Justine Humphreys

Copy Editor

Parties are just around the corner with Thanksgiving approaching. Celebrating and entertaining can be fun. Here is a cute idea for cupcakes! Owls! These feathered creatures are popping up everywhere are perfect for the fall weather.

For these cupcakes, you can use a boxed cake mix, or you can go for gold and make them from scratch. Any flavor of cake will do, as long as it will taste good with chocolate frosting. Baking isn’t as hard as you think.

 

The recipe:

 

Everyday Cupcakes

½    cup of butter

1 ¾ cups of sifted all-purpose flour

1     cup of sugar

2 ½ teaspoons of baking powder

½    teaspoon of salt

1 egg

¾    cup of milk

1     teaspoon of vanilla

 

Preheat the oven to 375º. Put butter in bowl. Sift in the dry ingredients (the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt). Add the egg and half the milk. Mix until flour is moistened. Beat 2 minutes at low speed on an electric mixer. Add the remaining milk and the vanilla; beat for 1 more minute. Put cupcake papers in muffin pans. Fill them with batter about ¾ full. Bake for 18 -20 minutes. Let them cool before frosting. Makes about 1 ½ dozen.

The frosting part is the trickiest. For the owls you need:

 

Frosting bags and tips

2 – 16 oz. cans of chocolate frosting

1 package of Junior Mints

1 package of Oreos

24 almonds

 

Start by making a dirty frosting. It is just a layer of icing to coat the entire top of the cupcake. On most packages of the frosting bags, they tell you how to put the tip into the bag. The tip you want will be the leaf tip. It gives you the points for the feathers. Then put frosting in the bag. Frost the entire cupcake with this. Follow the edge of the cupcake. Make sure the points of the feathers are going out. It may help to do a practice one.

Separate the Oreos, so you have the creme on only one side – you can warm them up to help. Split the one without the cream in ½ for the ears. Put them on the cupcake, and frost them.

Put the Oreos, with the cream, on as the eyes. Put a dab of frosting on them where you’ll put the dark part of the eyes (Junior Mints). That will help the Junior Mints to stay put. Finally, the almond will be the nose.

This adorable things are perfect for any fall get together! Cupcakes are easy, and WHHOOO doesn’t like them?