This is a recipe I came up with when my ex-boyfriend's niece was turning 13 and she asked me to make her cupcakes for her birthday party. It's not totally original, because it uses a prepackaged cake batter, but it is quick and tres yummy!
The icing is from scratch (I hate the canned stuff) and is my grandma's recipe. I could eat a whole bowl of just the icing by itself. Leftover icing is very delicious if spread between two graham crackers to make a little sandwich.
Ingredients
1 package of chocolate or devil's food cake mix*
1 can of cherry pie filling
1 stick of salted butter, softened
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 egg
3 or 4 cups of confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
2 tsp of red food coloring
Maraschino cherries to garnish
*Prepare the cake mix following the recipe, eliminating the water.
Directions
Cupcakes:
Prepare the cake batter following the directions on the back of the box, eliminating the water.
Fold in the cherry pie filling and mix until well combined.
Portion the batter into cupcake tins in a cupcake pan.
Bake according to the directions on the package. You're going to want to check the cupcakes to see if they are done or squishy a the time mark. You may need to bake them an extra 15 minutes or so due to the extra liquid that is in the batter from the cherry pie filling. Use a toothpick or a fork to poke the center of them, when it comes out clean they are done.
Take the cupcakes out of the pan and set aside and allow to cool on a baking rack or towel.
Icing
In a large bowl combine vanilla extract, butter and egg - mush together using a wooden spoon.
Fold in one cup of powdered sugar and mix until fairly well combined.
Using a hand mixer continue to mix the icing, folding in a little powdered sugar at a time until the icing is of a thick, stiff consistency
Keep adding powdered sugar to the mixture until the icing stands up in little peaks and doesn't fall over when you pull the hand mixer out of the bowl (turn it off first unless you want a mess!)
Add the food coloring and mix with the hand mixer until the icing is a nice shade of pink.
When the cupcakes are completely cool, use a butter knife or a spatula ice the cupcakes and place a maraschino cherry on top to garnish.
Enjoy!
Image via LittleMissCupcakeParis's Flickr