Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes

Halloween cupcakes...the saga continues.  While pumpkin cupcakes seemed a little cliche to go with, I love the extra pizzazz the sanding sugar gives these sweet gourds.  Otto had a blast helping mom dip the "pun-tins" in sprinkles.  

These are great cupcakes to make with kids at your Halloween party.  Just frost the cupcakes for them (if your kids are littles like mine), and then they can dip in sanding sugar, add the stem and pipe the vines with Ziploc bags.

Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes
From Better Homes & Gardens

Ingredients:
White cake mix (and ingredients to prepare)
Orange food coloring
Orange Buttercream
Orange Sanding Sugar
Green Buttercream
Pretzel rods
Pastry bag and #2 tip

Directions:

1. Make cake batter according to package, color with orange food coloring, and bake cupcakes according to package directions.
2. After cupcakes completely cool, frost with orange buttercream.
3. While buttercream is still wet, dip into sanding sugar coating the entire frosting surface.
4. Break a pretzel rob in half and stick one half into the middle in the cupcake, broken side down.
5. Pipe green butter cream to make vines.

Orange cake for an orange pumpkin through and through.

Be sure to check out yesterday's Ghost Cupcakes and tomorrow's Witch Cupcakes.