Sparkledoodles!

I have a magical recipe to share with you.

It will warm your tummy up when it is cold outside.

It's got enough spice to keep you sassy.

It's nostalgic and special like something your grandmother baked.

♥

Sparkledoodle Cupcakes

Inspired by Snickerdoodles ♥

Cinnamon-alicious Cupcakes whipped with frosting swirls and sprinkled with sparkly cookies!

This little sparkledoodle cupcake believes in you ♥ Consider it your cupcake trophy when you get done baking, you know..when you are sprinkling the last few sparkles on your cupcake! (Right before you are ready to eat it, if you can..because I know it's cute).

Just in case I haven't reviewed this with you already, rule #1 with baking the recipes I share with you. There's no secret here. Make sure you abundantly pour love into your measuring cups.  When you add enough love, it takes you on a flavor journey that will keep you coming back to the amazing day you ate a Sparkledoodle Cupcake.

The Cupcake: ♥

Ingredients Needed:

Box of White Cake Mix (I like Pillsbury, Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker if I am doctoring up a cake mix)

1 1/2 Cups of Buttermilk (in place of the water on the cake mix box)

1/3 Cup of Vegetable Oil

3 eggs

1 Tablespoon of Pure Vanilla Extract

1 Tablespoon of Ground Cinnamon 

Instructions:

1.  Preheat your even to 325.

2.  Line Cupcake pans with appx 18-20 cupcake liners.

3.  Pour your Cake mix in a stand mixer.

4.  Add Buttermilk, Eggs and Vegetable Oil, and Vanilla to your mix.

5.  Mix Well, Scraping down sides of bowl until well blended (you can mix for about two - three minutes scraping down bowl in between).

6.  Now, measure your Cinnamon and fold this in with a rubber spatula (this way your cake mix will stay white with little flecks of cinnamon in it instead of turning your batter brown).

7.  Fill each cupcake liner appx 2/3 full and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

The Cookie:

(adapted by Emeril Live, sparkles added by Amanda Cupcake!)

Ingredients Needed:

2 3/4 C All Purpose Flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 C Shortening

1/2 C Unsalted Butter (Softened!)

1 1/2 C Sugar + 3 Tablespoons

2 Eggs

1 Tablespoon of ground Cinnamon

1 Small Container of Hologram Silver Disco Dust!

Large Sugar Crystals ♥

Instructions:

1.  Preheat your oven to 325.

2.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

3.  Mix 3 Tablespoons of Sugar & Cinnamon in a small bowl, set aside.

4.  In one bowl, combine Flour, Baking Soda, and Salt.

5.  In Stand Mixer, Cream your Shortening,  Butter, and Eggs together until creamy.

6.  Gradually add the 1 1/2 Cups of sugar and eggs to this mixture.

7.  Add the dry ingredients to this blend and mix well until mixture is smooth and fluffy like the cookie dough of your dreams.

8.  For cookies that will fit on cupcakes: Hand roll the dough into 3/4 inch balls.

9.  Now Dip and Roll ♥  (and by dip and roll, I mean dip your cookie dough balls into the cinnamon/sugar blend and set each cookie dough ball spaced evenly apart on cookie sheets.)

10.  Bake your little labors of love for appx 8-10 minutes, or until they are slightly golden on top.

11.  While cookies are still warm, add your magic: Sprinkle large sugar crystals, hologram silver disco dust, and a small amount of extra cinnamonalicious ground cinnamon on top of each cookie. You now have your cookie trophy for your cupcake!

The Frosting:

13 oz Marshmallow Creme

1 lb of Unsalted Butter (softened)

1 Tablespoon of Vanilla

4-6 Cups of Powdered Sugar

1.  In stand mixer, cream butter and marshmallow creme until fluffy. (tip on getting the marshmallow creme out of the jar: warm up a rubber spatula with hot water, dry the spatula and quickly scoop out the fluff with the spatula while it is still warm!)

2.  Add 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla to your blend.

3.  Now add your sweetness! Gradually add powdered sugar to turn this into whipped heaven!

For a more "whipped" frosting, add less powdered sugar. For a more "stiff" frosting, add more!  Remember, since you have a pound of butter in your blend, you can add quite a bit of powdered sugar with out the frosting being too sweet!!

4.  Piping Magic:  For Dreamlike Swirls, I pipe frosting with a round 1M tip.  For larger more texured swirls I pipe with an Extra Large French Pastry Tip!

Inspired by all things sparkly, (including glitter heels that I wear here at my cupcake mansion) and great friends like my friend Amy here who bakes splendid cookies for me as gifts! ♥