Hottie Chocolate Cupcakes By Sandra Lee Food

CHOCOLATE PEAK CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Butter and flour 2 (6-cup) cupcake pans. Stir hot water and coffee crystals in large bowl until crystals dissolve. Let cool. Add cake mix, oil, and eggs to coffee in large bowl. Beat by hand or with a hand mixer for 2 minutes, or until well blended. Fill each muffin cup halfway with batter. Place 1 caramel candy in the center of each. Pour remaining batter over caramels. Bake for 12 minutes, or until cakes have puffed. Cool cupcakes in pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Carefully remove cupcakes from pans and let cool completely before frosting.
• Cut off tops of cupcakes, reserving both the tops and bottoms. Frost cupcake tops with chocolate frosting. Spoon 1 tablespoon of chilled marshmallow creme atop each cake bottom. Place cake tops back on top of cake bottoms. Dust tops with cocoa powder and sprinkle with coconut.

TIE-DYED CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12-muffin) tins with cupcake papers; set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, water, and oil. Use a hand held electric mixer and mix on medium speed for about 1 minute. Scrape sides of bowl and add both bottles of sprinkles. Mix for another 30 seconds.
• Use a ladle to fill each lined muffin cup 2/3 of the way full. Using oven mitts, place cupcakes in preheated oven and bake for 21 to 26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of cupcake comes out clean with no wet batter. Use oven mitts to remove from oven and let cool completely before frosting, about 15 minutes.
• Once cool, spread 2 tablespoons frosting on each cupcake. Using various gel colors, start in the middle of the cupcake, make circles outwards to the edge of the cupcake Begin at the edge of the cupcake and drag the tip of a toothpick to the center of the cupcake to make a spider web effect. Repeat this step, turning cupcake as you go.

CHOCOLATE-CHOCOLATE CHERRY CUPCAKES

Steps:

• For cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 (2 1/2-inch) muffin cups with paper liners; set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat the cake mix, butter, eggs, and cranberry-cherry juice with an electric mixer on low for 30 seconds. Scrape down side of bowl. Beat for 2 minutes on medium. Spoon 2 tablespoons batter into each prepared muffin cup. Spoon 1 teaspoon cherry pie filling on batter in each cup and top with another 1 tablespoon cupcake batter.
• Bake for 12 to 16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cupcakes comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in muffin cups on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from muffin cups and cool completely on wire rack.
• For frosting: Place the white baking chips in a medium bowl; set aside. In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream and corn syrup over medium heat until nearly boiling. Pour the hot mixture over the white baking chips; stir until completely smooth. Let stand for 10 minutes. Stir the cream mixture into the white frosting until well mixed; set aside.
• In a small microwave-safe bowl, microwave the semisweet chocolate chips on medium for 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds. Place the maraschino cherries on paper towels to dry. Dip each dry cherry into melted semisweet chocolate and place on waxed paper-lined baking sheet until chocolate hardens.
• Frost each cupcake with white chocolate frosting and top with a chocolate-covered cherry.

SPIKY CANDY CORN CUPCAKES

Steps:

• In a bowl stir together the white frosting with enough yellow food coloring to match the color of the bottom of the candy corn. Ice the cupcakes with the yellow frosting.
• Starting from the center and working your way outwards in a circular pattern, put the candy corn on the icing of each cupcake.
• Arrange the cupcakes on a platter and serve.

NOEL CUP CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Transfer the icing into a resealable plastic bag. Cut 3/4-inch off the corner of the plastic bag and set aside. Ice the top of each cupcake and sprinkle with the shredded coconut.
• Place a cherry into the center of each cupcake. Then, place the candles into the center of each cherry.

BIRTHDAY PARTY CLOWN CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12 cup) muffin tins with white paper liners.
• Make the cake mix according to package instructions, substituting the milk for water. Pour the batter into the lined muffin tins and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 12 to15 minutes. Remove the tins from the oven and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
• In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, beat the frosting with enough confectioners' sugar to create a stiff consistency. Remove about 1/2 cup of the frosting and color it with either red or yellow food coloring. Put the frosting into a pastry bag or resealable plastic bag fitted with a small star tip.
• When the cupcakes are cool, frost the top of 12 cupcakes with an offset spatula. (Reserve the remaining cupcakes for a centerpiece or frost if you have more guests). Put each cupcake into a red or yellow liner. The liners will not fit snugly but will resemble a frilly clown's collar.
• To decorate: Write the name for each guest on colored flags. Using a small amount of rubber cement fold 1 edge over the top of the toothpick to attach. Using a serrated knife cut about 1 1/2-inches off the bottom of the sugar cones. Using pastry brush, coat each lightly with piping gel. Roll 6 cupcakes in yellow sanding sugar and the other 6 in the red. Firmly but gently insert the flag into the top of each cone. Put the cones slightly towards the back of each cupcake. Snip the licorice into 12 (2-inch) pieces for mouths, and approximately 120 (1- pieces) for hair. A clean pair of tweezers is helpful for attaching the hair along the base of the sugar cone. Add a gumball to each for a nose and either 2 brown or blue candy coated chocolates for eyes. Pipe small stars with colored frosting along the base of the cones and hair and along the base near the top of the liner.
• For extra cupcakes: Divide some white frosting into 2 small bowls and color 1 with red coloring and 1 with yellow. Fit 2 pastry bags with a star tip and fill each with 1 color of the frosting. Pipe a swirl of red frosting onto 6 cupcakes and a swirl of yellow on the remaining cupcakes. Sprinkle each cupcake with nonpareil sprinkles.
• Arrange all of the cupcakes on a cupcake stand and serve.

PUMPKIN CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray the cake pan with nonstick cooking spray, coat with flour, and knock out the excess.
• Combine the cake mix with the pumpkin puree and oil. Beat with a hand mixer on medium until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Some pumpkin purees have more moisture than others, if the cake batter seems dry then add more pumpkin puree, 1/4 cup at a time.
• Using an ice cream scoop, fill the molds 2/3 of the way to the top with batter. Bake until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 12 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
• In a large bowl, combine the icing ingredients and mix together until well blended; the icing should be thick but have a pourable consistency. If it's too thick add a little water to thin. If you want the color to be more orange add a few drops of red and yellow food coloring. Dip the top 1/2 of each cupcake into the icing and place onto a sheet pan fitted with a wire rack allowing the icing to drip down the sides. Let icing set for 1 hour before serving.