Black & White Cupcakes (★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆)

I made these for our church picnic. They were super simple...I used two box mixes AND canned frosting. Yup, I said it: Canned Frosting. Not my proudest moment but how easy is that? Well, manuvering the cupcake liners to accomidate both chocolate and vanilla cake batter without completely mixing them together was a little bit of a challenge. I found spooning the batter in while tilting the liners was the easiest way.

I mixed two whole box mixes. I used chocolate and french vanilla.

Of course, if I have plain yogurt or sour cream on hand I always add a

nice dollop for extra moistness.

I was surprised how great these turned out and how delicious they were. It was the first time I had used a French Vanilla box mix and I thought I had finally found my "go to" vanilla mix. Chocolates in general are pretty good, but I have never found a vanilla box mix that I have been happy with. I've used the French Vanilla mix by itself since I made these and I wasn't impressed. It must have been the chocolate/vanilla combination that made it so good. Some sort of "box cake mix" chemical reaction... ;)

This is where I failed. I admit it, but I was pushed for time...and I'll admit, a little bit lazy. BUT I used cream cheese and chocolate fudge...which are the best of the "canned" variety, if there is such a thing.

I frosted them so the chocolate and vanilla frostings were on opposite sides of the cupcake.

Each cupcake was topped with a little piece of Hershey's Cookies and Cream bar to tie the whole thing together.

Just a little idea for those times when you don't want to get too involved, but still want add a little creativity to your baking.