Lets Bake

Cupcake Mixology

I thought it would be fun to show you how I get the most mileage out of my favorite cupcake recipes. It's easy to customize a basic recipe that you trust and love with a few simply add-ins, creating more treats with less work. This is a great tip for anyone looking to impress guests at their next party or for a bake sale. I'm going to show you how I used 2 basic cupcake recipes (vanilla and chocolate) and 1 frosting recipe to create six different flavor combinations!

Cupcakes made: 

1. PB & J cupcakes

2. Homemade Hostess cupcakes

3. Marmalade Dream cupcakes

4. Peanut Butter Monster cupcakes

5. Classic Party cupcakes 

6. Cinnamon Sugar cupcakes

Simple Vanilla Cupcakes makes 1 dozen
Most of the recipes are taken from HERE!

Needed: 2 1/2 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 cups water, 2/3 cup oil, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons vinegar. (Note: this cupcake recipe is vegan friendly!)


In a bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In another bowl mix together the wet ingredients. Combine these and stir just until no lumps are left. Pour the batter into a lined cupcake pan and bake at 350 F for 22-25 minutes.


Simple Chocolate Cupcakes makes 1 dozen


Needed: 2 1/4 cups flour, 1/4 cup cocoa, 2 cups sugar, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 cups water, 2/3 cup oil, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons vinegar. (Note: this cupcake recipe is vegan friendly!)

In a bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In another bowl mix together the wet ingredients. Combine these and stir just until no lumps are left. Pour the batter into a lined cupcake pan and bake at 350 F for 22-25 minutes.

Simple Butter Cream Frosting makes about 2 1/2 cups

Needed: 4 sticks of softened butter (2 cups), 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (the clear kind is better for frostings) and 2-3 cups powdered sugar.

In a bowl cream together the butter and vanilla extract. Add the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and mixing in between until you have the perfect frosting consistency.

Now that you have the basic recipes we can mix them up to make all our flavor combinations!


1. PB & J cupcakes- vanilla cupcake base. Use a sharp knife to carve a small (inverted) pyramid out of the center, fill with jam or jelly (I used Blue Chair Damson Jam). Now take 1 cup of your butter cream frosting and stir in 1/3 cup peanut butter. Pipe the peanut butter frosting over the top.


2. Homemade Hostess cupcakes- chocolate cupcake base. Use a sharp knife to carve a small (inverted) pyramid out of the center, fill with marshmallow cream. Pipe marshmallow cream over the top.


3. Marmalade Dream cupcakes- vanilla cupcake base. Use a sharp knife to carve a small (inverted) pyramid out of the center, fill with marmalade (I used Blue Chair Orange-Kumquat Marmalade). Top with marshmallow cream, toast in the broiler for a few seconds if you like.


4. Peanut Butter Monster cupcakes- chocolate cupcake base. Pipe on peanut butter frosting (see flavor #1) and top with chopped peanut butter cups!


5. Classic Party cupcakes- chocolate cupcake base. Top with classic butter cream and sprinkle on some pretty sprinkles.

6. Cinnamon Sugar cupcakes- vanilla cupcake base. Top with classic butter cream and sprinkle on a little cinnamon and sanding sugar.