cream together cream cheese and butter – Mix on high speed up soft and well combined

Add the powder sugar one cup at a time – mixing thoroughly after each cup

Add in the vanilla and mix well

Beat on medium high speed until desired consistency is achieved.

ENJOY!!

Lemon Berry Treats

Can someone please tell me how this summer flew by so quickly?? It’s so true that the older you get, the faster time goes. I don’t like it one bit! The only solace I find is that with the end of summer comes the arrival of Fall, which means an entirely new palette of flavors to work with. Not to mention all the holidays I will be baking for. When I think of Fall I think of carrot cake, and spice cake, and oatmeal cookies, and all sorts of “feel-good” homemade treats. While I am excited to start baking new flavors of the season, I am sad that I have to say goodbye to the whims of summer fun.

I created this recipe for Lemon Berry cupcakes because to me, it truly represents all things summer. Enjoy the recipe!

Lemon Berry Cupcakes decorated with a pink and black theme for a bridal shower.

Lemon Cupcakes (the quick version)  

1 Box of Duncan Hines Lemon Supreme Cake Mix

1/3 cup of vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 1/3 cup of water

1 lemon

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

(**For 100% homemade cupcakes, I enjoy this lemon cake recipe: http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/lemon-cream-cupcakes/Detail.aspx**)

Directions

1. Prepare the batter according to the directions on the back of the box.
2. Add 1 tsp of vanilla to the batter, mix well
3. Add ¼ cup of lemon juice
4. Add lemon zest of one medium size lemon
5. Mix all ingredients together and pour into baking cups.
6. Bake as directed on the box.

Berry Filling

1 box of strawberries (at least 15 strawberries)

1 bog of blueberries (2 ½ cups)

3 cups of sugar

¼ cup of cornstarch

Directions

1. Wash the berries
2. Cut the strawberries
3. Place berries in a bowl and mash them together (I used a potato masher)
4. Pour berries into a pan and add 3 cups of sugar.
5. Stir until combined
6. Let boil (stirring occasionally) for 7-10 minutes until it starts to thicken.
7. Turn to low heat and add cornstarch (be sure to add the cornstarch to cold water before adding it to the hot mixture – reference the directions on the side of the cornstarch box)
8. Remove from heat, let cool completely

Berry filling - yum!!

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 2 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
• 8 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar (about 2 lbs.)
• 2 tablespoons milk

 Makes: About 5 1/2 cups of icing.

 In medium mixer bowl, cream butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add sugar one cup at a time and milk. Mix well. Beat on high until smooth (only 30 seconds to 1 minute). Thin to ice cake smooth; use full strength for piping borders.

NOTE: Do not use light cream cheese or butter substitute. If margarine is used, icing will be softer.

Now, for the fun part! Use an apple corer (or a small knife) to carve out little holes in each cupcake – don’t throw away the part of the cupcake you remove, you will need to use it to fill the hole once the filling has been inserted.

Once you have a hole in each cupcake, fill the cupcake with berry filling. It is easiest to put the filling in a piping bag (a Ziploc bag will work too). Be sure you don’t  overfill the cupcakes. Once filled – cover the hole with the piece of cupcake you removed.

Pipe cream-cheese frosting on the cupcake and decorate as desired.

Cupcakes should be refrigerated.

Enjoy!! Till Next time, stay sweet. xoxo

Butternut Squash Cupcakes

Picture submitted by Adrienne and Sara - Winners of the wacky cupcake contenst!

Congrats to Adrienne and Sara who teamed up to make the winning wacky cupcake!

The duo made “Butternut Squash Cupcakes with Sage Cream-cheese Frosting” A strange bunch of ingredients for a cupcake, but the reviews said this cupcake tasted just like carrot cake. YUM!

Not only did Adrienne and Sara search out a wacky and inventive recipe, they baked them and sent in pictures! Great job Sara and Adrienne, your recipe is wacky but sounds pretty darn good.

Enjoy the recipe below from VanillaGarlic.com ( http://www.vanillagarlic.com/2006/10/butternut-squash-cupcakes-with-sage.html)

Butternut Squash Cupcakes
Makes about 24 cupcakes
(Adapted from MarthaStewart.com)

These cupcakes make me think of Fall - they would make a great lunch box treat for those heading back to school!

What You’ll Need…
1 large butternut squash (for 2 cups of puree)
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup softened butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups of flour

What You’ll Do…
1) Quarter and seed the squash. Place in a dish with 1/4 cup of water and bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cool, scoop out (no skins!) then puree in a food processor or blender.

2) In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and nutmeg. Set aside.

3) In a large bowl, whisk together sugars, eggs, and butter. Add dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Whisk in butternut puree.

4) Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake at 350 until tops spring back when touched, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18-22 minutes. Rotate pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack to let cool.

Sage Cream Cheese Frosting
(This makes a lot; freeze the rest and use it for bagels or fruit. Throw in the fridge to thaw when ready for use.)

What You’ll Need…
1 bunch of sage
3 tablespoons of water
3 tablespoons of granulated sugar
12 ounces of cream cheese
1/2 cup of butter
3 cups powdered sugar

What You’ll Do…
1. Bring cheese and butter to room temperature.

2. Heat sugar and water in a small pan under medium heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved.

3. Chop up the sage and add to the sugar and let boil over medium-low heat for 3 to 5 minutes or until the mixture is syrupy. Set aside to cool.

4. Sift powdered sugar into a bowl or onto parchment.

5. Beat butter and cheese at medium speed until creamy.

6. Add half of the sugar and the sage syrup. Beat until combined.

7. Gradually add remaining sugar. Spread onto cupcakes and sprinkle on allspice if desired.

Bittersweet Cupcakes

 I recently baked strawberry supreme cupcakes and old-fashion vanilla cupcakes.

I knew I didn’t have time to make the batter from scratch, especially on a week night, so I used box cake (I know, I can hear the gasps now). I altered it though, and I was happy to find that they turned out fabulous!

“Semi-Homemade” Strawberry Cupcakes

 1 Box of Duncan Hines Strawberry Cake Mix

 1 cup of finely diced strawberries

 2 tsp of strawberry flavoring

 1 tsp of pink food coloring

Make the batter according to the directions on the box

Add in diced strawberries – mix well

Add extra flavoring and food coloring – mix well

For the icing, I used my recipe for butter-cream icing. Feel free to use whichever homemade frosting you like most. It’s important to have homemade icing though, it counteracts the “box cake “ 🙂

Old-Fashion Vanilla Cupcakes

 1 Box of Duncan Hines Vanilla Cake Mix

 1 tsp vanilla extract

 2 tbsp of water (in addition to what the box calls for)

Bake according to box direction – Add frosting. I suggest cream-cheese or chocolate.

Pretty In Pink Cupcakes! Good Luck Erin!!

Now enjoy the cupcakes that took you half the time to bake but taste just as fabulous!

Cupcakes are the sweetest gift you could give someone. It shows them you took the time out of your day to bake them something –and seriously, who doesn’t LOVE cupcakes??

Enjoy the tricks, and don’t think that cupcakes are only for birthdays. Cupcakes are good all year round!

Til next time, stay sweet. xoxo