Mini More - Banana Pudding Cupcakes

I cannot cook.

I can't even make pasta correctly.  My cooking skills pretty much end at pizza assembly.  But I love to bake.  You would think that the two would be somewhat related - but I haven't found that to be the case.

I found this recipe for Banana Pudding Cupcakes from Confessions of a Cookbook Queen several years ago.  It definitely seemed like a winner - I love banana pudding.  I love cupcakes.  And any time I find a recipe for homemade frosting I get a tiny bit excited.  As in happy-dance-in-the-middle-of-my-kitchen excited.

It's the little things.

As you will deduce about me, I usually bake for functions.  I don't typically like baked goods sitting on my counter at home staring at me.  Bad things happen that way.  So I brought the Banana Pudding Cupcakes to work and people lost their minds.  I received emails praising the cupcakes as the best thing anyone had ever tasted.  Ever.  For every work function after that, there were demands for the banana cupcakes.

So I was grocery shopping at my local Target the other day when I came across these babies.

THESE EXIST?!?

So naturally I knew that I must make a mini version of the Banana Pudding Cupcakes.  Because the only thing better than dessert is miniature dessert.

PREP/DECO TIME: 30 minutes
BAKE TIME: 15 minutes
MAKES: roughly 75 mini cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

• Box of mini vanilla wafers
• French vanilla cake mix (plus ingredients listed on box)
• Filling
• Small box instant banana cream pudding
• 1 3/4 cup cold milk
• Frosting
• 1 cup cold milk
• Small box instant French vanilla pudding
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 4 oz. whipped cream cheese
• 8 oz. whipped topping (thawed)

WHIP IT UP

1. First prepare the frosting (it takes an hour to firm in the fridge).  In a large bowl, whisk together milk, French vanilla pudding and powdered sugar until thick and smooth.
2. Whisk in whipped cream cheese until blended.
3. Fold in whipped topping, and place in refrigerator for an hour.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line your mini cupcake pans with paper liners.
5. Place a mini vanilla wafer in the bottom of each cupcake liner.
6. Prepare cupcake batter as called for on box, and fill each mini liner 2/3 of the way full.
7. Bake for 15 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
8. Place mini cupcakes on a wire rack and let cool.
9. While cupcakes are cooling, prepare the filling.  In a medium bowl, whisk together milk and banana pudding mix until thick (about 2 minutes).
10. Place pudding in refrigerator to set until cupcakes are fully cooled.
11. Once cupcakes have cooled, cut a small circle in the center of each cupcake and fill with banana pudding (see below for a trick to do this).
12. Once frosting has firmed, pipe onto the top of each cupcake.
13. In a plastic bag, crush up some mini vanilla wafers.  Sprinkle the top of each cupcake with vanilla wafer crumbles, and top with a mini vanilla wafer.
14. Store any uneaten cupcakes in the refrigerator.  If you have any left.

After you've prepped the frosting, place the liners in the cupcake pan and place a mini vanilla wafer in the bottom of each liner.

Fill each liner with cupcake mix and bake for about 15 minutes.  Once the cupcakes have cooled, they need to be filled! A trick my lovely mother taught me? Use an apple corer.

Just insert the apple corer into the center of the cupcake.  Sometimes you might need to twist it.

And out pops your cupcake "core."

Fancy, right? Now just fill with the banana pudding.

And pop the core right back in its place.  Pipe on your frosting, sprinkle with vanilla wafer crumbles and top with a mini vanilla wafer.  Ta-da! You now have pudding filled mini cupcakes.  Your life may never be the same.

Stay tuned - I will be sharing recipes for many more of my favorite miniature desserts!

Jordan