Snow Cone Cupcakes

Snow cone cupcakes seem to be all the rage this summer. I've seen them in magazines and on the internet. I figured I'd jump on the bandwagon too and create some cupcakes for VBS. They were a huge hit with all of the children.

I ordered paper souffle cups and wooden spoons to make the experience just like eating a snow cone.

Begin by making vanilla cupcakes in the baking cups.

Everyone loves vanilla, so you can't go wrong with that, although a little cherry or lime extract could be a fun flavor to add. While the cupcakes are baking whip up some vanilla butter cream frosting.

Divide the frosting into three bowls. Choose three colors of your choice. We decided to go with the red, white, and blue to be patriotic? Frost a strip of frosting down the middle of the cupcake. Then dredge the cupcake in white sprinkles.

Grab your red frosting and frost the side of the cupcake. Then dip just the side into some red sprinkles.

Take your last color and frost the other side of the cupcake. Katie was kind enough to help me make all 100 cupcakes. 

Take a pastry knife and smooth out the frosting. Then dip that last side in blue sprinkles being careful not to get any blue sprinkles in the white territory.

Do these cupcakes make you think of Pepsi? Yeah, me too.

The church ladies were kind enough to create a beautiful space for the cupcakes. They were so much fun to make. . .  and devour as well.

Vanilla Cupcakes

Ingredients:

3 cups flour

1 tbsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups sugar

5 large eggs, at room temperature

1¼ cups buttermilk, at room temperature

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line two cupcake pans with paper liners.  Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cake flour, baking powder and salt.  Whisk together and set aside.  Add the butter to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Beat on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until light and creamy in color.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat for one more minute. 

Add the sugar to the butter mixture, ¼ cup at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition.  Mix in the eggs one at a time until incorporated.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl after each addition.  Combine the buttermilk and the vanilla extract in a liquid measuring cup.  With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet ingredients, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and mixing just until incorporated.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix for 15 seconds longer.  

Divide the batter between the prepared paper liners, filling each about 2/3 of the way full (you will likely have batter left over after filling 24 wells.)  Bake 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Frost cooled cupcakes as desired.  

Vanilla Buttercream
Ingredients:
20 tbsp. (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. heavy cream  

Directions:
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat butter at medium-high speed until smooth, about 20 seconds.  Add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds.  Scrape down the bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined, about 15 seconds.  Scrape bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 10 seconds.  Then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.  

Adapted from Annie's Eats.