Watermelon Cupcakes

This cupcake recipe is perfect for those with a serious sweet tooth. The watermelon frosting especially is not lacking in the sugar department. Described as tasting like watermelon Jolly Ranchers, the flavor is intense and consumption of even just one cupcake will almost surely result in a sugar high.

Watermelon Cupcakes
by sugarkissed.net (adapted from Watermelon Flavored Cake by Bird On A Cake)

Ingredients
1 16.5 oz. box of white cake mix
1 0.15 oz. packet of watermelon Kool-Aid
1/2 cup of watermelon juice (from pureed fresh watermelon)
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 teaspoon of all-purpose flour
Super Red food coloring

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.
Mix together cake mix and Kool-Aid powder.
Add in the water and oil and combine.
Beat the eggs into the mixture.
Cut a watermelon up into chunks, removing the seeds. Puree the watermelon chunks to create the needed amount of watermelon juice. Mix the watermelon juice into the bowl.
Add a few drops of Super Red food coloring and mix to create a dark pink color.
In a Ziploc bag, shake the chocolate chips and flour until the chips are evenly coated with flour.
Pour the chips into the bowl and fold into the mixture until spread evenly throughout.
Pour the mixture into cupcake liners, filling 3/4 of the liner.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time.
Test cupcakes for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center. Remove the cupcakes from the oven when the toothpick comes out clean.
Let cupcake pan sit on a cooling rack for about 20 minutes. Then, remove the cupcakes from the pan and place them on the rack until completely cooled.


Watermelon Cream Cheese Frosting
I must confess to you that I am new to cream cheese frosting. Most of my experience is with royal icing on sugar cookies. If you’re familiar with royal icing, you know it is pretty much designed to hold its shape. Cream cheese frosting, not so much.

This watermelon cream cheese frosting recipe will blow your taste buds away but don’t plan on piping any intricate designs with it. I added extra powdered sugar to my recipe and chilled it in the fridge periodically as I worked with it to keep it as stiff as possible. Be careful not to over mix your frosting as you add food coloring to it, as I think this resulted in runnier frosting for me.

Ingredients
8 oz. of softened cream cheese
1/2 cup of room temperature unsalted butter
9 cups of confectioners sugar
2 teaspoons of watermelon juice (from pureed fresh watermelon)
2 teaspoons of watermelon Kool-Aid
Super Red food coloring
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Watermelon fruit jell slices  (one per cupcake)

Directions
Combine cream cheese and butter together in a bowl.
Cut a watermelon up into chunks, removing the seeds. Puree the watermelon chunks to create the needed amount of watermelon juice. Mix the watermelon juice into the bowl.
Add the Kool-Aid to the bowl.
Add the powdered sugar a little bit at a time, beating the mixture until it has a smooth texture.
Add a few drops of Super Red food coloring and mix to create a dark pink color.
Chill frosting in the fridge for a few minutes to stiffen if desired.
Pipe frosting onto cupcakes using a Ziploc bag or decorating bag and tip.
Sprinkle chocolate chips onto frosting and add top off with a watermelon fruit jell slice.

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