Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes

So it's my roomates (and best friend of 12 years) birthday monday and my boyfriend just got asked to be a manager for a week again at work...they both love Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal so I think it is time to take a stab at these cupcakes.

Ideas for these have been racing through my head for weeks! I finally decided to just make a cinnamon cupcake that I found on Annie's Eats, fill it with a vanilla cream with crushed cereal mixed in and top with a vanilla buttercream frosting that has crushed cereal mixed in as well, dusted with crushed cereal and topped with a Cinnamon Toast Crunch treat. Wow! Yes, I am aware that I sometimes take on too much!

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes

A cinnamon cupcake with crushed cereal baked in filled with vanilla cream frosting mixed with crushed cereal, topped with vanilla cream frosting, dusted with crushed cereal and topped with a cinnamon toast crunch treat.

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
½ cup skim milk
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 large eggs
¾ cup plus 2 tbsp. sugar
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup Cinnamon Toast Crunch crumbs (for cake batter)
1-3 cups Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal (½ cup crushed (to top cupcake), 1 cup fine crumbs (for frosting and filling))
Vanilla cream frosting (recipe follows)
Cream filling (recipe follows)
Cinnamon Toast Crunch treats (recipe follows)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with paper liners. Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Add 1/2 cup of Cinnamon toast Crurnch crumbs. Stir milk and butter in a small saucepan over low heat just until butter melts; set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat eggs and sugar until thick enough for the batter to fall in a heavy ribbon when the beater is lifted, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Add the flour mixture; beat just until blended.
Beat in the milk-butter mixture just until blended. Stir in desired amount of cereal (about 1-2 cups) Divide batter evenly between cupcake liners. Sprinkle Cinnamon Toast Crunch crumbs on top of each cupcake.

Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 16-18 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

Cinnamon Toast Crunch treats: (inspired by fruity pebble treats from recipezaar)

Ingredients: (make 1/4 or 1/2 batch as you wont need that much)

1.5 tablespoons margarine or butter
1/2 (10 ounce) package regular marshmallows or 4 cups mini marshmallows
3 cups Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal

Directions:

Melt margarine in large saucepan over low heat
Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted
Remove from heat
Add Cinnamon Toast Crunch and stir until well coated.
Using buttered spatula or waxed paper, press mixture evenly into a small pan coated with cooking spray.
Allow to cool

Vanilla Cream Filling (from Baking Bites)

Ingredients:

3 tbsp all purpose flour
1/2 cup milk (low fat is fine)
1/2 cup butter (or trans fat-free shortening)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 scraped vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup Cinnamon Toast Crunch crumbs

Directions:

Whisk together the flour and milk and cook in a small saucepan over medium heat until thick. This will only take a few minutes. Sir continuously to prevent the mixture from clumping and do not bring all the way to a boil.

When thickened (consistency will be that of a thin pudding or custard), strain with a mesh strainer into a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let cool completely to room temperature.

When the milk mixture is cool, cream the butter (or shortening) and sugar together in a medium bowl until light. Add in the milk/flour mixture and the scraped vanilla bean seeds (or vanilla extract) and beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 7 minutes, add cereal crumbs (1/2 cup) and beat until light and fluffy. Scrape into a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip, or a large ziplock bag with the corner cut off, and set aside until ready to fill your cupcakes.

Vanilla Cream Frosting: (from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:

Makes about 4 cups
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 pound (4 cups) confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup Cinnamon Toast Crunch crumbs

Directions:

With an electric mixer, beat butter on medium-high speed until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes.

Reduce speed to medium. Add the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl as needed; after every two additions, raise speed to high and beat 10 seconds to aerate frosting, then return to medium-high. This process should take about 5 minutes. Frosting will be very pale and fluffy.

Add vanilla, and beat until frosting is smooth. Then add 1/2 cup of cereal crumbs and beat until mixed. If not using immediately, frosting can be refrigerated up to 10 days in an airtight container. Before using, bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth again, about 5 minutes

After cupcakes have cooled, fill a pastry bag with the vanilla cream icing.
To fill cupcakes, push pastry bag in the top as far as it can go without puncturing the bottom, gently squeeze while slowly pulling up until you reach the surface.

Using a piping bag with a round tip, frost each cupcake with vanilla frosting. Top the frosting with a cinnamon toast crunch treat and dust with ground up cereal

These are delicious if I do say so myself! They taste JUST like the cereal! YAY!My boyfriend actually labeled these as his favorite that I've made so far. They may be a lot of work but they are totally worth it. Also, the filling is optional...I just HAD to do it as I love leaving little surprises in my cupcakes :)