Mini Lemon Drop Cupcakes

 

   Over the years, I’ve noticed my blog definitely has a pattern. Of course, it’s seasonal…. warm spices in Autumn, hearty stews and soups in Winter, fresh fruits and produce in the Summer. But in the Spring, it’s always a little bit of a variety. Very often, I’ll do Brunch recipes, or the odd novelty dish that I’ve seen bouncing around the interwebs. But another thing that says SPRING to me is something lighter and brighter, specifically, citrus. Lemons, oranges, limes, grapefruits… there’s just something about them that makes me think of brightness and freshness… a fresh start, if you will.
 So today, I’m sharing these perfect little jewels of lemon-ness that I found on a blog called Butter with a side of Bread. They’re so easy they come together in no time, and they bake in half the time as regular cupcakes. Simply delicious! I made them for Easter… brought half to Cathy’s house for brunch, brought the other half to Jeanie’s house for dinner. They were a big hit at both events! Definitely a dessert to add to your repertoire. They’re irresistible!


Cupcakes
1 box lemon cake mix
1 box instant vanilla pudding 3.4 oz, dry mix
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups sour cream or yogurt
1/2 cup milk

Lemon Glaze
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp grated lemon zest from 1 lemon
2 tbs unsalted butter melted
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup hot water



For the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 325 F. Coat mini muffin tin with cooking spray. 
Beat the ingredients in a large bowl with a mixer for several minutes until blended and smooth. Fill each muffin about 1/2 full. (Use a small cookie scoop!) Bake for about 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool the pan on a wire rack for about 2 minutes and then turn the muffin pan over on a wire rack so that all the muffins are upside down.
Cool completely. Meanwhile,  make the glaze.


For the glaze:
Place the wire racks over waxed paper. Beat the glaze ingredients in a medium bowl until smooth.
Dip muffins in glaze to coat the bottoms (which are now the tops!) and the sides and let the excess drip off back into the bowl.
Place each lemon drop back on the wire racks until the glaze is set.


Tips:
The best tip in this entire recipe is to use the small cookie scoop. It’s the perfect tool for filling your cupcakes!
Usually this is where I would add a tweak or two, but not this time! This recipe is awesome, just as it is!
The only tweak I can think of is maybe trying an orange or lime version. I bet that would be pretty awesome, dontcha think?