Corn-on-the-Cob Cupcakes

Seriously, I'm going to get addicted to blog posting if I don't stop looking at all of these treats. I saw these cupcakes on Jenifer's blog awhile back but haven't thought to post them on mine until now. The recipe is here on the Martha Stewart Web site.

First, you can use the recipe for vanilla cupcakes on Martha's Web site. This recipe also comes from the Hello, Cupcake! book.

Vanilla Cupcakes (Makes 2 dozen)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, & salt in a medium bowl. Combine the milk, oil, & vanilla extract in a 2-cup measuring cup or a small bowl.
3. In another medium bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and sugar until light & fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture alternately with the milk mixture in batches, beginning and ending with the flour mixture and beating just until blended.
5. Spoon half of the batter into a ziplock bag. Snip a 1/4-inch corner from the bag & fill the liners two-thirds full. Repeat with the remaining batter. Bake until golden & a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the baking pan, place on a wire rack, & allow to cool completely.

Here's the recipe for these corn-on-the-cob cupcakes:

You'll need:

Vanilla Frosting

Yellow liquid food coloring
24 Vanilla Cupcakes, baked in white paper liners
3 1/2 cups small yellow, cream, or white jelly beans, such as Jelly Belly
4 pieces yellow fruit chews, such as Laffy Taffys or Starbursts
1 tablespoon black decorating sugar
1 tablespoon white decorating sugar
8 sets of corn holders (optional)

Directions

1. Color the frosting pale yellow with food coloring.
2. Working with 3 cupcakes at a time, frost cupcakes with yellow frosting. Arrange 5 rows of jelly beans, close together, on each cupcake. Place the 3 cupcakes side by side on a corn dish or serving platter to resemble an ear of corn. Repeat process with remaining cupcakes, frosting, and jelly beans.
3. Cut the fruit chews into eight 1-inch squares. Soften the edges slightly by hand so that they look like melted butter. Place 1 square on top of each ear of corn. Sprinkle with sugars. Insert a corn holder in the end of each ear of corn, if using. Serve.

Mashed Potato Cupcakes

On the bake at 350 blog, I found this cute recipe for mashed potato cupcakes. I can't wait to make them! The author of the blog talks about following a recipe for doctoring cake mixes that comes from the book Hello, Cupcake!. I assume this recipe is awesome since Karly makes cupcakes from the same book & they are divine.

For these cupcakes, choose any cake mix you like. Substitute 1 cup of buttermilk for the liquid, add the amount of oil called for on the box and use 4 eggs. This makes 24 cupcakes. Once the cupcakes are cooled, frost each cupcake with 3 tablespoons vanilla frosting, mounding it in the middle. Use a teaspoon to make an indentation in the middle; put a yellow Starburst or any 1 inch yellow fruit chew, (taffy, etc.) in the middle of the cupcake. Drizzle with gravy (store-bought caramel sauce, heated).