Happy 2012

We spent New Year's Eve with a few friends and their kids.
And I couldn't think of a better way to ring in the New Year (kid-friendly style) than with this:

My kids love cupcakes. Okay, so do I. Aside from the frosting, the girls hardly eat the actual cupcake. Except when it comes to funfetti cake. Something about those colorful sprinkles. Oh but please, don't buy the boxed stuff. I promise you it is so easy to make!

Vanilla Cupcake Recipe (taken from Martha Stewart)
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 stick butter, room temperture
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups milk

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl; set aside. Cream the butter and sugar, until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Scrape down sides of the bowl and add vanilla.

Add flour mixture and milk, alternating between the two and ending with flour. Scrape down sides and bottom.

Now, this next step is not from the above recipe: Fold in about 1/2 cup of sprinkles.

Fill liners 2/3 full. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting.

To frost these colorful treats, I used my go-to buttercream frosting recipe from Magnolia Bakery.

CHEERS!