Perfect Picnic Cupcake

Yesterday I had a school picnic to go to and the girls were asked to bring desserts. So it was a perfect opportunity for me to make my cupcakes and share them with some friends. I was looking through my cupcake cookbook and I found the Butterfly Cupcakes. I had never seen these kind before so because if it's name and it's uniqueness, I thought it was a perfect fit for an outdoor event. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Generous ¾ cup self-rising flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
8 tablespoon soft margarine (light)
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons milk (skim)
confectioner sugar, for dusting

Filling:
6 tablespoons butter
1 ½ cups confectioner sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Prep time:  About 25 minutes
Bake time: 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees
Makes: 12 cupcakes

Instructions:

1. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the margarine, sugar, eggs, and milk. Using an electric hand whisk, beat together until smooth. Spoon the batter into the paper cases. Bake the cupcakes for 15-20 minutes or until well risen and golden brown.

2. To make the filling, put the butter in a bowl and beat until fluffy. Sift in the confectioner sugar, add the vanilla extract and beat together until smooth and creamy.

3. When the cupcakes are cold, use a serrated knife to cut a circle from the top of each cupcake and then cut each circle in half. Spread or pipe a little of the butter cream filling into the center of each cupcake, then press the 2 semicircular halves into it at an angle to resemble butterfly wings. Dust with confectioner sugar.

               *KD's advice* I stuck my cupcakes in the freezer for about 5-7 minutes and they cooled off right away.

 Helpful Hint: If you are only have one 6-cupcake pan and want to cook the cupcakes all at once, you can take 12 double-layered paper cupcake cases, set them on a cookie sheet and bake them like that. 

What I learned: Sometimes to make butter-cream frosting you have to add some sugar or butter to get it to the thickness you want. 

Variation:  If you want lemon butterfly cupcakes, add ½ grated rind of lemon to the batter and instead of vanilla extract, add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice in the filling.

KD’s rating: ★★★★☆

Nutrition info (per cupcake):

Calories:               163
Carbs:                  27
Fat:                     6
Sugars:                 20
Protien:                2
Fiber:                   0
WW Points:            5