It’s been busy, busy around here. Between health stuff, kids stuff, work stuff and volunteer stuff, my husband’s birthday party planning kind of took a back seat. I needed to make some kind of cake, it needed to be chocolate. The kids wanted cupcakes and I wanted fancy and easy. Those two things are hard to achieve at the same time. Then it hit me. Mason Jar Cupcakes. Cake mix upgrade is my go-to in a pinch. And this was definitely pinch time.

I love baking with Bernardin mason jars. Everything just looks extra fancy (and extra homemade) in mason jars – even if you had a little help.

These mason jar cupcakes were very easy. Like super cheater easy. As someone who used to make multi-tier wedding cakes, it actually pains me to say this. These are Devil’s Food Cake boxed cake mix cupcakes, with store-bought whipped chocolate icing.

There are three things that make them look fancy. The adorable jars. The piped frosting. And sprinkles.

Baking Mason Jar Cupcakes

Step 1. Prepare your favourite cupcake recipe. Preheat the oven to the desired temperature. Mine cooked at 350 degrees.

In this case, I used Dunkin Hines Devils Food Cake Mix. It’s dairy-free, very moist and it tastes rich in your mouth.

When you can, use fresh eggs. They make a better cake.

I tend to mix it a little longer than than the instructions say.

Step 2:

Prepare the jars.

Make sure they are clean and dry.

Spray them lightly with PAM or grease them with oil so the tasty cakes will pop out.

Add cake batter to each one until they’re 2/3 full. Don’t overfill and wipe away any drips or spills.

Place them into the oven on a baking sheet. Be sure they don’t touch.

Bake as directed until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Step 3:

Frost and add sprinkles.

As I said in my confession earlier, I used store-bought frosting. If you decide to go that route, try choosing a whipped variety. In my experience, they just seem to pipe more easily.

You can achieve this look with a star tip and a piping bag. Or you can choose to use a flat knife or palate knife to create a flat or swirled top.

Lastly, add sprinkles. If the icing looks perfect, use a few. If it doesn’t quite turn our the way you planned? Add a lot of sprinkles. Everything looks fancy with sprinkles.

 

We love quick & simple desserts around here so be sure to check out a few more.

Do you love Bernardin mason jars as much as we do? Be sure to have a look at more of our mason jar crafts & recipes.