Ice Cream Cupcake Cones

Remember my friend Sarah? Whose departure from this country prompted the legendary cow cake? (Long story, don't ask). And who was not appeased by my recent no-bake recipe for her limited kitchen? Well she's baaaaaaaaaack - and how to celebrate? With baked goods, of course.
And since maturity isn't what we're known for - what better way to celebrate than with every five-year-old birthday boy's dream: ice cream cone cupcakes!

They make a great impression (not for a sophisticated crowd), but they're really so simple to do: you just bake the batter right inside the cupcakes, and then frost and decorate - and you're good to go!

I went with a very basic vanilla cupcake (recipe at the end of the post) and used a store-bought frosting and sprinkles - simple, quick and delicious!

I carefully laid the cones out in a muffin pan. Though the back of the cone box said I should wrap the bases in foil to keep them upright, I was far too impatient to actually do that. Instead I relied on a steady hand and a little prayer.

I filled the cups up about half-way, using an ice cream scoop to make some attempt at them coming out even. Of course, they still weren't. I also had a little extra batter, so I made another 4 cupcakes in a pan (you can see them in the back here).After baking, I let them cool for a while in the muffin pan (because taking them out would have made it difficult to balance on the cooling tray). You can see the slight differences in height here - but the good thing about frosting, is it covers up your flaws!I gave each cupcake a layer of vanilla frosting, and a handful of sprinkles - voila - Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes, no freezer required. These were very cute, and really not more time consuming than regular cupcakes. However I did make these the day before they were eaten - and the difference in the crispness of the cone was huge. By the second day the cones were soft and chewy - and tasted a little stale. This is definitely a 'morning-of' recipe, but luckily, they don't take up too much time.

Tip of the Day: Try as hard as possible to keep your cupcakes the same height - not just for uniformity - but because you need them to finish baking at the same time as well!

Recipe:
Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes:
12 flat bottomed cones
1 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable shortening, room temperature
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tbsp vanilla
1 egg
Store-bought or homemade vanilla frosting
sprinkles

Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of a mixer.
Add in shortening, milk, vanilla and egg. Beat until well mixed.
Fill cones half-way up - allow to settle before baking.
Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees.
Cool completely before frosting.