These savory cupcakes are a crazy delicious treat for lunch

Who wants cupcakes for lunch? Me! (And almost every kid I know.) That’s why this lunch box filled with meat, veggie, fruit and dessert cupcakes would be a hit at school.

Just bake your ingredients inside of mini cornbread muffins to make a lunchtime menu that covers all the food groups. And if your kids don’t take their lunch to school, then surprise them some night by serving cupcakes for supper. Guaranteed to make them smile.

There are many kinds of cornbread mixes available. For this recipe I chose a sweeter, honey version.

For smaller appetites, make mini cupcakes. For hungry crowds, use regular-sized cupcakes.

Save enough batter to pour some on top after you’ve added your ingredients.

Use piping bags or plastic zip-close bags to neatly frost your cupcakes.

If your mashed potatoes are too lumpy to “frost,” add some butter or milk.

For garnish, you could even top your cupcakes with chopped chives, shredded cheese, blueberries and chocolate sprinkles.

Pack them in a lunch box for a complete meal of nothing but cupcakes, also known as the best lunch ever.

Cupcakes for lunch

Yields 24 mini cupcakes (6 complete meals of 4 cupcakes each)

Ingredients:

• 1 box cornbread muffin mix
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 2 hot dogs (cut into 1-inch segments)
• 1/2 cup chopped broccoli
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cup mashed potatoes
• 1 cup spreadable cheese
• 1 cup cream cheese
• 1/4 cup mashed blueberries
• 1 cup chocolate frosting

Directions:

1. Pour the cornbread mixture into a bowl and add the milk, oil and egg. Mix well.
2. Place baking liners in a mini cupcake pan. Fill with 1 teaspoon of cornbread batter and place hot dogs, broccoli, blueberries and chocolate chips into separate cups.
3. Put one more teaspoon of cornbread batter on top of the added ingredients. Bake at 400 degrees F for 11-13 minutes.
4. Mix up the toppings. Place them in decorator bags with frosting tips. To make the mashed potatoes, spreadable cheese and cream cheese smooth enough for frosting, whip with them slightly with a hand mixer. For the cream cheese, add 1/4 cup mashed blueberries.
5. After the cupcakes are done baking and have cooled, frost each with the appropriate topping — mashed potatoes on the hot dogs, cheese on the broccoli, cream cheese on the blueberries, and chocolate frosting on the chocolate chips.

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