Tag Archives: recipe

The BEST Chocolate Cut-out Cookies Ever!!

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Ruthanne

They taste…like rich chocolate brownies. They cut…perfectly, no refrigeration needed. The recipe…is so simple to make! Absolutely perfect cookies!

Well. Here we are. It has been over a month since I have posted a recipe here, and I miss you all! It’s funny how blogging creates community, isn’t it? I’ve really missed hearing from you all, and reading many of your blogs!

So, what have I been doing? These cookies are more than just a recipe- they tell the story of summer in Eastern and Central Europe, and they tell the story of new chapter in my life.

For those of you who have followed Easybaked for years, you know I spent most of my life working in the field of medicine. You also know that I spent most of last year in Arizona, working with a small church on the Navajo Nation~ a journey and experience I absolutely LOVED.

When my time drew to a close with the Navajo, I wondered if I’d return to medicine, but God had other plans, and I was invited to join a mission organization called Josiah Venture as their Intern Coordinator. Josiah Venture’s vision is to be a movement of God among the young people of Eastern and Central Europe, that finds its home in the local church and transforms society. We have missionaries in 14 countries, and this summer there were over 100 college age interns sent to help local churches host camps and outreach events in their cities. My job is to recruit, resource and prepare these interns to go each year.

I’ve spent the 1st part of this year training for this position and raising the financial support I need to be able to do this job full-time. I was able to be in the Czech Republic at the end of May to welcome this year’s interns. It was incredible to see so many young people giving up their summer to serve God overseas. I loved it!

Each year, Josiah Venture has a theme for the summer camps hosted by local churches. This year it was “You are Here”. The logo was a Metro map. They used #urhere on Instagram and Twitter to connect people, and if you visit these hashtags you will see incredible testimonies of God’s faithfulness this summer!

I was invited to a cookout this summer with some missionaries visiting the US from Slovakia. I was asked to bring dessert- because when you have a baking blog, everyone asks you to bring dessert! 😉 I made these cookies for them, and they were SO much fun. I keep saying that I hate royal icing, but there are some times when it is your only option.

So… this is what I’ve been doing. It has been a struggle to keep baking and sharing with you all because it has been such a busy summer with so much travel. I keep telling myself that Easybaked is a HOBBY, and I am allowed to take a break for awhile. But I will be back- I promise! My head is swimming with new ideas 🙂

Before I share this recipe, I want to ask a favor. If you are reading this post, and you are a follower of Christ that wants to see the incredible news of God’s love shared around the world, would you consider becoming a part of my support team? I am slated to begin this position on September 1st and I am not fully funded yet- but I’m SO close! I am looking for people who are able to give toward this ministry on a monthly basis, and to pray.

If you are interested in learning more, here are a few links:

More about Josiah Venture here.

More about how to become a part of this ministry (and how to contact me with questions) here.

More about summer internships for college students interested in missions here.

More about me (my personal/ ministry blog) here.

Thank you dear followers, fellow bloggers, and friends. I have been asking God fervently to provide what I need before September 1, and who knows? Maybe he will answer my prayers through you!!!

Now, that cookie recipe!

It is the best cut-out cookie recipe ever. Plus it’s chocolate, which is bonus in my book!

I’ve shared this recipe many, many times on this blog. I’ve added espresso to the recipe for the delicious cookies posted above, I’ve made them into cookie cups to be filled with all sort of sweet happiness, and I’ve even made them into cookie lollipops. I don’t even feel bad re-sharing this recipe with you because it is one I keep returning to as a staple for so many ideas.

I simply cut this particular batch into squares, and decorated them using royal icing (click here for icing recipe) with the actual camp logo as a guide!

Here’s the cookie recipe (printer friendly recipe -by the way, this says to chill the dough, but you definitely don’t need to. Experimentation has proved otherwise! :))

INGREDIENTS: (makes 30-32 medium square cookies)

2 sticks (1 cup) butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Add butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and cocoa together in large mixing bowl.
Blend on medium speed with a mixer until smooth.
Gradually add dry ingredients and mix until smooth (use clean hands at the end, to knead into a soft ball of dough)
Roll out cookie dough on floured counter. I like them fairly thick.
Cut into squares and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 11 minutes until the edges are firm.
Gently slide parchment paper off of cookie sheet and onto a flat surface.
Frost as desired. A simple powdered sugar glaze would be delicious on these, or if you want to get fancy, use royal icing to create whatever your heart desires!

I hope you enjoy these delicious little cookies! Thank you for letting me share with you a little beyond the recipe today! *hugs* ~r

Here’s a few more of my non-baking stories from the past 2 years!

7 Comments

Posted in Cookies, Uncategorized and tagged best, chocolate, cookies, cut-out cookies, dessert, Josiah Venture, mission internships, missions, outreach, recipe, royal icing, summer camps. Bookmark the permalink.

Key Lime Cookie Bars

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Ruthanne

These delicious cookie bars have white chocolate and coconut on the bottom and key lime pie filling with whipped cream on top. Such a refreshing treat for summer!

I love key lime pie. I love cookies. These smash those two worlds together into a sweet and tart summer dessert! Love it!

Here’s how we made it: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Cookie base:

1 box of yellow cake mix
1/3c. oil
2 eggs
1 cup of white chocolate chips
1 cup of shredded coconut
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

Key lime topping:

1 cup of lime juice
1 egg
1 can (14oz) of sweetened condensed milk
One tub of cool whip, or 2 cups of whipping cream, whipped.

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees
In a mixing bowl, combine cake mix, oil and eggs well.
Add chips, coconut and graham crumbs, and mix together with clean hands until well- combined.
Press mixture into a greased cake pan and bake for 10 minutes at 350F degrees.
While this is baking, make key lime topping.
Mix together lime juice, condensed milk and one egg until well combined.
Pour over partially baked cookies and return to oven for another 20 minutes.
Cool completely and top with whipped topping, sprinkle with graham crumbs, if desired.
Chill until serving, but allow dessert to return to room temperature before serving.
Enjoy!

My thoughts: Sweet and fruity and white chocolatey….what is not to like here??? I love the sweet and tart balance of these little desserts and they just LOOK like summer! Enjoy! ~r

Other refreshing summer treats: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

6 Comments

Posted in Cookies, Pies and tagged coconut, coconut cookie bar, cookie bars, dessert, key lime, key lime cookie, key lime pie filling, recipe, summer, whiiped topping, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Ruthanne

Filled with cream and topped with rich chocolate, these cupcakes capture all the delicious flavor of a Boston Cream Pie in a single-serving form! Easy and soooo yummy!

I’ve never understood why they call it a pie, when it is SO obviously a cake, but Boston Cream Pie is one of my favorite desserts. There’s something about that filling that makes it so moist and flavorful!

These little creations are as easy as can be because they use a cake mix and instant pudding. Easy and delicious!!

Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed yellow cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
One packet of Jell-O White Chocolate Instant Pudding (plus milk to make according to package)
One cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 Tablespoons of butter
Cool Whip, or Butter Cream frosting (1 stick of (softened)butter with 3/4 cups of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla)
24 red Sixlets candies (as desired for decoration)

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package and divide into 24 cupcake liners placed in tins. Bake according to package, and cool.
Make pudding according to package and spoon into a large zip-top bag. Refrigerate until use.
Make chocolate sauce by melting chocolate chips and butter together in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between, until melted and smooth.
If you are making butter cream for the top (this gives you a swirl on top that is more firm for transporting than Cool Whip): Beat together the butter cream ingredients until they are light and fluffy.
Place either Cool Whip or butter cream in a zip-top bag fitted with a decorative tip.
To assemble: use a cupcake corer (or a knife) to remove a core out of the center of each cooled cupcake.
Cut the tip off the bag containing the pudding and pipe a dollop of pudding into the center of each cupcake.

Trim the “core” a little bit (makes room for the pudding) and place the top of the core back on, covering the pudding with cake.
Carefully spoon the warm chocolate over the top of each cupcake, gently pushing it toward the sides, but not over the sides.
Allow chocolate to cool. It will firm up.
Once it is completely cool, pipe Cool Whip or butter cream in a little swirl on top.
Decorate using sixlets (or any other sprinkles or decorations you like!)
Enjoy!

My thoughts: These really are delicious… I try to only “taste” my treats and give the rest away, but you better believe I finished this little cupcake…with a cup of coffee. Yum! I hope you get a chance to try them too! ~r

Here are some other fun uses for pudding! Click on a photo to see the recipe.

5 Comments

Posted in Cakes, Cupcakes and tagged best cupcakes, boston cream pie cupcakes, buttercream frosting, chocolate, chocolate glaze, cupcake, cupcakes, dessert, easy dessert, easy filled cupcakes, filled cupcake, pudding, recipe, white chocolate pudding. Bookmark the permalink.

Fire Cracker Cookies!!

Posted on June 26, 2015 by Ruthanne

These fun little fire cracker cookies have a crackling surprise inside– pop rock candy! A perfect treat for your Fourth of July celebrations!!!

I can’t believe it’s almost July already- this summer is passing too fast…! These cookies were a HUGE hit among my friends- the experience of eating a cookie that is popping in your mouth is truly a unique one, and everyone was a huge fan!

I adore sugar cookies…especially in the summer. They are so…expected at Christmas- but the 4th of July? Such a fun treat! These are easy to make and cut just beautifully. The dipping in candy melts takes a little time, but the end result is just so fun!

Here’s how we made these: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS: (makes about 60 circles that end up at 20 completed cookies)

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 teaspoon of butter flavoring
3 cups of flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
3 bags of Wilton Candy Melts in red, white and blue
Star sprinkles
3 packets of Pop Rocks in any flavor
String licorice (or the pull-apart kind works too)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth.
Add eggs, vanilla and butter flavoring and mix well.
Add all dry ingredients and mix until able to knead into a firm ball of dough (add additional flour if necessary).
Roll out on a floured counter with a flour coated rolling pin to desired thickness (I made them fairly thick)
Cut about 60 circles using a cookie cutter (I used a 1″ cookie cutter)
Use a smaller circle cutter to cut out a center circle from 20 of these cookies.
Place cookies on cookie sheets covered in parchment paper and bake at 350F degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.
Slide baked cookies and parchment paper together onto a counter to cool completely.
Melt candy melts in microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between until smooth.
Dip 1/3 of cookies into blue melts first and allow them to harden slightly before setting a snip of licorice on top. You may need to experiment with this a bit. The melts need to be soft enough to stick the licorice in, and hard enough to hold it upright.
Dip remaining cookies- 1/3 into red and 1/3 into white melts (add star sprinkles on the sides of the white cookies) and allow them to harden completely.
Put the cookies together by piping or spreading a little white candy melt on the bottom of the white piece and setting it on the red. Fill the open spot in the white cookie with pop rocks, pipe or spread a little white candy melt on the top ring of the white cookie and set the blue cookie on the very top. Allow cookies to harden together. Enjoy!!

My thoughts: These take a little time, but they are genuinely fun to make and SO fun to serve! I loved the giggles at those surprise Pop Rocks in the middle!!! I hope you get a chance to try them!!!

Other fun summer cookie recipes: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

1 Comment

Posted in Cookies and tagged cookies, cookies for kids, dessert, firecrackers, fourth of July, fun, independence day, patriotic, pop rocks, recipe, stars and stripes, Wilton candy melts. Bookmark the permalink.

Fishing Pond Cupcakes

Posted on June 19, 2015 by Ruthanne

These delicious chocolate cupcakes are filled with a blue frosting “pond” and salty goldfish crackers! A perfect treat for the fish (or fishing!) lovers in your life!

We have a fishing theme on Easybaked these past few weeks. Last week I shared my fishing bobbers and this week a cute little fishing pond! I cannot underestimate the yummy sweet and salty combination of these cupcakes! Those goldfish are a perfect little bite of salt- and simply adorable! These are cute for Father’s day or Birthdays~ and you can even add a few little flower sprinkles for the girls in your life that adore their goldfish!

These are easy-peasy to make, they use a boxed cake mix and a tub of frosting (although, if you are an over-achiever you certainly could do both from scratch!)

Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed chocolate cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
Two tubs of white frosting
About 2 cups of green sugar crystals
One bag of Goldfish Baby crackers (they are smaller than the original crackers)
Green and blue food coloring gels

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package and bake in 24 cupcake liners set in a baking tin. Cool completely.
Open one tub of frosting, spoon it into a bowl, heat it for about 15 seconds in the microwave to soften it a little and color it green with food color.
Open the second tub of frosting spoon it into a bowl, heat it for about 15 seconds in the microwave to soften it a little and color it blue with food color. Spoon it into a zip-top bag and set aside.
Pour green sugar into a small bowl.
To assemble: Cut a pond-shaped circle hole into the top of each cupcake using a small knife and pull out the core.
Dip the top of the cupcake into the green frosting and then into the green sugar, coating it completely.
Cut a corner off the bag holding the blue frosting and pipe it into the pond opening on the top of the cupcake.
Add a couple of goldfish and flower sprinkles if desired –and enjoy!!!

My thoughts: How fun!!! I hope you get a chance to make these cute little cupcakes for your next “fishy” get-together ~ maybe this weekend at the lake cottage??? ~Enjoy!!!

Need some other fun summer ideas? We have lots of them! Click on a photo to see the recipe:

3 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged baby goldfish crackers, best, chocolate, cupcakes, Father's Day, fish cupcakes, fishing pond cupcakes, frosting, fun, goldfish crackers, lake vacation recipe, recipe, summer. Bookmark the permalink.

Fishing Bobber Cupcakes!

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Ruthanne

If your dad loves fishing, these fun bobbers on waves of blue buttercream frosting will make him smile!

A perfect Father’s Day treat!

The idea for this recipe began last year before Father’s Day. I was pondering the idea of cutting a hole in the top of a cupcake and finding (or making) an edible golf ball to set inside of it. One morning the lightbulb came on: Lindt White Chocolate Truffles! They were perfect, and as I unwrapped all that yummy chocolate I brainstormed for other ideas.

One of those ideas was another Father’s Day treat- fishing bobbers! I filed the idea away until this year came around and then gave it a go. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to dip the truffle in warm chocolate without it melting, and if it would actually look like a bobber– but I love them! My dad loved them too.

Here’s how we made these yummy treats for dad: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
Blue food coloring gel
2 sticks (one cup) of salted butter
2 sticks (one cup) of unsalted butter
3 cups of powdered sugar
2 teaspoons of clear vanilla flavoring
24 Lindt white chocolate truffles
One bag of Wilton candy melts in red

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package.
Divide out about 1/3 of batter and color it blue
Swirl the 2 colors together (don’t mix too much!) and scoop into 24 cupcake liners placed in a baking tin.
Bake according to package and cool cupcakes completely
Make frosting by placing butters, powdered sugar and vanilla into a large bowl and beating on high until light and fluffy.
Divide frosting in half and color one half blue. Swirl together the blue and white frosting and place into a large zip-top bag, fitted with a decorating tip.
Pipe frosting on top of cupcakes.
To make toppers: Unwrap all Lindt truffles.
Melt red candy melts in a bowl in the microwave for 30 second increments, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.
Allow candy melts to cool a little before dipping.
Use a small skewer or fork to dip each truffle into red candy melts, covering the bottom half in red. Place these on clean parchment paper to cool and harden.

Place remaining melted red chocolate into a small zip-top bag. Clip a corner and carefully pipe a small circle of red on the top of each “bobber”, covering the hole made by the skewer used for dipping.
Once “bobbers” are completely cooled and hardened, place them on the top of each cupcake and enjoy!!!

My thoughts: I really have the most incredible dad. He is funny (hilarious!) and smart and brave. He loves golf (last year’s cupcakes) and he loves fishing (this year’s cupcakes)~ he goes to Canada every summer to fish for GIANT Walleye and Pike and then he fries them up for us all when he gets back- and they are delicious! He does roll his eyes when I say that I like bobber fishing best….but in any case, these are for you dad! I love you!!!!!!!

Need more ideas for your Father’s Day celebration? Try some of these! (click on a photo to see the recipe)

5 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged best, chocolate truffles, cupcakes, dessert, desserts for dad, edible fishing bobber, Father's Day, Fathers Day cupcakes, fishing bobber cupcakes, fishing cupcakes, fishing dessert, fun, lindt chocolate, lindt white chocolate, recipe, summer, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Pecan Praline Cupcakes

Posted on June 5, 2015 by Ruthanne

If you love pralines, you will love these pecan praline cupcakes with delicious homemade pralines on top!

Two desserts in one!

I’m a huge fan of pecan pralines. Our family has often traveled to the southeast part of the US and there’s just nothing better than a still-warm praline in Charleston or Savannah… YUM! I’ve always wanted to try making homemade pralines, but I’ve never had a good recipe. Last month, we visited family friends, Dave and MaryAnne, and Dave told us he has the BEST pecan praline recipe. He whipped some up for us and oh my…. He shared his recipe and I had the idea to carry some of those flavors over into cupcakes.

Really, these two desserts stand alone, but are especially fun together!

Let’s start with those pralines (printable recipe):

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups of sugar
1 1/4 cups of hot water
1 1/4 cups of chopped pecans
24-36 pecan halves
1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar
1 teaspoon of maple extract

DIRECTIONS:

Use oil or butter to coat a mini muffin tin well.
Place all ingredients (except the whole pecans) into a large saucepan and heat over stove, stirring occasionally, until it reaches 234F degrees.
Remove from heat and stir for 5-8 minutes until the candy loses it’s glossy look and gets more cloudy and granular.
Spoon (carefully!!!) into well- greased muffin tin.
Press a pecan half into the top of each praline and allow to cool.
When cooled, tip onto clean surface and ENJOY!

Now for those cupcakes…..! (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Cupcakes:

2 1/2 cups flour
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
3 eggs
1 teaspoons of vanilla
2 teaspoons of maple flavoring
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup of chopped pecans (as desired)

Praline Buttercream frosting:

1/2 cup brown sugar (firmly packed)
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 sticks (one cup) butter
5 cups powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS: (start the frosting first, as it needs to cool before beating)

Cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tins with 24-30 cupcake liners
In a large bowl, use a mixer to cream together the sugar and butter for about 3 minutes until light and fluffy.
Add eggs once at a time until incorporated and then mix in vanilla and maple flavoring.
In a different large bowl mix together the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add flour mixture to the sugar and butter, alternating with the cream.
Stir in pecans.
Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full and bake for 15-18 min. Be careful to not over-bake.
Cool in pan for a few minutes before removing to finish cooling on the counter.

Frosting:

In a small sauce pan, heat brown sugar, cream and 2 tablespoons of butter on medium heat, stirring often, until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and cool completely.
In a large bowl, beat together the cooled brown sugar mixture with remaining butter until smooth.
Add powdered sugar and beat on high until light and fluffy.
Place in a zip-top bag fitted with a decorator’s tip, and pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes.
Top with a praline- or even a pecan half instead.
Enjoy!!

My thoughts: These are perfectly wonderful together in one beautiful dessert, or they can be made as individual recipes. Either way, if you love pecan pralines, you will love these yummy treats! Enjoy! ~r

Other fun cupcake recipes from Easybaked (click on the photo to see the recipe):

6 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged best, brown sugar, brownsugar frosting, cupcakes, dessert, fun cupcakes, pecan cupcakes, pecan praline cupcakes, pecan pralines, pecans, praline frosting, pralines, recipe, sweet, unique cupcakes. Bookmark the permalink.

Banana Split Cupcakes!

Posted on May 29, 2015 by Ruthanne

Do you like banana split sundaes? If so, you will love these little cupcake treats- tasty and oh, so cute!!

I love going out for ice cream- not the soft-serve window kind, but the sit-down in a cute parlor with a million combinations of ice creams and toppings to decide from kind. I usually skip the banana split, because I’m not a huge fan of bananas unless they are in bread (or, in this case a cupcake!). Banana splits are the gold-standard of ice cream though- they have that sundae “look” to them. They are pretty.

I wanted to capture the look, and flavor of a sundae in these cupcakes and I love how they turned out! YUM!!!!

A few months ago I made Root Beer Float Cupcakes using scoops of Cool Whip as ice cream. They were so easy and cute and DELICIOUS, that I used the same idea here~ with banana cupcakes and a yummy strawberry ice-cream-topping filling!

Want to try them? Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed banana cake mix (I used Duncan Hines), plus water, oil and eggs to make according to box.
1 stick (1/2 cup) of salted butter (softened)
1 stick (1/2 cup) of unsalted butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
2 teaspoons of strawberry flavoring
2 tubs of Cool Whip (frozen)
One jar of strawberry ice cream topping
One bottle of chocolate “shell” ice cream topping
1/2 cup of chopped pecans
Sprinkles and spoons (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package and bake in 24 cupcake liners in muffin tins.
Make frosting by combining butters, powdered sugar and strawberry flavoring in a large bowl and beating on high until light and fluffy. Place in a zip-top bag, fitted with a decorating tip.
When cupcakes are cool, remove a core from the center using a knife or a cupcake corer. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of strawberry ice cream topping into the middle (you could use pineapple here too, if you wanted) Place “top” of core back on cupcake.
Use a cookie scoop or a small ice cream scoop to scoop frozen Cool Whip onto the top of one cupcake. Immediately pipe frosting around the edges of the scoop to hold it in place. Keep cupcakes chilled as soon as they are frosted, and keep your second tub of Cool Whip in the freezer until ready to use.
Once all cupcakes are frosted, drizzle them with chocolate shell- this makes a little bit of a mess, but I just dropped them into a second cupcake liner to catch the drips 🙂

Immediately sprinkle with nuts and decorations.
Keep cupcakes refrigerated until serving.
Enjoy!!!

My thoughts: These are a little more time consuming that your average cupcake– but look at how fun they are!! The flavors and textures are just perfect too- that cold Cool Whip and those crunchy nuts with the banana cupcakes… YUM! I really hope you get a chance to try these little treats! ~r

Other ice cream- inspired treats here at Easybaked: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

7 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged banana cupcakes, banana split cupcakes, banana split dessert, chocolate, cool whip, cupcakes, dessert, fun summer dessert recipe, ice cream, ice cream sundae cupcakes, pecans, recipe, summer dessert, sundae cupcakes, unique dessert. Bookmark the permalink.

Watermelon Cupcakes

Posted on May 22, 2015 by Ruthanne

What could be a better picnic treat than these sweet watermelon cupcakes~ covered in “ants” and filled with chocolate chip seeds???

These are so fun to make- and watching people’s surprise at that filling is fun too! My favorite comment? “Oh my, this tastes like WATERMELON!” Um…yes. It does. *smile*

This recipe uses a cake pop maker. I hesitantly purchased one a few years back to make a polka dot cake, and I thought I’d end up selling it on a garage sale after that one use. NOT SO!!! I love it! So many possibilities! I just made fun little pancake balls the other day for breakfast- not to mention all the yummy recipes we have done here with it! Get a cake pop maker!! (or, if you must, make your pink centers in mini muffin tins. Just know that you are missing out on some serious fun!)

I also used fondant on the top of these cupcakes. I know that for many of you, this step is a tedious one and I say frost these cupcakes however you like! Green frosting, pink frosting with sprinkles of mini chips….whatever! Just don’t miss out on that fun center!

Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed white cake mix (with water, oil and eggs to make according to box)
One small packet of watermelon Kool-Aid drink mix
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 stick of salted butter
1 stick of unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
2 teaspoons of clear vanilla
Green, Pink, and Black Food Color Gels
One box of Wilton fondant in white (or make your own, using my recipe)

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package
Remove one cup of batter and place in a separate bowl.
Add 1/2 a packet of Watermelon Kool-Aid powder (use more or less to taste)
Add pink color gel to intensify the color to desired shade
Mix in mini chocolate chips.
Bake in cakepop maker (or use a small mini-muffin tin), making 24 cake pops (or mini-muffins)

Add green color gel to remaining batter, mixing well.
Spoon a little green batter into a cupcake liner, placed in a cupcake tin.
Place pink cake pop on top.
Spoon green batter over the top, covering the cake pop. Use less, rather than more batter here- if you use too much it will bake over the edges.
Bake at 350F degrees for 15-18 minutes.
Cool completely.
Make frosting by placing butters, powdered sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beating on high for 3-4 minutes until very light and fluffy.
Color frosting green, if desired, and set aside.
IF you use fondant, color a batch with green color gel (leave out a little bit to make ants if desired), cut into circles that fit the top of your cupcakes using a round cookie cutter. Keep circles covered to prevent drying.
Working one cupcake at a time, spread frosting and then gently lay fondant on top of frosting and press edges down inside of cupcake liner.
Use dark green color gel with a little water (think watercolor paints) to paint on watermelon stripes.
Color remaining fondant black and roll into 3 small balls to stick together as an ant on each cupcake. use a toothpick or small brush to paint little ant legs under each ant.

***If you have used fondant before, this should all be easy, but if this is your 1st time and you are wondering what I mean by things like “color fondant”, see my tutorial on making and using fondant here. You’ll make your ants like the caterpillars shown in the tutorial.***

My thoughts… These are really fun little cupcakes. I’m not a huge fan of watermelon flavor, but only the center is flavored and for me it was the perfect little surprise “pop” of flavor. You could certainly add Kool-Aid to your frosting too- it will just end up being a little pink, rather than green.

Nothing says SUMMER like watermelon~ enjoy these little cupcakes at YOUR next summer celebration!! ~r

Other ways to use that cake pop machine you just got 😉 (click on a photo to see the recipe)

2 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged best, cake pop machine, cake pops, chocolate chips, cupcakes, filled cupcakes, fondant, fun, Kool-Aid dessert, Kool-Aid recipe, picnic treats, recipe, Summer recipe, watermelon, watermelon cupcakes, Watermelon Kool-Aid. Bookmark the permalink.

Cupcakes for Puppies!!!

Posted on May 15, 2015 by Ruthanne

These delicious little peanut butter cupcakes are a yummy treat for puppies and people!

(Just don’t sprinkle the people-ones with dog treats!)

So, I have this dog named Casper.

He was an answer to prayer 6 years ago and he has been making me smile and cheering my heart ever since. His 6th birthday is coming up in June and I wanted to celebrate with a dessert made just for him. I took my peanut butter cookie recipe (which is delightfully simple, using pup-friendly ingredients) and scooped it into mini-muffin tins to bake. They bake up into adorable little bite-size treats. I topped the puppy ones with whipped cream and puppy treats. Then I added a little chocolate on top of the “human” variety.

Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS: (makes 24-30 mini cupcakes)

1c. creamy peanut butter
1c. sugar
1 egg

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Mix peanut butter, sugar and eggs together in a mixing bowl.
Use a medium size cookie scoop to scoop dough into mini cupcake liners placed in a mini cupcake tin.
Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes. Cool completely.
Serve plain, or top with a little whipped cream and dog treats (for dogs)
I like a little chocolate with my peanut butter (for humans ONLY though- chocolate makes puppies sick!)
Enjoy! (and help your pup with that paper wrapper!)

Just like that, his “pupcake” is gone! (he needed a little help with the paper wrapper…)

Then we played with the extra whipped cream a little bit…just for fun.

Love him!!!!!

My thoughts: Easy, fun and yummy for both you and your furry friends. Casper and I shared these with both human and puppy friends and they were a hit! There are only 3 basic ingredients in these, but you’ll want to make sure that neither dog nor human have allergies to them before serving! ~Enjoy!!!