Lollipop Garden Cupcakes

When I heard that my friend's daughters' 7th birthday was coming up, I offered to make the cupcakes for her party. Looking through a few different books and online I had decided (and after approval of the birthday girl of course) she was going to get lollipop garden cupcakes out of my trusty Martha Stewart Cupcakes book. 

After talking to the birthday girl to find out her favorite colors I went with a yellow/red theme. The cake part of the cupcakes is my go-to recipe for Yellow Buttermilk Cupcakes. The frosting is a simple, but tasty, Fluffy Vanilla Frosting that I tinted orange with food coloring. However, if you are looking for a shortcut, feel free to use a boxed cake mix and canned frosting.

The cupcakes were baked in golden yellow paper cups, and after cooling I frosted them before rolling them carefully in red sprinkles. The leaves were cut out of airheads candy, but I'm sure you could use pretty much any kind of green taffy or fruit leather. The final touch after the leaves get inserted was to stick in a lollipop as the flower.

I thought they turned out really cute and the birthday girl was excited about them as well.

Happy Birthday Janessa!

Lollipop Garden Cupcakes

(Print this Recipe)

Ingredients:

1 recipe of your favorite cupcake, baked

1 recipe of your favorite vanilla frosting (tinted to desired color to work with sprinkles)

Sprinkles (any color will work)

Lollipops

Green Taffy or Green Fruit Leather

Directions:

Using an offset spatula, spread buttercream or frosting on cupcakes, smoothing into dome shapes. Place sprinkles in a small bowl. Gently press each frosted cupcake into sprinkles, rolling it around so entire surface is coated. Insert a lollipop into the center of each cupcake. Then, using a paring knife or kitchen shears, cut leaf shapes out of green taffy strips. Press one leaf into each cupcake next to the lollipop. Refrigerate 30 minutes to allow frosting to set.