Beach Bear Cupcake Recipe - Hawaiian themed party #2

Beach bear cupcakes - with a rainbow surprise inside!

This is the second of three recipes from my Hawaiian themed party posts. These little cupcakes were definitely a hit with the 6 - 8 year old crowd! They loved that not only was it a cupcake but that it was also part cookie and candy! The rainbow cake they found inside was the icing on the cake, so to speak!

Bears at the beach!

The cupcake is a vanilla cake recipe. The batter is divided and coloured and finally layered in the muffin tins - super easy. The decorating of the cupcakes also could not be easier! Slap on some blue icing, stick in a little umbrella, a couple teddy grahams, a bite of fruit leather and a gummy life-saver and SHAZAM you are on your way to making any party a memorable hit!

Beach Bear Rainbow Cupcakes

Makes 24-27 cupcakes.

Ingredients

12 ounces or 1-1/2 c of unsalted butter
2 c sugar (I prefer berry sugar)
4 eggs
1/4 c vanilla
4 c all purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup milk


various food colour gels (I use Wilton brand - the colours come out particularly vibrant)


Icing - see recipe below
Vanilla butter cream


Decorations
2 teddy graham bears per cupcake
graham cracker crumbs - about 1-1/2 cups.
fruit leather - if using store bought strips, you can usually cut three towels per one fruit leather.
life saver gummies - same number as cupcakes
cocktail umbrellas - same number as cupcakes


What to do

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Using a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together for 8-10 minutes.
3. Add eggs, one at a time and mix for 30 seconds after adding each one.
4. Add vanilla and mix.
5. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
6. Add 1/3 of the flour bowl to the creamed mixture and beat till smooth.
7. Beat in half of the milk and mix until smooth. 
8. Repeat with flour then milk and then flour again.
9. Divide the batter into as many bowls as you have colours (I wouldn't recommend more than four).
10. Add colour to the batter by using a toothpick. Stir until colour is even. Add colour until desired shade is reached.
11. Set 24-27 muffin tins with muffin liners. 
12. Place a tbsp or so of one colour batter into each muffin liner. Repeat with remaining coloured batters. Cups should be about 3/4 full.
13. Bake for approximately 18-20 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Butter cream Icing

Ingredients
4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter, unsalted and at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c milk

What to do

• Sift sugar into large bowl.
• Cut butter into smaller pieces.
• Turn mixer on low and slowly add the butter one piece at a time.
• Add vanilla.
• Slowly add milk.
• Turn to medium speed and beat for 4 minutes.
• Add blue food coloring and beat until consistent color is reached.

How to decorate

1. Spread icing onto cupcake - not too thick since there will be other candy on it. "Rough" up the icing so it looks more like water by using a spoon or small spatula and lift it off the icing on one half. 
2. On the other half sprinkle graham cracker crumbs so it resembles a sandy beach.
3. Cut fruit leathers into towels so they are a little bit longer than the teddy. Place on sand (you may need to add a dollop of icing on the bottom of fruit leather so it sticks to sand).
4. Add a dollop of icing to the back of teddy and place on fruit leather towel.
5. Stick umbrella next to bear.
6. Take a gummy lifesaver and place over teddy. Stick teddy into the water.

Enjoy!

See the orange lifesaver gummy?
A few burst die to the girth of the teddies! Still delicious!