We have been so busy lately with school. There has been so many activities and playing outside that we have had little time for baking. One of my 6-year-old daughter’s favorite recipes is making and decorating cupcakes. Yesterday we made heart shaped cupcakes using something out of her toy box.
You need:
Cupcake batter – we used a recipe from Marta Stewart
Cupcake liners
Cupcake pan
Marbles (That’s right, regular glass marbles your kids play with)
Frosting
2 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese (room temperature)
1 cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup of strawberry jam
Heart shaped chocolate
Heart shaped candy sprinkles
This is how you do it:
Put liners in your cupcake pans and fill the cup with around 1/3 batter. Then either put a marble or an aluminum foil ball between each 
of the cupcake liners and the cupcake pan. Great job for a child.
Bake for 15 minutes at 350° F (175°C); let cool before you start decorating.
Put the strawberry jam in a bowl and smash it with an emersion blender till it is crushed fine. Put the jam in a wire strainer, mash and work the jam to get the juice out. Melt butter and let it cool.
In another bowl combine cream cheese and butter and beat together. Add the strawberry juice into the cream cheese mix and frost your cupcakes.
Have fun decorating your cupcakes! Great for Valentine picnics
