Tie Dye Frosting

Mom discovered a new piping technique, so I decided to test it out!What you're supposed to do is take a little bit of gel food coloring, and 'paint' it onto the inside of the piping bag. You can see the tutorial that mom found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHxMvKb8dSoOn the tutorial, she gets a really pretty two-toned frosting, where just the edges of the frosting are a different color. Mine are...not like that. Obviously! The first batch, I put too much coloring in and it just made the frosting bright pink. The second batch, I put in too little and it literally added no color. The third batch, I still put a little too much, but not as much. It created a weird tye die effect! Definitely try this some day if you're bored. But it takes a lot to perfect, I'm sure. Mom likes these more than I do. Tie Dye Frosting Recipe

• 1-2 lbs buttercream frosting, white



• Gel food coloring, any color



• A small paint brush

Preparation

• Snip off the end of a piping bag and fit it with the tip of your choice (preferably something with ridges)



• Use a paint brush to brush some food coloring onto the inside of the piping bag. Use the link above to watch the official tutorial!



• Pipe onto the cupcakes!

(There's something wrong with the formatting tonight. Sorry if it looks weird!)

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Happy birthday, Alex!!

My friend's birthday was recently, and he's also in my writing group, so I thought it'd be fun to bake cupcakes so we could all enjoy them together! I asked him what his favorite cake was, and with his reply of "Carrot cake" I set out on a mission-- to perfect my cream cheese frosting recipe! ...And to bake him birthday cupcakes. ;)

Admittedly, I didn't make the carrot cake from scratch. (And by that, I mean I rarely make ANY cakes from scratch.) But it suuure tasted like it! I didn't know this secret until I started baking much more often with my mom: If you put a cup (one 8-oz container) of sour cream into any box cake mix you're making, it'll add an incredible amount of moisture. It also adds just a bit of denseness, so unless you really over beat them, they'll be more level.I also finally got the cream cheese recipe right! It's the perfect balance between the tartness of the cream cheese, and the sweetness of the powdered sugar. I was tempted to go through the cabinets and find other stuff to put it on!Carrot Cake Recipe

• 1 box carrot cake mix
• Eggs (varies depending on brand)
• Vegetable oil (varies depending on brand)
• 1- 8oz container sour cream

Preparation

• Preheat oven according to box.
• Line 24 cupcake tins with paper liners.
• Combine the ingredients.
• Blend on low speed for 30 seconds, then medium for 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
• Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, fill the 24 liners.
• Bake according to box.
• Remove from oven, let cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

• 2- 8oz packages cream cheese
• 1/2 c butter, softened
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 5.5 c powdered sugar

Preparation

• Cream together cream cheese and butter.
• Scrape sides, add vanilla, and quickly mix in.
• Add powdered sugar 1-2 cups at a time.
• Note: If you're frosting these with a knife, you'll probably only need about 1/2 of the recipe. This is larger for piping purposes.

And to toot my own horn (Toot toot!) I had more than one person say that these were the best carrot cake cupcakes they'd ever eaten. YAY!!

Lemon Cupcakes with Meringue Frosting

While I was home, mom and I baked a few different things! We tried s'mores cupcakes, which were..not as good as they sound, in my opinion. I'm not going to blog about them. But I AM going to blog about the best cupcakes on the planet: These lemon cupcakes!

The cupcakes were filled with lemon curd, and then topped with meringue, which we toasted with the kitchen torch that mom got for Christmas. She got one from me and one from dad, and we liked the one he bought more..but still!
Mom asked me to rate these on a scale from 1-10. I gave them a 9/10 at first, and then decided that no, these were a 10/10. The perfect cupcake.

They're lemony without being over-the-top sour. There's also no actual frosting, so it doesn't suffer from too-sweet-frosting syndrome either! The lemon curd in the middle is enough to give the cupcake a little 'pop', while being balanced with the meringue.

Getting torched!

I regret only eating one and a half. She took them to work the next day, and they were gone. Gooone gone gone... I want more now!

We had a hard time finding the lemon curd, but I found it in the grocery store aisle where they have jelly and jam! So if you're looking for it, look there.

Lemon Cupcakes Recipe

• 1 box lemon cake mix
• 1 package instant lemon pudding
• 1 c sour cream
• 3/4 c veggie oil
• 3/4 c water
• 4 eggs
• 1 container lemon curd

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350
• Mix everything but the lemon curd in an electric mixer on medium for two minutes.
• Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full, and bake 15-18 minutes.
• Cool completely.
• Core cupcakes, and fill with lemon curd. Use the cores of the cupcakes as caps to fill the hole.

Lemon Meringue Recipe

• 8 large egg whites
• 1 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 1/3 c sugar
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• Pinch of salt

Preparation

• Bring 1-2" of water to boil in a saucepan.
• In a mixing bowl, whisk ingredients well. Place above the boiling water.
• Continue whisking until the mixture is hot to the touch, and sugar is dissolved, around 2-3 minutes.
• Move to stand mixer if available, and using the whisk attachment, beat at next-to-high speed until it holds a soft peak, around five minutes.
• Pipe onto cupcakes, and toast lightly with a kitchen torch if available.

Pumpkin Cupcakes

Happy Thanksgiving!
or
Happy Gluttony and Coma Day!

I think that it's obvious by now that I like baking, but SURPRISE! So does my mom!

More specifically, she likes baking CUPCAKES. And I don't just mean regular chocolate or vanilla, either.
For my birthday she made Reese's cupcakes, and lemon cupcakes.
For dad's birthday she made German chocolate cupcakes.
She's also made amazing banana split cupcakes, Twix cupcakes, rocky road, key lime, toffee, white chocolate with raspberry cream cheese, caramel apple...

And for Thanksgiving, she made pumpkin cupcakes!

Pumpkin with cream cheese frosting and sugared pecans

She makes the cupcakes themselves from a box mix, and then makes the frosting (and any other toppings) from scratch.

For these pumpkin cupcakes she added in a can of pumpkin. Then, the amazing and ambitious person she is, she made two different types of frosting: Cream cheese frosting (topped with sugared pecans), and maple buttercream (sprinkled with cinnamon).

Pumpkin with maple buttercream frosting, sprinkled with cinnamon

Included below are both frosting recipes, for your convenience. You don't have to make them both at the same time!

Pumpkin Cupcakes Recipe

• 1 box Betty Crocker SuperMoist yellow cake mix
• 1 small box vanilla pudding
• 1 c. sour cream
• 1 - 15oz can pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
• 1/2 c water
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350
• Line a cupcake pan with 24 cupcake papers
• Combine cake mix, pudding, sour cream, pumpkin, water, oil, eggs, and spice (aka all ingredients) in a large bowl.
• Beat with electric mixer on low for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
• Divide among cupcake cups (about 2/3 full).
• Bake 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool completely.

Maple Buttercream Frosting Recipe

• NOTE: This recipe has been doubled to allow enough frosting to pipe
• 2 -8 oz packages full-fat cream cheese
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp maple extract
• 8 c powdered sugar
• Cinnamon (optional)

Preparation

• Cream the cream cheese and butter until well combined and fluffy.
• Add in vanilla and maple extract, and blend well.
• Add powdered sugar slowly, until you reach the consistency you like.
• Frost/pipe onto cupcakes and sprinkle with cinnamon if desired

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

• 2 - 8oz packages full-fat cream cheese, softened
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 9 cups powdered sugar (2 bags = 8 cups) [This amount makes it stiff enough to pipe]
• Sugared Pecans (optional -- Recipe below)

Preparation

• Cream the cream cheese and butter until well combined and fluffy.
• Add vanilla, mix in.
• Add powdered sugar slowly, until you reach the consistency you like.

Sugared Pecan Recipe

• 1/2 c finely chopped pecans
• 3 tbsp sugar

Preparation

• In a heavy skillet, cook pecans and 2 tbsp sugar on LOW heat, about eight minutes, until sugar is melted.
• Spoon pecans onto waxed paper in thin layer, and sprinkle with remaining sugar.

Spiced Rum Cake with Coconut Frosting and Toasted Coconut

Happy birthday, Nathaniel!

My roommate's boyfriend's birthday was yesterday. Laura wanted to do something nice for him, so what did she do? ..She came to me for help baking him a cake! And she only gave me one direction to go in: Coconut.

Well, two directions. I also own a silicone baking container that forms into a giant cupcake! So the directions were: Coconut, Giant Cupcake.

I personally don't care for coconut at all (either in taste or texture) so Laura had to be my taste-tester. The cake itself was fantastic! I'm not one for tasting the alcohol that I drink, and the rum really added to the cake without being overwhelming.
The frosting was, apparently, great too! Though once it had been in the fridge to set, it got quite firm, and it did soften after it sat out again. It requires cream of coconut, which is NOT the same thing as coconut milk! You can either find it in the section of the grocery store with drink mixes (like the Bloody Mary mixes, or margarita mixes) or in a liquor store.

I also got to toast coconut! Even as a person who doesn't like coconut, the smell of it being toasted filling the whole apartment pleased me.

Spiced Rum Cake with Coconut Frosting and Toasted Coconut Recipe

• 1 box spiced cake mix


• 4 eggs


• 1/3 cup veggie oil


• 1 cup milk


• 1/4 cup sour cream


• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice


• 1/4 cup spiced rum

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350


• Grease 2 round cake pans


• Combine all ingredients and blend with electric mixer on low speed until combined, then on medium speed for two minutes.


• Pour batter into pans, and bake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.


• Place on wire rack to cool.

Coconut Frosting Recipe

• 6 oz cream cheese, softened


• 6 tbsp butter, softened


• 6 tbsp cream of coconut, well stirred


• 2/3 cup powdered sugar


• 2/3 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Preparation

• Cream cream cheese and butter together.


• Add in cream of coconut and powdered sugar, beating well.


• Add flaked coconut and beat well.


• If needed, add more powdered sugar to thicken.

Toasted Coconut Recipe/Preparation

• Preheat oven to 300


• Spread enough coconut to cover a 9x13 pan in a thin layer


• Bake for 15 minutes, stirring every 5 to make sure it gets toasted evenly. Toasting too long, or too high, will burn it!

Agave Nectar Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Frosting

Yay healthy!
Yay diabetic-friendly recipe!
Boo tasting like bran muffins.
Yay frosting!
Yay agave nectar!

I made the first experiment in my new kitchen! ...The oven is so small that when I bake cupcakes, I have to bake them one tray (12 cupcakes) at a time. Luckily this recipe is halved, so you can only make 12 cupcakes anyway.

But I decided to make agave cupcakes, with an agave whipped cream frosting!

Agave nectar is the hip new thing on the health market. I don't know all of the specifics yet (whether it's actually better than sugar or not) but the fact that this recipe has no sugar is great!

Agave nectar (or just "agave"-- Ah-GAH-vay, I do believe) is sweet, similar to honey but without that sharpness. It's quite tasty, and probably good on toast, cereal, waffles... really anything that you could put honey in/on, you could use agave!

The cupcake batter came out like oatmeal-- I attribute this to using wheat flour instead of white flour. It also made them quite gritty, and..tasting like a bran muffin. The agave flavor was completely lost in them.

But the frosting! Ohhh my, so delicious! It actually tastes like whipped cream, which you could put on..whatever you put whipped cream on. The only reason I'm even calling it a frosting is because I put it on the cupcakes (which really helped make them taste better!)

Maybe I'll retry this recipe eventually. But for now, just take the whipped cream recipe! Nomnomnom.

It even looked like whipped cream when I piped it. That's how you can tell that it's super tasty.
Agave Nectar Cupcake Recipe

• 2 T light butter
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 t vanilla
• 1/2 c agave nectar
• 3/4 c buttermilk
• 1 3/4 c wheat flour
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1/2 t baking powder

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 325
• Cream together butter, vegetable oil, egg, and vanilla.
• In a small bowl, combine agave nectar with buttermilk. Add to mixture.
• Add in dry ingredients slowly.
• Mix until combined and smooth.
• Prepare a cupcake pan with 12 cupcake papers, and fill each 1/2 full.
• Bake 17-20 minutes.
  

Agave Nectar Whipped Cream Frosting Recipe

• 2 c (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
• 5 T agave nectar
• 1 T vanilla
• Pinch of salt

Preparation

• Put all ingredients in a bowl (if you have a Kitchenaid, use it!).
• Beat until it stiffens-- 5-6 minutes.
• Note: This is where a stand mixer comes in handy, because your wrist will get a workout otherwise!
• Spread, or pipe onto cupcakes.
• Drizzle with agave nectar.

Note: For best results, make the frosting the day you eat the cupcakes, and put them in the fridge so the frosting doesn't melt!

The recipes both came from my friend Nikki! (:

Nutella Cupcakes

Here's recipe number two for the day: Nutella cupcakes! And trust me, they are full of chocolate-hazelnutty goodness.

These could be REALLY good, but with the way we made them they were very bland. The recipe says to make the cake mix, then drop a teaspoon of Nutella in and swirl them. This was an epic fail! The Nutella was waaay too thick to swirl.


A better thing to do, in my opinion, is add Nutella to the batter after it's mixed up but before pouring. It comes out to be half a cup of Nutella. (1 tsp x 24 cupcakes = 24 tsp. 48 tsp = 1 cup. So 24 tsp = 1/2 cup. Math!) But since I didn't actually make them this way myself, you should judge for yourself if they're bland, or if they need more.

So! We tested out three different kinds: Cupcake with frosting. Cupcake with a thin Nutella layer, and frosting. Cupcake with thin Nutella layer and no frosting. We wound up deciding that the Nutella layer really made the cupcake better, with or without frosting.


For the frosting, mom whipped up a yummy Nutella buttercream. (I TOLD you it was chocolate-hazelnutty!)

Nutella Cupcake Recipe

• One package yellow cake mix
• 1 1/4 c water
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 c Nutella

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350
• Blend together cake mix, water, oil, and eggs as per box instructions.
• Beat in Nutella.
• Bake for 20-24 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Nutella Buttercream Recipe

• One bag (2 pounds) of powdered sugar
• 11 tbsp (one stick + 3 tsp) butter, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 c milk
• 1 cup Nutella, to start

Preparation

• Combine powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, salt, and half of milk.
• Add in Nutella and beat together, adding more milk until you get the consistency you like. Add more Nutella as neccessary.
• Frost/pipe onto cupcakes.

Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Two-for-one experiment today! Mom's been wanting to learn how to pipe frosting, so we figured we'd try a couple of different cupcake recipes.

The first one we tried: Cookie dough cupcakes!
They sound deliiicious. But they and the Nutella cupcakes were both "eh" for me. But I'm posting them anyway!

These involve making chocolate chip cookie dough, rolling it into balls, and freezing them. One of the two of us (hint, not me. ;) decided that they wanted to buy a roll of pre-made cookie dough instead of making it from scratch. It was alright, but personally I think the brown sugar was waaay too understated.
After you mix the batter and put it in the cupcake papers, you drop in one of the frozen cookie balls. Trust me when I say to drop it in and LEAVE IT. I pressed the ball down into the batter (it still sticks out even when it touches the bottom), and as it baked it melted down. All of the cookie was on the bottom, which split the cupcake into this half-cookie, half-cupcake weird thing.

For the frosting, we made a chocolate buttercream.
It was extra thick so mom could test her piping skillz, which really overwhelmed the cupcake itself (which was a little bland anyway). But in general I'd say thinner would be great-- using it as a glaze would be amazing.
Cookie Dough Cupcake Recipe:

Cookie Recipe

• One tube of pre-made chocolate chip cookie dough
• OR
• Cookie recipe here: http://adventureswithmarzipan.blogspot.com/2010/05/cookies-au-creme.html

Preparation

• After getting your dough, roll into balls about the size of a teaspoon. Put in the freezer for one to two hours.

Cupcake Recipe

• One package of yellow cake mix
• 1 1/4 c water
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 3 eggs

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350
• Combine the mix, water, oil, and eggs as per box instructions. (Lazy, right?)
• Line a cupcake tin with 24 cupcake papers.
• Drop a frozen dough ball into each cup, in the center. Do NOT push down.
• Bake for 20-24 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Chocolate Buttercream Recipe (doubled for piping)

• One bag (two pounds) of powdered sugar
• 11 tbsp (one stick + 3 tbsp) butter, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 c milk
• 1 1/4 c cocoa

Preparation

• Using a spoon, mix together powdered sugar and cocoa.
• Add in butter, vanilla, salt, and half of milk. Blend together.
• Slowly add milk until getting the consistency you like.
• Frost/pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Apple Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream

I've wanted to make ice cream cone cupcakes for so long, but I never knew how!
Surprisingly, it was really, really, really easy.

So I made an apple ice cream cone cupcake, with cinnamon buttercream frosting. This frosting will make people bow down to you, because it's SO GOOD. It's SO GOOD in fact, that capital letters are warranted for it!

BUT. I wasn't paying attention (I was watching King Of The Hill with my little bro) so I wound up adding, instead of 1 1/2 cups of grated apple (which the recipe called for), two grated apples. I'm reaaally not sure how much extra apple I added.. but they were delicioso! Actually, I suggest it!

The batter wasn't runny like regular cake batter. It was oddly dry to begin with. Before I added the apple, it looked like fine bread crumbs. After I added the apple and mixed it in it got more liquidy, but with the apple it was more like a heavy muffin mix.
But it smelled so good! And tasted so good! There's no egg in it, so don't feel nervous about sneaking a spoonful of the batter while you're putting it in the pan.

The batter can be used in regular cupcake tins or in the ice cream cones (obviously.) My suggestion, though, is to make 20 instead of 24. Because they don't rise exponentially, this'll let you fill the cups more fully.

As for the cinnamon buttercream, depending on whether you frost it on with a knife or use a piping bag, you'll either need one batch or two (two batches being a full bag of powdered sugar.)
Really, I cannot recommend this frosting enough. It would be good thinned out as a glaze for muffins, or added to waffles, or even as an accent on ice cream. Om nom nom!
Have an enemy? Give them one of these cupcakes. They will never say another bad thing about you.

Apple Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream (in an ice cream cone!) Recipe

• 20 ice cream cones, or 20 cupcake papers
• 1/4 c butter, softened
• 2/3 c sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 c all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and grated

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350
• Beat butter until fluffy.
• Add sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla and cream together. (Texture will be weird)
• Combine flour and baking soda, then add slowly to mixture and beat. (Texture will resemble bread crumbs.)
• Add apples, and beat together on a low speed so the apple juice gets into the mixture, but so the grated apples are still visible.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes. (See below for what a finished cupcake will look like inside.)
• Let cool completely.

Cinnamon Buttercream Recipe

• 1 lb (1/2 bag) powdered sugar
• 1/3 c butter, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 c milk

Preparation

• Use a mixing spoon to combine cinnamon and powdered sugar. This will ensure that the cinnamon is fully infused later.
• Add in butter, vanilla, and about half of the milk.
• Blend together until thoroughly mixed, adding more milk if neccessary.
• Note: Don't overdo the milk. You want THICK frosting.
• Note: If you plan to pipe, definitely make the double batch.
• Pipe onto the tops of the cooled cupcakes.
• Then, sit back and enjoy as eeeverybody who sees them fawns over them!

Tip for piping the ice cream cone design:
Start in the middle of the cupcake, and pipe slowly in a spiral until all of the cupcake is covered.
Pipe a second spiral in the center, on top of that.
In the very center, squeeze out one more bit of frosting, then push down and pull up to get the tip!

Center of the cooked cupcake

Chocolate Cupcakes with Cherry Cream Cheese Frosting

Wow, that title is a mouthful. Almost as much as a mouthful as the treat itself!
My original plan was to make a Coca Cola cupcake, with cherry icing. However, I made a batch of Coca Cola cupcakes last night and they just turned out funky. The taste was bland, and the recipe called for marshmallows, which gave it a really spongy texture.

So I went to the store today, and just bought a box of chocolate cake mix (because I'm lazy, okay??)
I do have to say that, after making cakes from scratch, the boxed stuff doesn't taste as good anymore!
I had a hard time deciding between buttercream frosting, and cream cheese frosting. And I figured that since I cheated with the cupcakes, I'd go for the cream cheese frosting instead of the buttercream (which I make so often that I could whip it up in my sleep.) The recipe I have made a tooooon of icing, though. As in, I used half of it, MAYBE. So the recipe I'm giving you is halved for your convenience.

The frosting was still a liiittle on the runny side, which disappointed me because it piped out so beautifully, then sort of..sank together. But hey, there's sprinkles!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe:

Cupcakes

• 1 box of chocolate cake mix (I used chocolate fudge)
• 1 1/3c water
• 1/2 c vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• Cupcake liners

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350
• Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
• Beat with electic mixer on low for 30 seconds, then medium/high for one minute, until fully blended.
• Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Pour batter into the cups until 1/2-3/4 of the way full.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Leave to cool.

Frosting

• 1/2 package (4 oz) of cream cheese, softened
• 6 tbsp butter, softened
• 1/4c cherry juice
• 1/2 bag powdered sugar (plus a little more, to get the right consistency)
• Red food coloring (2-3 drops)
• Red sprinkles for accenting

Preparation

• In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter until creamy.
• Slowly beat in cherry juice, until mixture is smooth and creamy.
• Gradually beat in powdered sugar until you get the consistency you want. (Very thick if you plan to pipe it!)
• Beat in the food coloring to get a pretty pink color-- Beat well.
• Frost onto cooled cupcakes, using a knife or piping bag.
• Sprinkle with red sprinkles if desired.

(Virgin) Strawberry Margarita Cupcakes

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CINDY!

Well, not yet. Her birthday is on the 15th but we're celebrating tonight instead.
She's turning 21, but her (other) best friend is still only 20 so we can't go out to celebrate.
To compromise I took on the responsibility of baking her cake. Or rather, cakes. What better way to celebrate a non-alcoholic 21st birthday than with alcoholic imitations?
So for her birthday I'm making her strawberry margarita cupcakes! They're super adorable, and delicious! You can make regular margarita cupcakes with key limes, but she doesn't like limes and LOVES the color pink and anything strawberry. And so here we are!

Strawberries tossed with sugar, for the frosting.

Strawberry Margarita Cupcake Recipe
Note: Start on the frosting first because the strawberries have to sit for 2 hours beforehand.

• One box of strawberry cake mix
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cups vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
  
• 1 pint (or 1 pound/1 package-- same thing) of strawberries
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tbsp softened butter
• 3-4 cups powdered sugar
• 
  
• A package of neon bendy straws
• Coarse sugar crystals

Preparation

• Line 2 cupcake pans with cupcake liners (makes sense, right?) I suggest either pink or white.
• Mix and bake the mix according to directions on the back of the box.
• Leave to let cool.

Frosting Preparation

• Wash 1/2 of the strawberries (Since these will be blended, I chose the less pretty ones), then 'hull' them (aka cut off the leafy tops).
• Slice the berries and put in a bowl.
• Pour the granulated sugar over the strawberries and mix well.
• Chill for two hours.
• In another bowl, beat the butter until it's fluffy.
• Drain the extra juice from the strawberries, then mash them up and add them to the butter. Add in half of the powdered sugar.
• Blend until it's all mixed in, then slowly add in more powdered sugar until you get the consistency you want for spreading the frosting.

Decoration

• After frosting your cupcakes, sprinkle the edges with coarse sugar crystals. Note: Sprinkle as you go, because once the frosting sets it begins to reject having any sugar sprinkled on)
• Wash/hull the rest of your strawberries, and slice in half (longway) and place one half on the edge of each cupcake.
• Cut a bendy straw until it's about 4" long, then stick in the cupcake.

Because the frosting is made from fresh strawberries, the recipe suggests keeping your cupcakes refrigerated.

Personally, I think this would dry out the cupcakes way too fast and make them soggy, so I just waited until the last possible moment then frosted the cupcakes, so they could sit out.

Because of the freshness involved, I suggest making these the day of the event and consuming them the day of. I mean, you know how strawberries get...

Strawberry frosting recipe found here:
http://southernfood.about.com/od/icingrecipes/r/r70225c.htm