55 Degrees!
It’s in the 50s in Orlando today! Eeeee!
Temperatures in the 50s means it’s sweater-wearin’ weather.
Bustin' Out the Sweatahs!
I feel warm and cuddly today. 
My Mother’s Daughter
I will never forget the moment my Aunt Laurie told me she knew I was my mother’s daughter.
I was staying with my aunt and uncle in Raleigh a couple of years ago. I was the first one up in the morning and wandered into the kitchen to fix myself some breakfast.
Then, I saw it. Chocolate bundt cake.
Perfect a.m. fuel, no?
My aunt came into the kitchen at the exact moment I stuck a forkful of the chocolate cake in my mouth.
“Cake for breakfast?” she said. “You really are your mother’s daughter.”
Apparently a hankering for baked goods before 9 a.m. is not uncommon in my family.
Breakfast
Baked goods found their way into my breakfast this morning!
Grasshopper Pie Cupcake
That, my friends, is a grasshopper pie cupcake.
And that, my friends, was my breakfast (x2!).
Grasshopper Pie Cupcakes
Those of you who share my affinity for mint chocolate chip ice cream will surely enjoy this little creation.
I never heard of grasshopper pie until the Cake vs. Pie March Madness competition heated up at my work several months ago. One of the pies in the running was grasshopper pie. For those of you in the dark about this pie like I was, grasshopper pie is essentially a chilled mint pie with a chocolate cookie crust.
One of my coworkers is celebrating her birthday next week when I will be out on my fall-back honeymoon (more details to come!), and her boyfriend told me she has a strong affinity for grasshopper pie. Since I wasn’t sure how a chilled pie would hold up at work, I opted to make her favorite dessert in cupcake form.
First it was time to make the cupcakes.
I made a batch of chocolate cupcakes using Duncan Hines Butter Recipe Fudge cake mix.
Batter Up!
When making cakes from a box mix, I much prefer mixes that call for the addition of butter rather than oil to the mix. I find them more moist, flavorful and fluffy.
I mixed the cake mix, eggs, water and butter for the full four minutes required until the batter was airy and light.
I then placed the batter in cupcake tins and baked them according to the directions on the box.
Chocolate Cupcakes
Apparently I dispensed a little too much batter into the cupcakes, because they overflowed a bit.
Ooooverflow
I actually had to cut them out of the pan (and eat the remaining scraps, naturally).
Cupcake Wreckage
I let the cupcakes cool before filling them with a creamy mint filling.
Fill 'Er Up
I made the mint filling by following this recipe from A Good Appetite, though I made four times the amount called for in that recipe.
Then it was time for the big guns… mint buttercream icing!
To make the icing, I made a standard buttercream icing, but added peppermint extract and a tiny bit of green food coloring to the mix.
Mint Buttercream Icing
Mint Buttercream Icing
Ingredients
- 1 c. butter (2 sticks)
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup milk (I used 2 percent)
- 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract (add little by little until you get the level of mint flavor you desire)
- 2 drops green food coloring
Directions
- Beat butter for about two minutes, or until creamy
- Add 4 c. powdered sugar, milk, food coloring and peppermint extract and beat until combines
- Beat in additional cup of powdered sugar
Once the buttercream icing was ready, I let it chill in the fridge for about 10 minutes so it would be easier to work with when I was ready to frost my cupcakes.
After icing the cupcakes, I garnished each little cake with a quarter of a York peppermint patty.
Grasshopper Pie Cupcakes Garnished with York Peppermint Patties
Then it was time for the best part… Eating!
Eat Me!
A Peek Inside
If you or one of your loved ones are a fan of chocolate and mint, please add these cupcakes to your “must make” list.
I want to make them again around Christmas and dye half of the mint buttercream red and garnish the red cupcakes with chopped candy cane pieces. Holiday fun!
Last night Sadie and I ate our bodyweight in the mint buttercream icing. By the time Ryan got home from work, Sadie was doing laps around our apartment and I was jumping around in a kitchen that looked like it had been hit by a hurricane.
It was a good night… and it’s been a good morning. How could it not be when the day starts with two cupcakes? 
Oh my goodness DROOOOOL! What a perfect start to FRIDAY
Meg
They look so cute and delicious! Great pairing, Julie!!
Andrea @ CanYouStayForDinner.com
These cupcakes look INCREDIBLE! I seriously need to make these asap!!!! I love Peppermint Patty’s!!
Can’t wait to hear your honeymoon plans!
Hope
I’m with you, baked goods are the perfect a.m. fuel. There are just some mornings when I crave some chocolatey goodness
Happy Friday!
Nic
yay I’m so glad you have fallback plans now!
Marie
kind of… we have 1/2 of our week planned.
peanutbutterfingers
well that’s something at least! it’s good to see you have such a positive attitude about it! one of our big things for our wedding fell thru last week and I was a hot mess about it. p.s. LOVE the cupcakes!
Marie
OMG!!! Grasshopper Pie is my favorite holiday dessert!
kludj
I love choc + mint and these look delicious!
I would love to have cake for breakfast, but it doesn’t fill me up at all
I’d be hungry in 10 minutes!
Holly @ couchpotatoathlete
yeahhh i was hungry by 9:30. i made myself a quesadilla. now all i want is SALTY food. i want a sub.
peanutbutterfingers
Those look YUMMY! Must make asap!
Laura @ Meet Virginia
I love mint buttercream! Earlier this year I made mint julep brownies, featuring mint whipped cream – oh my, I love it! I can’t wit to try something else mint-centric!
Rachel @ The Avid Appetite
That is my kind of breakfast!! Wow those cupcakes look so good! 50 degrees in florida…it is 40 degrees in Utah, that is crazy!!
If you get a chance you should enter my running gear giveaway!
http://www.hungryrunnergirl.com/2010/11/giveaway.html
janae @ hungryrunnergirl.com
Umm… this just isn’t fair. I want one of those, STAT. I can’t think of a better way to start a Friday.
Jenna
50 degrees! thats nothing.
we had our first freeze last in oklahoma
Lisa @ I’m an Okie
glad im not the only one to start the day with the sugar rush. brekky is usually something good-for-you, but today i inhaled some cake and choc covered peanut butter pretzels. then i had the belly ache that was sure to follow. i remember being young and getting excited about eventually being able to have whatever i wanted to eat, whenever i wanted. today i gave into that little girl. the belly ache was worth it, but i’ll need some nutrition for lunch
Babs
I can’t wait to see what you have planned for the honeymoon
Cupcakes…I’ve got to make them more often!
Marina
Mint and chocolate go together *almost* as good as pb and chocolate
Same temp here in SF this morning!
Shanna, like Banana
I fully support cupcakes for breakfast!
kate
I love baked goods for breakfast
Corey @ the runners cookie
I need to make these! I love mint things….Yorks are my favorite. I bet they would look super cute topped with Andes Mints too!
Jenna
haha nice! I love coffee cake and cinnamon rolls and stuff!
but are you going to release your weekend plans? do you have any?
carlee
yes, i will! we only have 1/2 the week planned, but i’ll let you guys know soon!
peanutbutterfingers
Nothing wrong with starting your day with a little cake!
Kelly
Those look soooooooo good. Would have to make a gluten-free version for myself, but yum!
Amber K
Julie, if you ever find yourself in Calgary, Alberta you MUST go to Crave Cupcakes. They are the best cupcakes in the whole world and come in so many flavours!
Lauren S.
Julie,
if you ever find yourself in Calgary, Alberta you MUST go to Crave Cupcakes. They are the best cupcakes in the whole world and come in so many flavours!
Lauren S.
OMG!!!! I’m sorry, but cupcakes **random side note(my little sister used to call the pupcakes!) are my favorite baked dessert. These look awesome! Ever since I got the KitchenAid mixer for my bridal shower, I can’t stop baking things from scratch! These pupcakes will be baked this weekend! Thanks for sharing Love!
xo
Mindy
Mindy
Chocolate + Mint = Love
I can’t wait to make these!
Stephanie @ The Cookie Battle
I’m INSANELY jealous that your sweater weather is 55 degrees. In the good ol’ Chicago area its a solid 32 degrees, not fun haha
Britannie
Those look incredible. I made homemade hostess cupcakes for my birthday last year and they were a lot of fun (the whole stuffed thing
) Love the chocolate/peppermint combo!
Mary @ Bites and Bliss
These look amazing- I just made mint choc chips ones last week!
Liz @ Blog is the New Black
These cupcakes look delicious…glad your honeymoon plans are starting to fall into place. I don’t many people who would have stayed as positive as you have through all of this. By the way it has been snowing here in Michigan since early this morning
Marty
these look amazing!! i love mint
Sarah K. @ The Pajama Chef
Those cupcakes looks delish! That would have to be a great way to start off a Friday morning! Yum.
Kristi @ eatdrinkloveandexercise
umm holy hell! i think i may have just drooled all over my desk – yikes! these look AMAZING Julie!!!! I’m definitely going to be making these in the near future
Laura @Tidbits
Bring me a cupcake! And Natasha wants one too. xoxo
Laurel
Mint + Chocolate = my fav. combo! Gotta try…I bet they’d be awesome with a thin mint in them also!
Clare @ Fitting It All In
what a difference a year makes! i went to orlando this time last year and the temp. was still in the 80s!
grass hopper pie. YUM. cupcake form?!? YUMMMMMM!
erica
I need to make these! Yum!
I love dessert for breakfast! I used to save mine from dinner so that I could eat it in the morning!!
Heather
I love mint. These cupcakes look amazing. I could also eat them for breakfast. – lunch and idnner too.
jamie creative cupcakes
Mint chocolate is my absolute favorite. Thanks for the great recipe!
Camille @ La Bella Vita
Ohhhhh YUM! Please make those when we’re all home again!
Leslie
Cake for breakfast can’t be too far off from a muffin for breakfast, right? Have you ever tried the pumpkin in lieu of oil & eggs trick? It makes pretty dense, but still moist cupcakes, but at least there is a bit of added nutrition. Just dump the box chocolate cake mix and add a can of pumpkin. Easy! You can also use a can of cola or diet cola, too!
Kate
It’s nice to find a quality blog post. I really enjoy many of the blog posts on your site.
Ryan