Cinnamon Toast Cupcakes

By carvalhohm

Ingredients

• 1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow cake mix
• 1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar for sprinkling (1 Tbsp sugar + 1/4 tsp cinnamon)
• Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Details

Adapted from bakespace.com

Preparation

Step 1

Place a rack in center of oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set pans aside.

Place cake mix, pudding mix, milk, oil, eggs, and cinnamon in large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Stop machine and scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula. Increase mixer speed to medium and blend 1 1/2 to 2 min­utes more, scraping down sides again if needed. Batter should look thick and well combined. Spoon 1/3 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it 3/4 full. (You will get between 20 and 24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.) Place pans side by side in the oven.

Bake cupcakes until they are golden and spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 18 to 22 min­utes. Remove pans from oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 5 minutes. Run dinner knife around edges of cupcake liners. Lift cup­cakes up from bottoms of cups using end of knife, and pick them out of cups carefully with your finger­tips. Place them on wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before frosting.

Meanwhile, prepare Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting.

Place a heaping tablespoon of frosting on each cupcake and swirl to spread it out with a short metal spatula or a spoon, taking care to cover tops completely. Sprinkle frosting with cinnamon­ sugar mixture. Place these cupcakes, uncovered or in a cake saver, in refrig­erator until the frosting sets, 20 minutes. Cupcakes are ready to serve.

Store cupcakes in cake saver or under glass dome at room temperature for up to 3 days or in refrigerator for up to 1 week. Or freeze them, wrapped in foil or in cake saver for up to 6 months. Thaw cupcakes overnight in refrigerator before serving.

*Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:*
8 oz cream cheese (softened)
4 tablespoons butter (softened)
3 cups powdered sugar (sifted)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine cream cheese and butter in mixing bowl and beat at low speed for about 30 seconds. Add powdered sugar, mixing in a little at a time, until it is all incorporated. Add more sugar, as necessary to reach desirable consistency. Add cinnamon, increase mixer speed to medium and beat until frosting is fluffy, about 1 minute more.