Pillsbury™ Frosted Christmas Cupcakes

Pillsbury™ Frosted Christmas Cupcakes

These fun Christmas Cupcakes are a must make for the holidays. Baking the perfect Christmas themed cupcakes has never been easier!

This post has been sponsored by Mars Wrigley Confectionery US, LLC, Pillsbury™, & © 2017 Kellogg NA Co. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Thanksgiving is just around the corner and I have Christmas baking on the brain. I just love this time of year and all the fun sweets.

We’re going to NC to visit my family this year and I’m in charge of the dessert. I can’t wait to wow everyone with these cupcakes that take no time at all to make.

I’ve got my favorite basic vanilla cake recipe and wanted to turn it into cupcakes but through testing, I found the batter just wasn’t sturdy enough to hold the amount of M&M’S® candies I put in. And I put in a lot of M&M’S Milk Chocolate Holiday candies.

After many tweaks to the recipe, I got the batter thick enough to keep the candies from sinking to the bottom and fluffy enough to yield a soft texture after baking.

These Christmas cupcakes are my new favorite and I just may be making them for every holiday with different colored M&M’S.

The key to a thick yet tender cupcake is to use egg whites and sour cream. The egg whites leave the cupcake soft and fluffy while the sour cream keeps them moist. The cupcake alone is perfection.

Now we all know that time is limited around holidays. There’s usually a house full of people to feed and only so many hours in the day and today’s Christmas cupcakes come together so easily.

The cupcake itself is made from scratch and takes just under 30 minutes to make. To keep things simple, the new Pillsbury™ Filled Pastry Bag Vanilla Flavored Frosting is what I used to frost the cupcakes. This cuts more time off the total time it takes to make homemade cupcakes.

I’m sure these filled pastry bags are going to be my go-to when I’m in a hurry. They’re just so convenient and the whole family can get involved in cupcake decorating.

The cupcakes looked a little plain with just a swirl of vanilla frosting so I sprinkled Holiday Rice Krispies® over the frosting. I love how they turned out. The Rice Krispies adds a fun pop of color that just makes the cupcakes look finished.

You know what else would be fun? You could make Rice Krispie treats and cut them out into small Christmas trees or stars to use as a cupcake garnish. How cute would that be?

You can totally make your holiday baking a breeze this year by making Target your one-stop shop. There you’ll find all the ingredients you need to make these fun and festive cupcakes for the holidays.

Take advantage of this Cartwheel offer in the Target app for 25% off Pillsbury Filled Pastry Bags. The offer is valid through 12/24/2017. Also be sure to check for a Cartwheel offer for Rice Krispies and you’ve saved yourself some holiday cash!

TO SEE HOW TO MAKE THIS CHRISTMAS CUPCAKES RECIPE, WATCH THE SHORT VIDEO BELOW:

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Christmas Cupcakes

These fun Christmas Cupcakes are a must make for the holidays. Baking the perfect Christmas themed cupcakes has never been easier!

 Course Dessert

 Cuisine American

 Prep Time 15 minutes

 Cook Time 17 minutes

 Total Time 32 minutes

 Yields 12 cupcakes

 Calories 501 kcal

 Author Jen Sobjack

Ingredients

US Cups - Mertic

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup sour cream room temperature
• 2 large egg whites room temperature
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup M&M'S Milk Chocolate Holiday candies coarsely chopped
• 1 Pillsbury™ Filled Pastry Bag Vanilla Flavored Frosting
• 1/3 cup Holiday Rice Krispies® for garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners; set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or with a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the sour cream followed by the egg whites and vanilla extract until well incorporated.
4. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter mixture and beat until smooth and satiny. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
5. Using a silicone spatula, fold in the M&M'S until evenly distributed throughout the batter.
6. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and bake for 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs.
7. Cool the cupcakes in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
8. Pipe a swirl of vanilla frosting over the top and garnish with Rice Krispies.

Make ahead tip

1. The cupcakes can be made 1 day in advance before assembling. Cover and refrigerate each overnight. Frost the cupcakes the next day.
2. Frosted cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
3. Both frosted and unfrosted cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. 

source:https://www.bakedbyanintrovert.com/christmas-cupcakes/