Tomorrow is Easter, and my family is known for putting out spreads of food, both entree and dessert. However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized…a lot of the desserts are not kid-friendly. Munchkins don’t really like mince-meat pies, or anything that’s minced for that matter. The primary goal of this dessert that I made this year was: Fun for Children!
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Ingredients:
- 1 cake mix. (I prefer white cake for cupcakes, but if chocolate is your fancy there’s nothing stopping you).
- 1 container white cake frosting (not whipped).
- Green food coloring.
- Jellybeans of your choice (I used the “Starburst” jellybeans. All flavors are fruity and delicious).
- 1 package of “Sour Punch Straws”. (Twizzlers or licorice would suit well, but sour straws are more fun.
Step-by-Step:
- Make your cake mix, and pour in to Cupcake tins. Bake as directed. Put your cupcakes on a wire rack to cool (they will keep their shape better if placed on a non-solid surface).
- While the cupcakes cool, take your frosting and put in a bowl. Add about 10 drops of Green food coloring and mix until evenly colored. The desired color is “Spring Green.”
- To get a nice texture on the top of my cupcakes, I used a DIY piping method. I scooped the frosting in to a small ziplock sandwich baggie, and snipped a tiny corner of the baggie off. Now you have a do-it-yourself frosting spreader.
- You can use a variety of piping methods. I varied, partly because I’m inexperienced with frosting decorating, and partly because I wanted to see how different ways of piping would look. Small droplets (like a mini-hershey kiss) seem to be the most attractive, but difficult to achieve everytime.
Decorating
- After all of my cupcakes were frosted, I cut each Sour Straw in half. Each half was used as one “basket-handle” on the cupcake. If your cupcakes are moist and fresh, each end of the straw will slip in easily to the cupcake. Place all handles on your cupcake.
- After handles are placed on, simply put a little bundle of jellybeans in the center of each “basket”.
- I suppose these last two steps could be reversed, but I did them this way to make sure I had plenty of room between each end of the handle to fit my eggs, since my straws were pre-cut.
Voila! Pretty little Easter Basket cupcakes. The kids will love them! (Parents on the other hand may not love them. Lots of sugar - but lots of fun!)
