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! ♥  

A California Wedding ♥

This last week I packed up my cupcakes and extended the love to California for my friend Alicia ♥

She was married to her love, Ryan Santibanez in Huntington Beach!

Alicia and I call each other full time friends, because we worked together side by side in the fashion industry for over 40 hours a week. We always entertained each other with laughter in the office, including passing notes to eachother on Post It Notes. One afternoon several years ago, we used a Post It Note as a contract promising each other that when we got married, we'd be in each other's weddings. We even autographed the note, officially ♥.

And last weekend..our written promise became reality.

I was a part of her wedding...as a bridesmaid.

....and as her cupcake caterer!

I traveled 2000 miles to share the cupcake love.

♥

60 white velvet cupcakes swirled with lavender promises between Alicia and Ryan of Sweet Love, "I Do", and "Happily Ever After."  My friend has grown up. She's gone from Post it Note promises to Vows of Eternal Love ♥.

Peanut Butter Cup Hors d'oeuvres anyone?

The Peanut Butter Cup "Hors D'oeuvres" were baked inside of 60 more chocolate cupcakes that I named "Peanut Butter Cup Gems".   Ryan (the groom) loved this flavor so much, he posted a photo on Facebook with the caption: "Superbomb.com":

I even made them a little wedding cake. ♥

♥

Ryan and Alicia's special day radiated love. Every detail was made by hand. Alicia even designed this beautiful backdrop for the dessert table.

(cupcakes half eaten).

I may not have married the man of *my* dreams yet.  Right now I'm married to my cupcake career ♥ But Ryan and Alicia's love reminded me that if I keep my hope alive, the love of my life might just squeeze into all of the sweetness that is Amanda Cupcake!  That reminder was probably the best gift given to me, in exchange for 120 cupcakes.

Recipe for the groom's Superbomb.com Peanut Butter Frosting:

Ingredients Needed:

8 oz Cream Cheese

1/2 Cup Unsalted Butter

2/3 Cup Peanut Butter

2-3 Cups of Powdered Sugar

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Optional: 1-2 Tablespoons of Heavy Whipping Cream

1.  In a large mixer using a paddle attachment, fluff up cream cheese and unsalted butter. 

2.   Gradually add Peanut Butter until all ingredients are combined and creamy.   (Make sure you scrape the bowl continuously with a rubber spatulat to incorporate all ingredients).

3.  Add the teaspoon of Vanilla Extract. 

4.  Slowly add powdered sugar into the mixture and whip with paddle attachment until frosting is the thickness you desire. I like to leave this frosting pretty smooth and creamy. 

**If frosting is too thick, you can always go back and make it more creamy and dreamy, "superbomb.com" by adding 1 or 2 Tablespoons of Heavy Whipping Cream. 

Yes, I had a Giant Sparkly Cupcake Party....

Everyone at least once in their life should host something as fabulous as a Giant Sparkly Cupcake Party. ♥ I did last week, and it was wonderful.

(This is me and my giant sparkly cupcake, photo courtesy of my talented friend Angela from Angel Cakes). 

I made a cupcake vow to my hometown of Waupaca, and to all my cupcake friends......When I reached 1000 "likes" on the Amanda Cupcake Facebook page, I would return the love by baking and swirling a giant sparkly cupcake like magic.  

♥

I invited everyone in town and from afar to eat my giant cupcake magic with me.

And if you dare...you could wear a tutu with me while eating a cupcake at the same time.  I mean..I spill frosting and edible glitter on my tutu often!  I wonder what my designer Mir Tutu thinks of that?

 

The journey to becoming a giant sparkly cupcake isn't always predictable. (This is what my colorful cake batter looked like in the pan before baking). 

..This is the unpredictable proof, at 350 degrees.  My colorful cake batter turned into a very beautiful kaleidoscope while baking. (Hint: Curiosity is a good thing! I would have never discovered such a beautiful sight if I wasn't curious enough to peek inside the oven 10 minutes after my giant cupcake started baking!)

♥

I am glad I didn't eat my giant sparkly cupcake alone.

So many of my friends showed up, 

and they are all wonderful characters:

A Tu - Tu Designer.

A Chef.

Two Cupcake Superstars.

Some Young Aspiring Superstars.

My Artist Boyfriend. (the one who made this amazing drawing of me).

An Adorable Birthday Girl and Her Daddy.

My Friend from the Waupaca Middle School Dance Team (remember Chocolate Peanut Butter Love?)

My blonde bombshell of a friend. (there's always a blonde bombshell).

My past high school teacher who gives the best cupcake hugs.

 My Make-Up Artist Friend Kate Unger who gave make-overs all night.

Nicki Minaj as the soundtrack.

Eeek! Look at the adorable mini cupcake cake pops Angel Cakes made just for me!  They look just like my giant cupcake, except in mini giant cupcake size! 

 

♥ Angel Cakes. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I am still squealing with joy.  Just look at the box! You put so much ♥ into this wonderful gift.

Or what about this Ranch Bacon Cupcake that tasted just like a dream Subway sandwich,  masterminded by my Master Chef friend Lonnie and her talented tutu designer sister Miranda?

Lonnie and Miranda call them Dainty Dinners. ♥

Who says cupcakes can't be savory instead of sweet?

.....and of course..one giant sparkly cupcake.

 ♥

I tried to top the giant cupcake with a whole crazy mixture of everything I've piled high on cupcakes in the last year:

Love.

Sparkles.

Gems.(edible ones like glitterized peanut butter cups).

Disco Cherries.

Life.

Color.

Sparkling Oreo Cookies. 

I even made the cupcake liner out of chocolate candy melts. 

And the cutting of the cake.. was just a sweet & beautiful disaster. 

It was so ginormously spectactular, we cut the cupcake with a cleaver.

It's a rare, but alluring surprise when something is just as pretty on the inside as it is on the outside!

An even bigger sparkly giant cupcake party:

Will happen when I reach 1999 likes on Facebook.

That means more cupcake love for the world to share.

♥

Mark your calendar. 

Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.

One of my favorite quotes by Oprah Winfrey.

And I used this quote as my title because I have been moved to happy tears the past few weeks by the support I've been shown by friends, strangers who have become friends, and colleagues.

People may think that all of the exciting events that have happened to me in the past few weeks have happened overnight.  But really I have been working so hard for several years trying to find my "niche" in the world by creating cupcakes for people.  I had no other intentions than to make people smile, squeal, dance, or just plain make someone's day brighter.

I remember last year someone told me while I was going through a trial in my life..."Just keep making cupcakes and giving out that love.  Maybe some of that cupcake love will be returned to you."
And honestly, whenever I deliver cupcakes that love is given right back to me.
I want it to stay that way forever! Love is the quality in my cupcakes. And it always will be.

So this blog, my sweet darlings - is a tribute to all of you. And you know who you are.

This blog is a mix of things that have been given, done for me, or said to me in the past 2-3 weeks of my cupcake existence.

By posting this I am showing you that I am blown away and so very grateful.  This makes all of my countless half sleepless cupcake chaos frosting filled nights when I leave the kitchen with frosting in my hair really worth it!

I hope it never ends. This wondrous busy cupcake chaos is my true love and I wouldn't ask for another career ever again. They say be careful what you wish for.  Well I wish for this cupcake dream to grow so big so that I can share my style of cupcake love with most of the world. ♥

And seriously..Ellen Degeneres..if you are watching...I really want you to eat one of my cupcakes! (I make a mean vegan cupcake! Preferably a cupcake kaleidoscope because that is how I envision it) That's next on my list. ♥

"You are going to be Waupaca's first cupcake gazillionaire."

"We just got done watching you on the news,

both segments about four times because Jimmy

wanted to watch you over and over again!

You did such an amazing job!

You looked beautiful as ever and we are very proud of you."

Thank you all for your love. ♥
Now you see why I am overwhelmed with joy!