November 16, 2015

A LITTLE HOLIDAY GATHERING.

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BakeInTheFun #CollectiveBias

We are those people who love Christmas and decorate throughout November because of the happiness and cheerfulness it brings to our home. We don’t forget about Thanksgiving, but we just let Christmas come a little before too. We wanted to throw a little holiday get together with some of our friends before everyone’s schedules get too busy and crazy and I wanted to try out some new yummy recipes with M&M’s® White Peppermint and M&M’s® Hot Chocolate. (You can use this coupon to save$1.00 on ANY TWO (2) M&M’s® Chocolate Candies, 8 oz or larger) The recipes turned out so yummy that I just knew that I needed to share them with you. They both are made with cake mixes so it makes them quicker to make. Also, make sure you read to the bottom for an amazing sweepstakes!

P E P P E R M I N T   C U P C A K E S
Ingredients:
Water
Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix
Eggs
Peppermint Extract
Oil

Follow the directions on the back of the box and then add in 2 tsp of Peppermint Extract. This doesn’t change the way the cupcakes bake at all, just gives them a yummy flavor of the peppermint for the holidays.

Mix all of your ingredients together and then fill baking cups up 2/3 way full. Bake according to the directions on the back of the box. You also could add the peppermint extract and make a yummy cake!

I wanted a frosting that was super simple, but added a little twist to my favorite Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Vanilla Flavored Frosting. Pour your frosting into a bowl, add 2 tsp of peppermint extract and mix. That’s it! It makes for the yummiest peppermint frosting I have ever had. 

Frost your cupcakes and then you can garnish them with yummy M&M’s® White Peppermint! I love that they are red and white with the green Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Vanilla Flavored Frosting. It makes for the easiest, yummiest, festive treat!


H O T   C H O C O L A T E   C U P C A K E S
Ingredients
Oil
Hot Chocolate Mix
Water
Chocolate Cake Mix
Eggs

I wanted a yummy treat to make with the absolutely delicious M&M’s® Hot Chocolate. These M&M’s® are my absolute favorite so I knew I could come up with a yummy treat with them! Make the cake mix according to the directions on the back, just add in a 1/4 cup of hot chocolate mix. This also doesn’t change the consistency of the batter enough to need to add more liquid.

Mix all the ingredients together, fill baking cups 2/3 full and bake according to the directions on the back of the box.

M A R S H M A L L O W   F R O S T I N G
Powder Sugar
3/4 cup Butter
Marshmallow Creme (1 tub)
1/2 cup Milk – We love Great Value Milk!

Pour your marshmallow creme into a bowl and mix in 3/4 cup butter. Mix until smooth. Add in 1/2 cup milk and mix. Add in powder sugar until the frosting is your desired consistency. I added less powder sugar than normal leaving my frosting a little runny so it would appear to be “melting” off the cupcakes like a marshmallow.

Melt M&M’s® Hot Chocolate, dip the tops of the cupcakes in the melted M&M’s®. Place cupcakes in the freezer so the chocolate will harden.

Frost the cupcakes and enjoy!

Now for the party we had! I wanted a winter wonderland. Something that was pretty, classic, and full of everything winter. I went with gold, snowflakes, and white and loved how it turned out. I filled apothecary jars full of our favorite M&M’s® and everyone loved trying out our favorite holiday flavors. The big apothecary jar is filled with M&M’s® White Peppermint and M&M’s® Holiday Milk Chocolate, the medium jar is filled with M&M’s® Holiday Peanut Butter and the small apothecary jar is filled with M&M’s® Hot Chocolate.

I sprinkled little rhinestones and big gold sequins on the table to give it a little bit of glitter and sparkle. When I think of winter I think of sparkle, glitter, and simplicity. I really tried to portray the simplicity of how beautiful winter is with the table-scape.

Everyone loved the simplicity of the party. They said it was refreshing to have something that was just simple and not over the top for once. I loved letting the yummy cupcakes and my favorite M&M’s® be what really spoke on the table.

If you want another yummy recipe with Pillsbury™ Funfetti® Holiday Cake Mix try out M&M’s® Holiday Snowflake Cookies recipe. Don’t those look just so yummy!? I also wanted to share a little something near and dear to my heart with children. There are sweet children and families in our/your community that are missing out on essential nutrients from milk because it is not typically donated to food banks. Milk is needed more than we think it is. You can give a small donation here. The Great American Milk Drive also will deliver a gallon of milk full of essential nutrients and protein that it provides to a family in YOUR neighborhood for every 2 bags of M&M’s® (9.4 oz bags or larger) and up to a gallon of milk you purchase at Walmart. Amazing right? Plus it is another amazing reason to buy some delicious M&M’s®. The Great American Milk Drive, the first-ever national program to help deliver highly desired and nutrient-rich gallons of milk to hungry families who need it most. Isn’t that amazing? I love when I can find people who are doing amazing things to help the people who need it most.

You can find all the products I used above at your local Walmart. You also can find more amazingly yummy holiday recipes here!

Holiday #BakeInTheFun