Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

I found this recipe when I was paging through a magazine and was so excited! For Christmas for Brody's specials teachers and Brody and Beau's Sunday School teachers, we made up a little treat bag of a to go mug and a few bags of hot chocolate... These would fit perfect with that plan!! So, I made them up and added them to the treat bags. They looked adorable!


Hot Chocolate Cupcakes
(recipe found in Family Circle magazine)

Cupcakes
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk

Topping
2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup solid vegetable shortening
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons milk or water
1 1/4 cups mini marshmallows
3 candy canes

Heat oven to 350. Line indents of a standard size 12 cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. In a medium size bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, with mixer on medium high speed, beat butter and sugar until smooth and creamy, 2 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla until fluffy, 1 minute. On low speed, beat in flour mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 full. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from pan to wire racks; let cool.

In medium size bowl, with mixer on low speed, beat confectioners' sugar, shortening and milk or water until smooth. Spread over cupcakes, about 2 tablespoons for each. Top each cupcake with 8-9 mini marshmallows. With a serrated knife, cut wrapped candy canes into 2 inch pieces. Unwrap and tuck a piece into each cupcake.