Cupcake Monday - Perfect Frosting

Frosting.....that's usually what reels me in when I see a cupcake.  I'm a frosting lover and will not deny it!  When we started making cupcakes this summer I just wanted to experiment with different cake flavors, but boy have I learned a lot about cupcakes and frosting in general! (not to mention I will NEVER use just a plain "un-doctored" cake mix again for cupcakes)

I wanted to learn more about the gorgeous frosting you see in those cute pastry shops, so I bought this set - which as it turns out is all I need -

I found them at Williams-Sonoma for $16, but I did also see them on Amazon.  They look pretty harmless, but checkout how FAT they are:

I couldn't wait until Monday, so Saturday I whipped up a batch of The Best Birthday Cupcakes found in this gem of a cookbook I also got last week:

Another MUST buy.  I got mine used on Ebay for $3.99.  I love all of the super easy cupcake options.  Here are the birthday cake flavored ones I made (I seriously instantly thought of birthday cake flavored ice cream when I bit into these.  They are awesome!  And I even used fat-free cream cheese!):

Beat together:

1 plain yellow cake mix

1 (8 oz) package of reduced-fat cream cheese at room temp

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Pour into cupcake liners and cook on 350 for 24-27 minutes (or until done)

Buttercream Frosting:

8 tablespoons butter at room temp

3 cups confectioners sugar

3-4 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

In a bowl, beat butter until fluffy.  Add confectioners sugar and 4 tablespoons of milk.  Beat until fluffy.  Add second tablespoon of milk if needed.  If you are doing "fat frosting", you need to double this recipe.  Otherwise it's enough to frost 24 cupcakes.

My frosting is FAR from perfect, but I'm going to have so much fun practicing!!