Green Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

I know most people post their holiday-themed foods before the holiday itself so that everyone else can make them, but unfortunately I don't have the time or the money to make things twice. Therefore, I'm a day late, but here are the green velvet cupcakes I made yesterday! Maybe you can find another excuse to make green cupcakes, such as if your favorite team's color is green. You can also use this exact recipe but change it to other colors depending on why you are making them.

Green is a slightly off-putting color in food at times. I always think about when green and purple ketchup was introduced and everyone went crazy. I didn't like dipping my fries in purple ketchup, and I had easily convinced myself it tasted different. Alas, I love themed foods, so I decided to get over my green issues and jazz these cupcakes up for St. Patty's Day. My green is a little darker than I would've liked, and I think it's because I had to add a few ounces of regular red velvet cake mix to reach the 18 ounces it calls for. I can't remember which is which, but Betty Crocker and Duncan Hines have different box sizes, and if you have a recipe that calls for the 18 oz box you should make sure you get the right brand at the grocery store.

I'm a red velvet fanatic, and I am pretty particular about it because I've tried so many different red velvet cupcakes. I have one rule: you absolutely must use cream cheese icing. Making a red velvet cake or red velvet cupcakes and not using cream cheese icing is a sin (at least in the south). This is the first time I've tried this recipe and it is going to be my new go to for cream cheese icing. It's easier than almost all of the others I've tried, it uses less cream cheese and it tastes amazing. I'd prefer to make a more homemade version of the cupcakes if I had time, but even with the cake mix there are still enough other ingredients that I didn't feel like I was making just a boxed mix recipe.

Enjoy!

Green Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing
Recipe from Food Family Finds

Cupcakes

• 1 package (18 1/4 ounces) German chocolate cake mix with pudding
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 bottle (1 ounce) McCormick® Green Food Color
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat cake mix, sour cream, water, cocoa powder, oil, food color, eggs and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on low speed just until moistened, scraping sides of bowl frequently. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes.
2. Pour batter into 24 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
3. Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely on wire rack.

Cream Cheese Icing
Recipe from Slash Food

Ingredients
8 oz cold cream cheese
5 tbsp. softened butter
2 tsp vanilla
2-3 cups powdered sugar

Beat 8 oz. cold cream cheese (not rock solid, but it means you can use it straight out of the refrigerator) with 5 Tbsp. softened butter and 2 tsp. vanilla until combined. Gradually add 2 c. powdered sugar that has been sifted after measuring. Continue to add more sifted powdered sugar until you reach a consistency and sweetness that fits your taste (I added at least 3/4 cup more).