(Lazy) Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes

Last year, my dear husband texted me, “Sweetie, can you bake me 4 dozen cupcakes for my D.A.R.E. class for tomorrow? Please and thank you!”. In a frenzy, I ran out to the grocery store and randomly picked up 4 boxes of cake mix and ingredients for icing.

The astute reader will say, “Hey, Kat! That makes 8 dozen cupcakes! That’s too many boxes!”

My readers are so smart and attentive.

Long story short, I have 2 boxes of cake mix left over from last year and I finally get to use them for this year’s D.A.R.E. class. My only problem is that normal cake mix is so boring. Since I was given a little more notice this year (about 2 days more notice), I decided to do something fun with this year’s cupcakes. So I present you, Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes.

This is such an easy and attractive way of dressing up regular vanilla or white cake batter. My only problem was orange extract.

I live in a small town, so getting something that is not available in the small town can be difficult. I have learned to improvise.

Enter Orange Powerade. I was a little apprehensive at first, but…
Vanilla Buttercream icing + Orange Gatorade = Delicious Awesomeness
That’s math and math is always correct.

I’m glad that I managed to get a couple of these suckers iced. Let’s just say that I baked 4 dozen of these and 1 dozen of them mysteriously went missing. I’m pretty sure it may have had something to do with being a mama to 3 scampy dogs, but I can’t prove that. I just know that I didn’t eat a dozen unfrosted cupcakes and my dear husband denies eating them.

I must say, when I first saw the recipe, I was a little skeptical. It called for a box of orange jello WITH a box of vanilla cake mix! I thought it was going to be too much sugar. Boy was I wrong.

The Jello was not only flavoured the cake, but it also helped in creating the florescent orange hue.

 

(Lazy) Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes with Orange Vanilla Buttercream
Adapted from thecakeblog.com – makes 24 – 36 cupcakes

Cupcakes

One Box of Vanilla/White cake mix + ingredients on box
1/4 cup of orange juice
1 3 oz. packet of orange jello
1 tsp of orange extract (I didn’t have any, so I opted out)
1 tsp of vanilla extract (if using white cake mix)
zest of 1 orange

Follow instructions on the box, substituting 1/4 of the water/milk in the the instructions with orange juice. Mix all the ingredients together and bake according to the box instructions.

That’s pretty simple!

Orange Vanilla Buttercream
Enough to frost 48 cupcakes

2 cups of soft butter
5-6 cups of icing sugar
Powerade Liquid Water Enhancer – Orange Flavour
1-2 tbsp of milk

Using your hand mixer or stand up mixer, beat the butter until it is soft and fluffy.
Add 5 cups of icing sugar until it is at the consistency of soft, fluffy icing. Squirt a generous tsp of the Powerade into the icing and mix. When fully incorporated, stop the mixer to “taste and assess.”

Feel free to add more icing sugar or Powerade to your desired sweetness/consistency!