Red, White and Blue Strawberry Cupcakes

I have another 4th of July treat to share with you!

These patriotic cupcakes are the trifecta of awesome baked goods...

Easy.

Cute.

Delicious!!

You start with strawberry cupcakes and cream cheese frosting,

topped with strawberries dipped in white chocolate and blue sugar.

Oh, how I love these strawberries! YUM!

You can find my favorite strawberry cake recipe here...you start with a cake mix!

It will make approx. 30 cupcakes (great for a family barbeque).

Bake the cupcakes at 350 degrees for 15-17 minutes.

While they cool, make a batch of this frosting:

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz. cream cheese (softened)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in vanilla. Gradually add sugar, beating until smooth. Pipe on cooled cupcakes.

Rinse 30 small strawberries and pat them dry with paper towels.

Melt some candy melts or white chocolate chips in a small bowl.

Fill another small bowl with blue sanding sugar.

Dip the bottom 2/3 of each strawberry in the white chocolate,

then immediately dip the bottom 1/3 in the sugar.

Place on wax paper to harden.

Next, cover a small plate with blue sanding sugar.

Hold your cupcake sideways and press the edge of the frosting into the sugar.

Roll the cupcake, keeping just the edge on the plate.

Use a pastry brush to brush off any sugar on the cupcake liner.

When the strawberries have set up, place one on top of each cupcake.

Enjoy!

Looking for more red, white & blue treats?  Check out my 4th of July Fireworks Cake and Patriotic Mini Star Cakes!

 I share my recipes & tutorials at these fun link parties.

And these holiday link parties...

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Coconut Lime Cupcakes

I have a love/hate relationship with coconut.

I just love the flavor...delicious!!
But I hate the texture of shredded coconut.

Which is exactly why I am swooning over these cupcakes.

They are full of yummy coconut flavor, without that texture.
I used canned coconut milk and coconut extract for this recipe.

Plus, they have a splash of lime for even more tropical goodness!

 Coconut Lime Cupcakes

by Bird On A Cake

Yield: 16-18 cupcakes

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Coconut Lime Cupcakes

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup oil
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon coconut extract
• 3/4 cup coconut milk
• 2 teaspoons lime zest

Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coconut extract
• 3 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a muffin pan with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Add sugar, oil, lime juice and coconut extract; mix well. Add half of flour mixture, beat. Add half of coconut milk, beat. Add remainder of flour, then remainder of coconut milk, beating after each addition. Mix in lime zest. Pour batter into cupcake liners, filling each 2/3 full. Bake for 16-18 minutes. Allow cupcakes to cool on a rack.

In a large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add coconut extract and mix well. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time, and beat until fluffy.

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I love this combination of flavors,
and the coconut cream cheese frosting is SO good!

TIP: Garnish each cupcake with a lime slice,
and squeeze the lime over the cupcake before you eat it.
You will thank me for this!

 I am including this next photo just for fun...
While I was taking photos outside, I had a little visitor.

She liked my cupcakes. :0)

These cupcakes would be great for a tropical theme or beach party.
Enjoy!

Looking for more recipes with lime? Check out my Key Lime Cake!

 I share my recipes & tutorials at these fun link parties.

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4th of July Fireworks Cake

 It's almost here...

that summer night when we sit on a blanket in the grass with our family,

gazing upwards in awe as fireworks shoot across the dark sky

and explode above our heads in a blaze of light and color!

Don't you just love pyrotechnics??

Here is a fun Fireworks Cake you can make for the 4th of July!

Make a white cake mix.

Divide the batter into 3 bowls.

Leave one bowl white, dye one red and one blue.

Line the bottoms of 2 eight inch cake pans with wax paper and grease the sides.

Layer the batter in your pans, dropping by spoonfuls.

For marble effect: Drag a knife through the batter, making lines in a side to side motion;

then repeat this motion going up and down.

Be careful not to mix the colors together.

 Bake your cake as directed, and cool completely.

Frost your cake with white frosting, making the top as smooth as possible.

Put the cake in the freezer for at least 45 minutes to harden the frosting.

Read a good book while you wait...

Take your cake out of the freezer.

With gel food coloring, make a line of dots from the middle of the cake to the outside edge.

Starting at the outside dot, brush over the dots toward the center with a paint brush.

Clean your brush, and repeat all the way around your cake.

Work with one color at a time, and do not overlap them.

I also pressed star shaped sprinkles into the frosting on the bottom.

Serve up some cake before the fireworks start...

Enjoy!

If you are looking for more 4th of July treats,

check out my Patriotic Mini Star Cakes!

I link up at these fun weekly parties.

And these holiday link parties...

This post was featured!

Salted Caramel Buttercream with a Mustache

Mustaches will always make me think of my dad.

He sported a mustache from the time I was a baby,

until the year my first child was born.

When I was a child, I would beg him to shave it off! I didn't like scratchy kisses.

But when he finally did get rid of the mustache, I was actually a bit traumatized.

My dad looked like a stranger! 

But it's OK, I recovered without therapy.

In honor of my dad,
I created these yummy cupcakes for Father's Day.

First, I made chocolate mustache lollipops with candy melts and this mold.

Then I perched the lollipops on top of chocolate cupcakes, that I had topped with delicious salted caramel buttercream and drizzled with caramel sauce.

You can find my favorite chocolate cake recipe here.
Just change the baking time to approx. 18 minutes for cupcakes.

Salted Caramel Buttercream

adapted from allrecipes.com

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Caramel

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup salted butter
• 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (may use less)

Buttercream

• 3/4 cup salted butter (softened)
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar

To make caramel: Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar, corn syrup and vanilla; bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened (3 to 4 minutes), remove from heat and allow to cool. While it is still warm, add the cream a little at a time, until the caramel has the consistency of honey. Stir until smooth. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Beat the softened butter until fluffy, with an electric mixer on medium speed. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar and mix well. Slowly add the caramel, beating until the frosting is smooth.

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OH. MY!!!
This combination of salty and sweet is absolutely incredible!
You really should make some of these for your dad...
even if he doesn't have a mustache.

Enjoy!

I link up at these fun weekly parties.

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