.:S'mores Cupcakes:.

I have seen many variations of this floating around on the internet, so I decided to throw my own in the pot! My good friend just had a baby this week, so I figured I would try them out to take to her and her family. (They got rave reviews in case you are interested!) Kind of a fun take on a summer classic!

INGREDIENTS
- brownie mix
- large marshmallows
- vegetable oil
- eggs
- cupcake liners (optional, I hate cleaning out a muffin tin though!)
- marshmallow cream
- graham crackers
- butter
- sugar
- 1 large Hershey bar (optional, I used it for a garnish)

Crush up your graham crackers. I double bagged mine in Ziplocks, and just crushed them with my hands. It didn't take long, but a meat tenderizer would work well, too! I used one whole sleeve of crackers.

Put them in a bowl and add butter. I just eye balled this one - you'll know when it's enough. Microwave and add until all of the graham cracker crumbs are evenly coated.

Sprinkle sugar into graham mix.

Mix brownie mix as directed on the box.

Line your muffin tin with cupcake liners. Put about a tablespoon of graham crumb mix in each liner.
Real bakers probably use a shot glass to smoosh it down in there. I improvised and used the lid to one of Reece's bottle!

Add one large marshmallow to each cupcake liner.

Pour brownie mix over the top.

Bake for 15-16 minutes at 350.

Let cupcakes cool before frosting. I put my marshmallow cream in a Ziplock and cut off the tip to frost. It actually didn't end up mattering and looking pretty because my house was too warm and the pretty swirl just melted into a blob.

Sprinkle graham crumb mix on top.

Garnish with one piece of Hershey bar.

Eat and enjoy!

I also saw online one recipe where, after frosting with the marshmallow cream, the cupcakes were put in the oven on broil to brown the marshmallow frosting - just like a real S'mores! Probably pretty tasty!

.:Cupcakes & Homemade Thin Mints:.

Okay, so this didn't really require a ton of baking, but there was some involved. I found this idea on a cupcake blog, and decided to try it. We are having a ward auction/fundraiser in a couple of weeks, and we are supposed to bring desserts to auction off. So I wanted to make sure it would work out! The blog I got it off of made everything from scratch. I do not have the patience for this, especially when you can just buy a cake mix and a can of frosting! :) I'm not necessarily lazy, just cheap. My sister did a tutorial of how she made her Easter wreath, so I thought it would be fun to do a tutorial of my cupcakes!

The ingredients: Devil's food cake mix, eggs, oil, strawberry frosting, chocolate chips for the coating
Put cupcake liners in your cupcake tin, and fill 2/3 full with the cake batter.
Bake!
My friend Sarah gave me this tip for frosting when you don't have the real frosting bags/tools. Just cut the end off a Ziplock! (I'm sure everyone in the world knew that but me.)
Frost the cupcakes once they are cooled. I put them on a cookie sheet and put them in the fridge so that the frosting would harden.
Melt your chocolate chips in the microwave, and dip the frosting part of the cupcakes in it.
The finished product:
This is what they look like, cut in half.
VERDICT: They were delicious!


I also made some homemade Thin Mints. You use Ritz crackers, peppermint extract, half of a bag of semi sweet chocolate chips, and half of a bag of milk chocolate chips. Melt the chips in the microwave, add the extract to your liking, and dip your Ritz in them. I haven't tried them yet, but they look tasty!