Cotton Candy Cupcakes

Months ago, I saw this idea on CakeSpy , I have had it bookmarked since then, and was waiting for the right excuse to make them. I looooove cotton candy. Have you had cotton candy ice cream? Amazing. So naturally, I had to try to make these. I changed the recipe slightly, I used a different cake recipe.

Again, I turned to the OG domestic Goddess, Martha. I used her recipe for the cake part. I don’t really like cake with out frosting, but I found myself eating more than one unfrosted cupcake…its a great recipe.

Ingredients:

• 3 1/4 cups cake flour (found mine by the cake mixes)
• 1 1/2 tbsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup plus 2 tbsp milk
• 1 3/4 sticks unsalted butter (room temp)
• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 5 large egg whites
• food coloring, I used Wilton gel in sky blue.

1. Preheat oven to 350. Sift together cake flour, salt, and BP. Stir vanilla into milk.

2. Mix on medium high speed, cream butter until smooth, add sugar, mix till pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add flour mix in 3 batches, alternating w/ 2 additions of milk, and beating until combined.

3. In separate bowl, with electric mixer on medium speed, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the egg whites into batter to lighten. Gently fold in remaining whites.

4. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake 18-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.

For the frosting-

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 6 to 8 cups Confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup Milk
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
• I used about 1/2 of one of those buckets of cotton candy you can buy at the grocery store, or more like 3 handfuls, if  you don’t have that at your store.

1. Mix butter and 4 cups of sugar. Add milk and vanilla

2. Beat until smooth and creamy. 3-5 minutes.

3. Add remaining cups of sugar one cup at a time, or until desired consistency. Add red food coloring.

4. Stir in small pieces of cotton candy, mix until dissolved.

5. Frost cupcakes, and garnish right before serving with another piece of cotton candy.

These cupcakes are really sweet, great for a kids party. Enjoy!