Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes

I love these cupcakes for two main reasons. One, they have Reese's peanut butter cups on them. Reese's are by far my favorite candy of all time. I ask for them every year in my Christmas stocking.  And I am currently making a Reese's cake for my friend's birthday tomorrow. I might have to make these cupcakes with the leftover candy. If there is any.

And two, I also love that The Curvy Carrot made the Reese's cups look like the cupcakes they're on. I have seen similar cupcakes on Pinterest, but I like these because the bigger cupcake kind of looks like a Reese's cup too with the black wrapper and chocolate cake. 

For the recipe and directions, head on over to The Curvy Carrot!



Holiday Cupcakes from Fields of Cake

With the Holiday season upon us... I thought I'd put together a collection of cupcakes from one of my most favorite bakers, Carrie of Fields of Cake!

Right now, Carrie is in Crete, Greece visiting her husband ( SO JEALOUS ) but will be returning back to the states in 2012 to continue her baking adventures! These are cupcakes from holiday's past and are really so stinking cute, I had to share!

Click on the links to read all about how Carrie made these cupcakes!  Recipes too!

Don't forget to check out Carrie on her blog, Facebook and Twitter!

Cinnamon White Chocolate Cupcakes

Peppermint Twist Cupcakes

Gingerbread Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Buckeye Cupcakes!

Chocolate. Peanut butter. Who could ask for anything more???

You may have heard of the term "buckeye." For instance, a cookie, or a brownie which is usually chocolate, and a lot of peanut butter inside. I decided to make this duo into a cupcake with my attempt at mile high frosting peaks.....

I made my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe, peanut butter buttercream and a special chocolate sauce that hardens when it cools. Like on ice cream cones and candies!!

These were very, I mean very, addicting. My favorite part was the frosting.

I couldn't resist....

And eating as many as I did made me a little silly with my photos of the cupcakes.....

why hello there....

Click here for the full recipe and more pictures!!

Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes

The Brown Eyed Baker said she got the idea for these chocolaty turkeys from a picture she saw on Pinterest, which I can totally understand because I'm addicted to Pinterest. She thought they'd be fun for Thanksgiving and decided to turn them into cupcakes toppers!

All you need are chocolate cupcakes, Oreos, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Whoppers, and candy corn. I think these would be so much fun to make with the family and to eat for Thanksgiving dessert!

For details and directions, check out the whole post by the Brown Eyed Baker!

Brown Sugar Pound Cupcakes

Brown sugar pound cupcakes sound so good just by themselves. I'd eat one plain, without the chocolate almond buttercream frosting, which also sounds so good by itself. I should never attempt to make these alone or I will try to eat all of it.

These fall-themed cupcakes were made by Katie at What Katie's Baking! I love the fall colored sprinkles and the pumpkin decorations on top!

Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes

I love the way these cupcakes look. They're so festive! And not only that, they're chocolate mocha cupcakes that are topped with peppermint swiss meringue buttercream, chocolate sauce, crushed peppermints, and a whole peppermint for the very top.

I am very impressed with what Bakers Royale did with these cupcakes. When it get closer to the Christmas season, I will definitely give these a try!

For all the recipes and blog post, check out Bakers Royal!

Chocolate Swirl Cupcakes

I wish I could eat one of these right now. They look so chocolaty. And who doesn't love pirouettes?

These swirled cupcakes were made by Jen at How To: Simplify. They were made by combining white cake batter and chocolate cake batter in cupcakes liners. They are topped with chocolate frosting and pirouettes cut in half. So cute!

Ghost, jack-o-lantern and chocolate turkey cupcakes

All of these cupcakes are by blogger Culinary Adventures with Julie, where you can find out more. They're pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes and you can use them for ideas for your own fall and/or Thanksgiving cupcakes.

Healthy Chocolate Frosting!



Healthy chocolate frosting? Is this real life? Yes! It is!

Katie at Chocolate Covered Katie got tired of paying for expensive Artisana Cacao Bliss, so she decided to make her own version that she just calls Chocolate Butter. It's made with coconut oil, cocoa powder, and agave. You can use this Chocolate Butter to make many different treats, like chocolate sauce, chocolate bars, or chocolate chips.

For directions and nutritional information, go here!

Stout Cupcakes with Chocolate Covered Pretzels with Recipe Link

Somehow I managed to stumble upon another beer cupcake recipe. I'm still trying to get myself to indulge in such a sinful vice but have yet to bake up any alcohol based treats for myself. However, these beer-infused cupcakes created by Jamie of My Baking Addiction look too delicious not to at least try! I was particularly intrigued by these espresso stout based cupcakes because of the chocolate/coffee flavor mingling of it all. The kicker is the dark chocolate covered pretzels atop these little bad boys, because in her words, "what goes better with beer than pretzels?!" She created an easy to follow guide on her site so you can create these dude pleasing cupcakes for yourself!

Marshmallow Monster Cupcakes

How cute are these!? I love the idea of decorating a jumbo marshmallow and making it stick out of the top of the cupcake. So creative!

These Frankenstein, ghost, and pumpkin cupcakes were made by Julie Yoon. She decorated the marshmallows with frosting, toasted almonds, chocolate chips, and different colored fruit roll-ups. Then she scooped out the tops of the cupcakes and inserted the finished marshmallows.

To see a step-by-step how-to, check out Julie's website here!

Chocolate wasted mini cupcakes and recipe link

These chocolate wasted mini cupcakes are for true chocolate lovers, and you can get the recipe from the blog Art of Dessert. They're mini versions of this cake, which was made with Hershey Kisses, Hershey bars, Kit Kat bars, Twix bars, Whoppers and Kahlua! Enjoy!

Gluten Free Halloween Cupcakes

These cupcakes are so realistic and super spooky. The spider web cupcake liners and fake spiders really make these creepy. But they're actually healthier than regular cupcakes!

The Gluten Free Canteen made these spidery Halloween cupcakes from Betty Crocker's gluten free devils food cake recipe. She also used gluten free vanilla frosting and writing icing. 

Check out her website for more gluten free recipes and her post on how to make these spooky cupcakes!



Brains in a Jar............

Halloweeen is approaching!! More yucky and scary cupcakes to report!

You may be saying to yourself "what is in that jar....." It's a cupcake with frosting stuffed into a jar made by Amy Locurto. On her blog, Living Locurto, she gives step by step instructions with photos on how to make these Halloween treats.

Brains seem to be a popular cupcake idea this Halloween season--but to me this is the most creative. Pretty awesome favors for a Halloween party--or a give to your teacher for Halloween!



Cupcakes in a jar are starting to become a big trend in the cupcake world.

photo courtesy of nummycrummies

Faith Durand writes on the kitchn :

"Cupcakes in a jar, it turns out, are like the illicit love child of cake pops and those jarred cake mixes ubiquitous in holiday gift-giving."

This is a present I would take any day for the holidays.......

Some cupcakes are baked in the jar; or they're made of a cupcake, or cake crumbles, layered in a jar with buttercream frosting. Once sealed, they can last for a week-- and can be frozen!!

photo courtesy of bangerang bake shop

I'm going to keep my eye on this trend for now... I wonder how they taste thawed out after being frozen??

Realistic and creepy black widow spider web Halloween chocolate rum cupcakes

These spider web Halloween cupcakes are by blogger 6 Bittersweets, who has the recipe for the decorations and the chocolate rum cupcakes (with instructions on how to make them without alcohol too). From the post:

... I really wanted to make my version more realistic and creepy than those I'd come across ^_^. Since it's notoriously difficult to color homemade fondant a true black and I happened to have some black modeling chocolate on hand, I turned to this medium to make my crawly friends more dimensional and thus, my spidery vision start coming to life. Then melted chocolate, red candy melts, and a good blast of cold freezer air did the rest!

Oooey Gooey Brain Cupcakes

More Halloween ideas.....

Oooey Gooey Brain cupcakes!

photo courtesy of guidespot

(this photo reminds me of Igor in the movie Young Frankenstein when he goes to the "Brain Depository" and gets the wrong the brain-- the "Abby-Normal" one!!

I have seen these on a couple of different websites but its basically the same technique--piping the frosting in zigzag patterns to look like a brain.

Kraft foods has a recipe and instructions that you can find here.

Chocolate Labs Cupcakes

Yay! Today is National Chocolate Cupcake Day so look our chocolate cupcakes here on the blog today. First up are these adorable chocolate labrador cupcakes.  CTTC Flickr User Ceotty was inspired by Hello Cupcake.

Hot Cocoa Anyone?

photo courtesy of Diary of a Ladybird

Yes these are cupcakes. Look very very closely..... hard to tell right?!?

They were made by Anna at Diary of a Ladybird, a blogger from Sydney, Australia.

She created these little mindwarps by wrapping fondant around a vanilla cupcake and making icing to look like hot cocoa.

photo courtesy of Diary of a Ladybird

How awesome??? It makes you wanna curl up with a big glass of yummy hot chocolate doesn't it?

For full instructions, click here.

Chocolate & Banana Cupcakes (with recipe link!)

So, I've been a baking and blogging slacker these last couple of weeks.... Well, let's keep it real here, the last couple of months.  I've been baking some, but not blogging.  *le sigh*

Today, I baked and blogged... at the same time! Can you believe it?  HA! :)  I made banana cupcakes filled with chocolate chips topped with peanut butter buttercream, a chocolate drizzle and a fresh banana slice!

Wowzers, that's a mouthful!

I think they turned out pretty good too, don't you?!

I have posted the complete recipe and how to at JavaCupcake.com so head over there to check it out!

Happy Sunday and Happy Cupcakes!

~Betsy~

Red Velvet Cupcakes and My Big Moment on Just Desserts

I don’t make a lot of cupcakes, but since I’ve always been fascinated by the red velvet cake, I decided to try a version based on this venerable American classic. 

I’ve gotten so many requests for cupcakes and red velvet cakes that I figured I’d kill two food wishes with one video. They came out really well, and as I tasted, I actually caught myself daydreaming about being on Top Chef Just Desserts.

I imagined I’d furiously finished frosting these red velvet cupcakes just as time expired (I think the faux-hawked prima donna with the Jacques Torres tattoo next to me hid the cream cheese to screw me over). I bring them up to the judge’s table, and watch as the lovely Gail Simmons takes a big bite. She swallows, smiles, and then says, “Really not that bad for a food blogger.” Okay, so she’s too classy to ever say that, but still, it would be pretty cool.

Anyway, back to reality. I will also post the cream cheese frosting recipe next week, just in case you’re wondering. I joke about the red food coloring in the clip, and it does give the cake such a unique look, but feel free to leave it out if that’s not your thing.

Party season is upon us, and what holiday dessert table wouldn’t benefit from a plate of these classic cupcakes? It would be like Johnny Iuzzini's face without the side burns. In other words, just not as good. I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 12 Red Velvet Cupcakes:

Dry:

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

Wet:

4 tablespoons softened butter

1 cup white sugar

2 large eggs

3/4 cup buttermilk

2 teaspoons white vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon red food coloring

Bake at 350 for about 22 minutes