Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Last week was my coworker Kate's birthday so I knew I had to make a sweet treat to celebrate. But seeing as how we were having a department social with other treats later that afternoon, I was looking for something slightly less indulgent. Enter these tart and tangy pink lemonade cupcakes with a funfetti twist. Colorful and tasty, these are an excellent treat--and made with applesauce and just a touch of oil, they are relatively healthy to boot! Low fat and delicious means I can have two, right?

Looking for a slimmed down recipe, I headed straight to Gina's blog, Skinny Taste, and found exactly what I wanted. You might remember these delicious cupcakes I made (for another work birthday, in fact) so I knew Gina would have something else for me. I made a few adaptations, starting with making half the recipe (24 cupcakes in my house would be bad for my pants fitting, even if they are low fat). I also didn't have any pink lemonade drink mix, so I used regular lemonade and added a drop of red food coloring to color up the batter. And, since I didn't have any funfetti mix, I used a white cake mix and added sprinkles to get the desired look. Oh, and I didn't have a lemon, so I omitted the zest. End result: awesome cupcakes. These are a great treat, delicious and made me feel less guilty about indulging in an extra little  treat.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Ingredients

9 1/8 ounces white cake mix (half the box)

1/4 cup rainbow sprinkles
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar free pink lemonade drink mix (a .14 ounce single serve packet)
2 Tablespoons applesauce
1 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 drop red food coloring
2 Tablespoons rainbow jumbo non pareils

In a medium bowl, whisk together cake mix and sprinkles. In a measuring cup, combine water and lemonade mix.

Add lemonade, applesauce, vegetable oil and food coloring. Whisk or beat until combined and batter is smooth.

Line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Divide the batter among the liners (I used an ice cream scoop).

Sprinkle non pareils over cupcakes before baking.

Bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes, until the tops are set and spring back gently when touched. Take care not to over bake so the color doesn't turn.

Remove from oven and cool in pan for 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 10 cupcakes.

Happy Baking,
The Cookie Princess

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