Here's a cupcake treat idea that will definitely get your springtime celebration hopping. Each cupcake is decorated like an Easter basket featuring a marshmallow bunny, "grass" frosting, candy eggs and flowers, and even a basket handle made of candy. These cupcakes may look too adorable to eat, but there will be an Easter parade of hungry guests ready to take a bite out of them.
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Things You'll Need
Cake mix
Cupcake wrappers
Frosting
Green food coloring
Spatula
Green jimmies
Peeps Bunny marshmallows
Knife
Wood skewer
Sour Punch Straws
Candy flowers
Egg-shaped jelly beans
Step 1: Bake the Cupcakes
Using a cake mix or your own recipe, bake the cupcakes according to directions in festive cupcake liners. Cakes that are lighter in color, like white or yellow cake, will not show through the liner as much as darker cakes like chocolate. Fill the liners between two-thirds to three-quarters full of batter so the cake rises to just above the rim.
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Step 2: Dye the Frosting
To make the frosting green so it's like grass, add a few drops of green food coloring to vanilla or buttercream frosting, and mix thoroughly. You can use your own recipe for frosting or buy a prepackaged tub from the store. Keep adding food coloring until the frosting has the shade of green you want.
Tip
Use gel food coloring, which won't add additional liquid to your frosting.
Step 3: Apply the Frosting
Scoop up about two tablespoons of frosting on a spatula, and spread it in a circular motion to cover the top of the cupcake.
Step 4: Sprinkle Jimmies
To create the fresh-cut grass look, sprinkle green Jimmies on top of the frosting. They will stick to the frosting on contact.
Step 5: Add the Bunny
A whole bunny Peep is too tall for the cupcake, so cut the Peep at the shoulders with a knife. This way, it will look like the bunny is peeking up out of the grass.
Place a dab of frosting under the Peep. This frosting will act like glue so the Peep will stay attached to the top of the cupcake, especially if there are Jimmies there that could be in the way.
Position the Peep bunny in the center of the cupcake, gently pressing down so the bunny stays in place.
Step 6: Add the Basket Handle
With a wood skewer, poke a half-inch hole on both sides of the bunny near the edge of the cupcake. Insert the skewer outward at an angle.
Insert the two ends of a Sour Punch Straw (or Red Vine licorice) into the holes you made with the skewer, following the same outward angle so the handle bows out slightly. Press down on both ends of the handle until it makes contact with the bunny ears. The bunny ears keep the handle steady, while the handle keeps the bunny firmly planted in the grass.
Step 7: Fill the Basket
Now it's time to fill the basket with candy eggs and flowers. Because of all the Jimmies, there might not be enough exposed frosting to make contact with the eggs and flowers. If that's the case, place a dab of frosting on the back of them before placing in the basket.
The dab of frosting is like glue, and the candy holds securely.
Continue placing jelly bean eggs all around the basket, anchoring them in the frosting. Besides being adorable and delicious, the candy also helps prop up the bunny and keep the handle aligned.
Lined up in a row, these cupcakes are ready to provide fun, cuteness and a sugar rush to everyone at your Easter gathering.
