Friday Movie Night: snacks to satisfy the sweet tooth while you're catching up on the latest fli

In my family Friday night is a time to unwind and reconnect and its been this way for as long as i've known starting with when I was a kid. My dad would always order pizza or chicken and we would watch a movie of sorts. No matter what was going on we knew we were having pizza on Friday, and so i've kept the tradition going in my house now. Sometimes we order takeout and sometimes we make our own pizzas (there will be a later post on this) as everyone has a different preference for toppings and there is always a dessert at the end. Preferences in our house based on the request of the hubby usually land on brownies and the 6 y/o wants cupcakes (I'm a chocolate in my buttered popcorn type of gal) each of which the kid and I make together. One day I came across a picture of cupcakes in the shape of ice cream and I knew the kid would love it so we made it. What I love about this recipe is that it's kid friendly in the baking process, he literally does most of the brunt work and it can be customized to whatever the mood in your house is currently. Ours usually ends in sprinkle filled white cake and some hue of blue buttercream icing (two of his favs) but you can almost make any combination with this recipe and tweak it to your occasion the possibilities are endless. Make two colors in your icing for a swirl effect if you use a star tip or get a mini ice cream scoop and use a scoop to place the frosting on if your looking for a more old school effect. These are great for gatherings, birthday parties, school events and Friday nights on the couch. I've used box mix and i've made my own batter and its really the same in this avenue so for all you leery starter bakers out there don't be ashamed to break out a box of cake mix and experiment if that makes you happy. I would say that you should make your own buttercream icing though, thats what really takes it over the edge. What are your favorite movie night at home snacks? Let me know what you think of these!

XO

Simple white cake ingredients with sprinkles in the batter (makes 18-24 cupcakes cones)

• 1 cup white sugar

• 1/2 cup butter

• 2 eggs

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/2 cup milk

• Rainbow Sprinkles (I like the wilton brand named rainbow jimmies because they remind me of my childhood and getting sprinkles on my soft serve cone from the Mr. Softy Truck) click here to see where you can order some

Buttercream Frosting:

• 2 sticks (1 cup of unsalted butter) softened and brought to room temp

• 1 pound of confectioners sugar

• 1 tsp of vanilla extract

• 2-3 tbsp of milk (this is to thin the frosting out to desired consistency)

• For coloring I always use gel food coloring and my fav brand are spectrum or wilton, for these I used spectrum color name royal (click on the names for where to buy)

Additional items needed: Cake stye ice cream cones, piping bag and Wilton 2D star tip if you want to get fancy and a 13x9 baking pan

Directions for Cupcakes

Stand up cones in the baking pan

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Using a ice cream scoop or a 1/4 cup measuring cup pour batter into cone until about 3/4 full.

3. Bake for about 20 minutes testing with a toothpick to make sure its cooked all the way thru when nothing comes back on the toothpick when inserted into the cupcake.

4. Let cool completely and while they're doing that make your frosting

Directions for buttercream:

1. Cream butter until its begins to turn white in color in a stand mixer on high. When this is done turn your mixer to low speed and gradually add sugar and then add vanilla and one tbsp of milk.

2. Turn mixer on medium speed and beat for about 5 mins until it begins to meld together. As this is happening add another tbsp of milk and see if its the consistency you want. If its still too thick to spread add up to another tbsp of milk.

3. Once this is done add 2 drops of gel food coloring into the frosting and put mixer on low until it's blended in. You may add more color if you're looking for a darker hue of whatever color you pick but remember not too much as gel coloring darkens the longer you let it sit on your frosting.

4. Once you get the color desired put frosting in a piping bag with a tip attached and ice as much or as little as you like by making a circular motion while pushing on the piping bag and the top of the cupcake.