RED VELVET CUPCAKES

I made these for my daughter-in-law's baby shower (she's having a girl - my first granddaughter - yippee!!) They're not Sprinkles but I think they are ALMOST as good. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures of the ingredients before I made them, but y'all don't need to see pictures of flour, sugar and eggs, right? The cream cheese frostung is so yummy and one of the reasons is the melted marshmallows. Hope you like them!!

Cake:

2 c. sugar

2 sticks butter (room temperature, and NOT margarine)

2 eggs

4 T. cocoa powder

2 ounces red food coloring (4 T.)

*2 1/2 c. cake flour

1 t. salt

1 cup buttermilk (or 1 T. vinegar mixed w/1 c. milk)

1 t. vanilla

1/2 t. baking soda

1 T. vinegar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In mixing bowl cream sugar and butter and beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well after each addition. Mix cocoa and food coloring together and add to sugar mixture; mix well. Sift together flour and salt. Add flour mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. In a small bowl combine baking soda and vinegar and add to cake mixture. Pour batter into 24 regular muffin tins lined with cupcake papers. This makes almost exactly 24 cupcakes. Bake for 20 min. then check by pushing lightly on top of cupcake with your finger. If it bounces back they are done. If not cook for 1-2 more minutes. DO NOT overbake. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:

1 8 oz. package softened cream cheese

1 stick softened butter

2 cups mini-marshmallows (these will be melted)

4 c. powdered sugar

1/2 t. vanilla

Blend cream cheese and butter together in mixing bowl. Place the 2 c. marshmallows in a heat proof bowl and microwave for 30-40 seconds, just until melted. Stir well and add marshmallows, vanilla and sugar to cream cheese and butter. Add a little more powdered sugar if needs to be more thick. At this point you can half the batch and mix 3-4 T. cocoa poweder for chocolate.

I used half of the batch for vanilla and sprinkled pink coconut on them and made the other half chocolate.

Another option is to mix 1 c. coconut and 1 c. chopped pecans into the frosting. This will frost a whole layer cake and is so delicious!!

*Cake flour has less gluten, is made from a softer wheat and makes a more tender, moist crumb for cakes. If you don't have cake flour, diminish each cup of flour by 2 T. I like to buy cake flour and use it for cakes and cupcakes. I think it does make a difference.