Soft Frosted Lemon Cookies + Welcome to #SpringSweetsWeek

This post is sponsored in conjunction with #SpringSweetsWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to help in the creation of the #SpringSweetsWeek recipes. All opinions are mine alone.

Welcome to #SpringSweetsWeek 2019 hosted by Heather from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks and Christie from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures! What better way to celebrate the coming of spring than with food and a fun giveaway? 30 bloggers from around the country have come together to share over 100 sweet recipes perfect for spring!  Get ready to ditch your hats, coats, and snow boots and get ready for some delicious sweet treats like cupcakes, cookies, sweet breads, and cocktails! Our #SpringSweetsWeek sponsors are helping us give away some great prizes. Thank you so much Swiss Diamond, Dixie Crystals, Nancy’s Yogurt, Sprinkle Pop, Adams Extracts, Barleans, Melissa’s Produce, and PEEPS® for your generosity. We have an incredible giveaway below and would love if you would take a moment to read about it and what you can win!

I’m so excited to share some really great recipes with you this week – starting off with these awesome soft frosted lemon cookies!

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Check out the amazing prizes you can win in our #SpringSweetsWeek Giveaway!

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Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Shortbread #ChristmasCookies

This post is sponsored on behalf of #ChristmasCookiesWeek. The generous sponsors, YumGoggle, Sprinkle Pop, Silpat and Adams Extracts have provided us with products for recipe creation and a giveaway for our readers. As always, all opinions are my own.

Welcome to Christmas Cookies Week! I’m so excited to be joining with a fabulous group of bloggers to bring you a week chock-full of Christmas cookie goodness.

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I’m kicking off this week with these fabulous Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Shortbread cookies.  In true shortbread fashion, these are a little crisp, with a melt-in-your-mouth texture. The spice of the ginger is balanced nicely by a dip in melted chocolate.

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Chocolate Witch’s Brew Cupcakes #Chocotoberfest

Note: I received complimentary product for this post. All opinions are my own.

Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire burn and cauldron bubble…

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What shall we add to the witch’s brew today? Essence of mummy? A pumpkin picked at midnight?

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These adorable cupcakes are reminiscent of a witch’s cauldron, so of course, there’s a magic potion inside – courtesy of Sprinkle Pop! I used two of their sprinkle mixes in these cupcakes and they were so, so perfect for getting the desired effect.

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I used the Lime Green Sprinkle Mix on top of the cupcakes to give the image of a bubbling cauldron. The cupcakes are stuffed with their Monster Mashup Sprinkle Mix. The kids had so much fun biting into the cupcakes to see what the witch had cooked up in her cauldron – ghosts, eyeballs, mummies, and pumpkins!

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These were a quick from-scratch batch of cupcakes and buttercream, but you could always use a boxed mix and icing if you’re more comfortable – the sprinkles are the real stars here!

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This is also the first recipe I’m sharing for this year’s #Choctoberfest – you can check out a TON of other chocolaty goodness from my fellow bloggers right here: An InLinkz Link-up

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Chocolate Witch’s Brew Cupcakes
(adapted from Sugar Spun Run and Wine and Glue)
Makes 12 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
6 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup hot coffee

For the icing:
1/2
 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
5 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup milk
Green food coloring

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with liners. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Whisk in the oil and milk until combined. Add the egg and stir to combine. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. Add the coffee and stir until evenly combined – it will be quite thin.

Pour the batter into the prepared cupcake pan, filling each well 2/3 of the way.

Bake for 20-24 minutes, until a knife inserted  comes out clean.  Let cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

To make the buttercream, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar 1 cup at a time and beat. Add in the vanilla, milk, and food coloring. Beat until fully incorporated.

After the cupcakes are cooled, use an apple corer or small knife to cut holes into the cupcakes. Fill the holes with sprinkles. Ice with the butter cream then dip each cupcake into the green sprinkles. Top with additional sprinkles if desired.

These are best served the same day.

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