This Short And Sweet post is a bit of a cheat. It’s definitely sweet, but only short if you have made the Salted Caramel Buttercream from this cupcake recipe and the Cookies And Cream Icing from this Oreo cake.

I had leftover Caramel and Salted Caramel Buttercream, so I piped some icing onto mini cupcakes and drizzled with reheated caramel. Adorable and extremely good.

I also had leftover Icing from the Cookies And Cream Cake. I spread a little of the icing onto the cupcakes and rolled them in crushed Oreos. Really easy and perfect little bites of sweetness.

Mini Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes

Ingredients:

Mini Cupcakes (As I’ve said before, I love King Arthur Flour’s Deliciously Simple Chocolate Cake Mix. One box makes 60 mini cupcakes. I added 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter for an extra delicious touch.)
Caramel Buttercream Icing (recipe follows)
Caramel Filling (recipe follows) or purchased Caramel Ice Cream Topping

Directions:

1. Pipe a little bit of Icing onto each cupcake. Drizzle with caramel.

Caramel Buttercream Icing

Ingredients:

1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbs water
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup salted butter, softened
2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Directions:

1. Stir together granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Continue to cook without stirring until mixture turns dark amber, about six minutes.

2. Remove mixture from heat and slowly add in cream and vanilla. Beat with a wooden spoon until completely smooth and let cool.

3. Beat the butter in a stand mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

4. Reduce speed and add confectioners’ sugar. Mix until well combined. Turn off the mixer, and slowly add caramel. Beat icing on low to combine, and then increase to medium-high and beat until thoroughly mixed, about 2 minutes longer.

Caramel Filling

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup water
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 1/2 teaspoons sea salt

Directions:

1. Heat sugar, water and corn syrup in heavy saucepan over medium high heat, stirring occasionally until sugar is melted.

2. Cook without stirring until mixture comes to a boil, washing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush as needed. Boil, swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is caramelized and reaches 360℉ on a candy thermometer. (I found that the mixture quickly turned color at just under 340℉, so I removed it from the heat then. I prefer to go by the look of the caramel instead of the temperature, to avoid burning a batch.)

3. Remove from heat, slowly pour in cream and stir until smooth. Stir in sea salt.

Mini Cookies And Cream Cupcakes

Ingredients:

Mini Cupcakes
Cookies And Cream Icing (recipe follows)
Crushed Oreos

Directions:

1. Spread a small amount of icing on each cupcake. Roll in Oreo crumbs.

Cookies And Cream Icing

Ingredients:

1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

Directions:

1. In a saucepan, whisk together the flour and milk and cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens to the consistency of a thick roux, about 4-5 minutes. Whisk continuously so clumps don’t form. Set milk mixture aside to cool completely.

2. In a medium bowl, beat together the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and beat for 1 minute. Add the cooled milk mixture and beat on high for 3-5 minutes. If the mixture looks like it is separating, just keep beating.

Time for a short song.

And a sweet song, in this strange kind of way.

“I would never cheet on you with another boy.
I would love you even if you were in a wheelchair
with a burned face or ugly and old .
I would still love you. ”

Check out Minutes on Facebook and Bandcamp, where you can buy their music. They’re giving the latest EP away for free,

You can learn more about Berglind Ágústsdóttir on her Website and Bandcamp. Buy her music there, too.

Cheers!