May Day Flower Cupcakes

This week's posts have been a trip down memory lane. First, the homemade playdough, and now these flower cupcakes. My mom made these cute little marshmallow creations when I was young- and now that I have kids of my own, I have added my own little twist to the tradition. These are super easy, and a lot of fun to make (and eat:) with your children.

You will need:

• Baked Cupcakes (24 or so) cooled completely
  
• A bag of large marshmallows
  
• A bag of candy for the center of the flowers. I use Haribo (German Candy)Raspberries
  
• Sugar and Food Coloring (optional)
  
• Frosting
  

First, frost your cupcakes. You can use whatever frosting is your favorite. We made a few of these with cream cheese frosting (dyed green) and the rest we frosted with Nutella and Brunette spread. I LOVE to frost things with Nutella. It is slightly more healthy (hey, at least it has no trans fats, right?) and it tastes phenomenal. I also really like the Brunette spread from Le Pain Quotidien. It is like Nutella without the chocolate- essentially a sweetened organic hazelnut spread.

Second, add your flower centers to the middle of each cupcake. My mom uses gumdrops. You could really use any colorful round candy for this. I use Haribo Raspberries because I like their texture and taste. Other ideas- Dots, Sprees, Mentos, Peanut Butter M&M's....

Next, create your flower petals. Take a large marshmallow, and hold it length-wise. Next, grab your kitchen shears and snip the marshmallow into 4 or 5 (if you are really talented) equal sized petals. The kitchen shears will get goopy from the marshmallow insides. I have to wash mine off at least twice while petal creating.

Each "petal" will have at least one very sticky side that you can dip into colored sugar if you want. If you want colorful petals, I recommend making your own colored sugar instead of purchasing colored sugar at the store. The texture tends to be less gritty, and the colors more vibrant. You can make your own dipping sugar by adding a few drops of food color (of your choice) to a small amount of sugar in a mason jar. Then let your children take turns shaking it up. They will be amazed by this magic trick you have taught them, if they are 6 or under:).

I will say, I personally like these cupcakes better without the colored sugar addition. My husband and kids like the sugar topping. So, for your first batch I would make some with/without sugar so you can decide which way you like best.
If you have decided to color the petals, pour the sugar into an open dish and dip the marshmallow petals into it until each petal is coated. The marshmallow is very sticky, so this is an easy task- and one your children will LOVE helping out with. Once your petals are completed, place 4 or 5 of them around the center candy and you are done.