20 Cadbury Egg Cupcakes

...and 4 Chocolaty Ones

The Story of a Cupcake's Journey to Conner

So a few things have led me to make these cupcakes. First, I love Cadbury Creme Eggs, and honestly, who doesn't. Before Easter, there were recipes for these all over Pinterest. I wanted to make these like crazy, but I was smart about it (and patient for once). I waited until after Easter for the post-holiday sales. I grabbed up a ton of Cadbury Eggs and then, literally, 5 dozen mini eggs at 75% off. Conner, one of my awesome friends, has yet to be graced by the deliciousness of one of my cupcakes. Because I'm very confident that these cupcakes can survive a few days in a taped up box, I'm mailing one to him. I'm kind of excited about it. I want to see how well my little cupcake does in the mail for future reference for long distance friends, and I'm excited for Conner to try a delicious homemade cupcake.

Freezy Cadbury Eggs

Normally, when I bake cupcakes, it's pretty spontaneous. Like I mentioned before, I've been reading the recipes for different variations of these cupcakes for weeks now. Even though this particular recipe doesn't mention it, I unwrapped a bunch of big eggs the night before and put them in the freezer so they would stay more egg-shaped after they were in the oven. It seemed to have worked pretty well. In my never ending quest to bake cupcakes with little mess and less dishes (even though we have a dishwasher), I was excited to see that I could make these cupcakes in one bowl. I would recommend mixing these in a large measuring cup. The batter is really thin and it would have been easier to just pour it into the cupcake cups, than spooning it in. I ran out of frozen eggs, so I just made a few plain chocolate cupcakes. A lot of my cupcakes baked over, so, if anything, put in less batter. They baked for about 23 minutes, a little longer than the suggested 15-20 minutes. Just keep an eye on them. You can't stick a toothpick in them to see if they're done since the Cadbury Eggs are in them. To see if they're done, touch the tops of the cupcakes and if they spring back, they're ready!

This icing is just another simple butter cream. I have made butter cream icing a thousand times before. Normally, I pretty much just dump everything into the mixer and let it rip. But, as always, I followed the recipe to the letter. The consistency of this icing was perfect. When I piped it onto the cupcakes, it came out so smoothly. I just unwrapped a bunch of mini Cadbury Eggs, stuck them on top, and that was that.

These definitely weren't the prettiest cupcakes I've made. They weren't my favorite either. The chocolate cake was good, not anything to brag about. The bigger sized eggs made it look cool, but it was kind of difficult to eat. The egg breaks apart and it's pretty sticky. I'd try using the mini eggs. It would probably cut down on the stickiness and definitely make it easier to eat. Despite the cupcakes not being what I wanted, the icing was the best butter cream I have ever made. It was buttery more than sugary. I don't like really, really sweet icing. It was amazing. Maybe it was how the recipe said to mix it. Whatever it was, it worked magic.

Regardless of what I think of these cupcakes, I sent the single pioneer cupcake off this morning. I promised Conner a Cadbury Egg cupcake, so that's what he's going to get. I got a little box from my Nanny to pack everything up in. First, I wrapped up the cupcake in press-and-seal wrap (my mom swears by the stuff). Then, I put all the left over icing in a sandwich bag. I know it's way more than he needs, but I was just going to throw it away anyhow. Everything got tied up with ribbons. I threw in a whole pack of the mini eggs and 2 big ones, since I have quite a surplus right now.  Finally, I wrote him exact instructions on a card. Then, I said goodbye to my little cupcake and wished it best of luck of its long journey to the outer edges of Pennsylvania. The box got taped up and I wrote his and my addresses on it. Lastly, $5 and some odd cents later, I dropped the package off at the post office before work. I will never see it again. I'm hoping that the often not so gentle hands of the United States Postal Service will take good care of my little cupcake on it's way to Conner's house.

...One Day Later

So, it's Thursday, I'm sitting in my car, getting ready to head home from work, and I got a text. It was Conner! He already got his cupcake. Great job Post Office!! The cupcake made it intact. According to Conner, it was just as fresh as the day it left my house. I can't put on here the exact words he texted me about the cupcake, but I think if I just say that he really, really loved it, that would about sum it up.

Cupcake, icing, instructions, and extra Cadbury Eggs
all arrived safe and sound.

I'm really glad that this went so well. I can't wait to send my next cupcake care package.

Lots of Icing

Cupcake Ingredients

3/4 c cocoa powder

1 1/2 c flour

1 1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

2 eggs

3/4 c warm water

3/4 c buttermilk

3 Tbsp safflower oil

1 tsp vanilla

about 24 Cadbury Creme Eggs

Cupcake How to

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

3. Add eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. Mix until smooth, for about 3 minutes. Scrape down sides and bottom to assure batter is mixed well.

4. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling them 1/2 full for full sized eggs and 3/4 full for mini eggs. Add Cadbury Eggs.

5. Bake until tops spring back when touched. 15-20 minutes.

6. Allow to cool.

Into the oven!

Icing Ingredients

1 1/2 c unsalted butter

4 c powdered sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Icing How to

1. Beat butter on medium-high for 2 minutes

2. Reduce speed to medium. Add sugar 1/2 c at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping bowl as needed; after every 2 additions, raise speed to high and beat 10 seconds to aerate the frosting. This should take about 5 minutes. Frosting will be pale and fluffy.

3. Add vanilla and beat until smooth.

18 Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes

So for three weeks now, I have promised my handbell choir cupcakes. We practice on a Wednesday, and because of a necessary work schedule switch, I had this Tuesday off. It was the perfect chance to bake these for them.

A few things for when you're grocery shopping for these cupcakes: First, the recipe calls for citrus olive oil. I couldn't find it at the three grocery stores I looked at, so I just used regular olive oil. Also, you need 1/4 cup of orange juice. I bought these giant oranges. They took forever to zest for the batter, but they had the perfect amount of juice. If you buy smaller oranges, you might want to have some orange juice on hand just in case you don't get enough fresh stuff. When you beat the butter, sugar, and oil, check that the butter doesn't clump up on the beater. Even though it takes a long time, zest the whole orange. It's what really gives your cupcakes that orange kick. Be careful not to get orange seeds in the fresh squeezed juice. My hands turned orange from juicing them. Proof they paint the oranges! When you alternate adding the dry ingredients with the milk and orange juice mixture, make sure that you scrape the bowl after each time you add the dry ingredients. This comes up in a lot of recipes. I add the dry ingredients, mix it for a little, then scrape the bowl, and mix it again. This batter ends up on the thicker side. It's just how I like it to be. It makes perfectly domed cupcakes. They were so pretty when they came out of the oven. They only stayed in for 3 extra minutes until they were fully done.

The cake batter even looks orange!

The second part of these cupcakes is a marshmallow creme filling. The creme itself is super easy to make. After I read the recipe, I was expecting it to be runnier, but it's just like a fluffier, airier version of marshmallow fluff. To cut the cones into the tops of the cupcakes, I used an apple corer. I didn't use my cupcake corer because, for these cupcakes, you're not really looking to fill your them. So instead, I just dug into the tops of each cupcake with the apple corer tilted at an angle. I dumped out all the extra crumbs, so there was as much space as possible to hold the creme. The recipe also warns not to add too much. I used to teaspoon to scoop up some filling, and a second spoon to scrape it off the first and into the cupcakes. There were little mountains of fluff on the top of the cupcakes and it all worked out just fine.

For the icing, I put the butter into the mixer with the whisk attachment. I cranked it up of high and then loaded the dishwasher. It was the perfect amount of time to make the butter really fluffy. I only used the juice from half of the orange. If you use more, you'll have to add more powdered sugar. Simple enough. The color was more on the yellowy side. Next time I make these, I'll add orange food color just for the effect.

I was really sceptical about these. I'm not really big on zest in my cupcakes. There's just something off about the texture of it. These were not zesty at all. When I first took a bite, you definitely got the orange flavor. It wasn't overwhelming. The cake was the perfectly dense and airy at the same time. Then after that, you get the creamy taste from the filling. It doesn't taste like marshmallows at all. These cupcakes would be excellent for a summertime. Bring on the sunshine!

Cupcake Ingredients
1/2 c unsalted butter
2 Tbsp citrus olive oil
1 c sugar
2 Tbsp vanilla
2 eggs
zest of 1 orange
2 c all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c heavy cream
1/4 c orange juice, freshly squeezed

Cupcake How to
1. Preheat the oven to 350 and line muffin pans
2. Combine butter, olive oil, and sugar and mix on medium high speed for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs and mix about one more minute until well incorporated. Stir in orange zest.
3. In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
4. Separately combine heavy cream and orange juice.
5. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/2 of the cream mixture and repeat, finishing with the flour. Mix until just incorporated after each addition.
6. Scoop batter into prepared liners, filling them about 2/3 full. Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Cool in pans about 5 minutes and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Don't be too worried about adding
too much creme filling

Marshmallow Creme Filling Ingredients
7 oz marshmallow fluff
1/2 c unsalted butter

Marshmallow Creme Filling How to
1. Cut the butter into small pieces and add the fluff in a mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy.
2. Cut a small cone shape into the tops of each cupcake and spoon cream into the wells, allowing the cream to puddle on top slightly (Don't add too much, when you add the butter cream, it will cause the cream to move out toward the edges)

Orange Butter cream Ingredients
1/2 c unsalted butter
1/8-1/4 c orange juice, freshly squeezed
zest of 1 orange
1/4 tsp vanilla
4 c powdered sugar

Orange Butter cream How to
1. Beat the butter on medium, until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add orange juice, zest, and vanilla and mix until well combined.
2. Add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing until incorporated to reach the desired consistency. Whip on medium high speed for about 2 minutes, until smooth and creamy.
3. Transfer to a piping bag fitting with desired tip and pipe on the cupcakes.


from homeiswheretheholmansare.blogspot.com

24 2-Kiss Cupcakes

There's always baking to be done around here. After making the choice to bake earlier this week, I had a day off before undertaking in a baking marathon. I volunteered to make cupcakes for church this Sunday, so I had to pick cupcakes that were quick (since I had to help make a monster sized cake, in addition to these), and that made a decent number of treats. Conveniently enough, I just got a little book with some recipes. After much deliberation over a few different choices, I picked these.

If you have a "cupcake ready" pantry, like we do, you'll have everything, except for the Hugs. When you're adding the ingredients, pay attention to the amount that you need to add. A lot of the ingredients have their measurements divided. By some kind of miracle, considering that I was rushing to get these done before midnight, there weren't any fiascoes. These cupcakes were so easy! The recipe said that it would make 30 cupcakes. I overfilled mine a little bit. I pushed the Hugs down in the batter most of the way so only the tops were showing. They were baked perfectly after 20 minutes and none of them baked over. Only one thing to remember: when you check your cupcakes with a toothpick or cake tester to see if they're done, don't poke them right in the middle. It'll come out a little gooey if you do, because the kiss will be melty on the inside of the cupcake.

I love how these cupcakes turned out. They look really fun to begin with. They're great to have with a big glass of milk. My first impression was "Holy Chocolate!" The icing alone tastes exactly like a plain Hershey kiss. The white chocolate in the middle of the dark chocolate cupcake not only surprises your tongue, but the white against the dark cake is visually, a surprise. I couldn't get enough of the one that I let myself have. I caught myself picking crumbs off of the plate.

Don't forget to scrape down the sides of your
mixing bowl after you add the dry ingredients

Ingredients
1 c butter, softened and divided
1 2/3 c sugar
3 egg, beaten
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, divided
2 c all purpose flour
2/3 c + 1/2 c baking cocoa, divided
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/3 c water
60 Hershey's Hugs
1/3 c milk
3 1/2 c powdered sugar

Cupcake How to
1. Beat 3/4 c butter, sugar, eggs, and 1 1/2 tsp vanilla in a large bowl.
2. Combine flour, 2/3 c cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; add alternately with water to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
3. Fill paper lined muffin cups half full; place a Hug in the center of each. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean; let cool.

Surprise!!

Icing How to
1. Melt remaining 1/4 c of butter in a medium bowl. Add remain 1/4 c cocoa, milk, remaining 1 tsp vanilla, and powdered sugar; beat until smooth.
2. Spread frosting on cupcakes.
3. Top each with a Hug.

It's a candy wrapper mountain!

from Cupcakes and More Fun Treats. recipe by Athena Colegrove

24 Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes

...and 6 Lemony Cupcakes

It's been a little bit since I've baked. I've had the urge to bake for a week now and finally, I got around to it. There's no special occasion, but it'll be like a holiday to the people who get to enjoy my cupcakes.

These little guys were easy as pie... or I cakes, I guess. Advice right off the bat, do not forget to melt the butter. I did... then I added the brown sugar on top of it. I had to carefully scoop it out so I could fix my mistake.  I didn't add the pecans, since you never know who's allergic to what these days. I probably should have added more pineapple to make up for the pecans. A whole 20 ounce can of pineapple would probably have worked just fine. You might want to go light on the pineapple mixture until you have all the cupcakes filled and then go back and use the left overs. Next, the recipe says to make the lemon jello. Since it says to let it cool for 10 minutes, you might want to mix the jello first and let it chill while you finish the recipe. Even after 20 minutes of chilling in the fridge, the jello was still warm. I added it to the cake mix and other ingredients disaster free. They baked for closer to 20 minutes until they were ready to come out of the oven. The left over cake batter I just put in the cups plain. The were done in 15 minutes. I usually don't put my cupcakes on cooling racks to cool, but since the bottoms of these cupcakes are kind of wet, I put them on the racks to keep the counter from getting sticky.

That's all these cupcakes take. There's no icing, no garnish. All you need to do is flip it upside down on a plate and peel the cupcake paper off. It looks exactly like it's much larger counterpart.

An awesome cupcake disguised in a very plain way.

Ingredients

1/2 c packed brown sugar

1/4 c butter, melted

2 can (8 oz each) pineapple tidbits in juice, drained

1/2 c chopped pecans

12 maraschino cherries, halved

1 c boiling water

1 package (3 oz) lemon flavored jello

1 package yellow cake mix

4 eggs

2/3 c oil

2 tsp lemon zest

How To

1. Heat the oven to 350

2. Mix the sugar and butter in a medium bowl; stir in pineapple and nuts. Place cherry half, cut side up, in the center of each of 24 paper lined muffin cups. Cover with the pineapple mixture.

3. Add boiling water to gelatin mix; stir for 2 minutes until completely dissolved. Cool for 10 minutes.

4. Beat remaining ingredients in a large bowl with a mixer until well blended. Add elatin' mix well. Spoon over pineapple mixture (Cups will almost be completely filled)

5. Bake 15-18 minutes.