Quick and easy shamrock cupcakes. Image courtesy of recipebyphoto.com.

With St. Patrick’s Day only a week away, the party planning better begin.We’ve all seen green beer and green hair, but how many of us can say we ate a green shamrock? These adorable shamrock cupcakes take only a few extra minutes of preparation compared to their regular counterparts.

You’ll need:

1 Cake Mix (any light-colored flavor)
Green Food Coloring
Cupcake Liners
Glass Marbles or Aluminum Foil (rolled into some balls)
Frosting (Green)
For the Smile: You can use black gel writer, or cut a small piece of black string licorice.
For the Eyes: Use paper dot candies and follow directions of my earlier post called Not the Gingerbread Cookies Your Grandma Made or buy pre-made edible ones.

1) Make the cake batter according to package directions and add green food coloring to your desired shade of green.
2) Place the wrappers in each muffin hole and in between the wrapper and pan, place the marbles or rolled foil to help  shape the shamrock.
3) Do not over fill each shamrock with batter- no more than 1/2 full.
4) Bake at the temperature directed by the cake mix box, but for a few minutes less than the time the box suggests.To ensure they are cooked, stick a toothpick into a cupcake and if the pick comes out clean – they’re done. Let cool.
5) Add green food coloring to white frosting if you didn’t purchase green frosting. Frost the cupcakes, add the eyes, and either the gel or tiny strips of black licorice for the smile.
6) Enjoy with friends and family and have a Happy St. Patrick’s Day!