Red Velvet Cupcakes in a Jar

Ingredients:

- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

- 1 1/2 cups sugar

- 1 tsp baking soda

- 1 tsp salt

- *2 1/4 tsp cocoa powder

- *1 1/2 cup canola oil

- 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature

- 2 large eggs, room temperature

- 2 tbsp red food coloring

- 1 tsp white distilled vinegar

- *2 tsp vanilla extract

for the cream cheese frosting:

- 1 pound cream cheese, softened

- 2 sticks butter, softened

- *2 tsps vanilla extract

- 4 cups sifted powdered sugar

1. Batter is ready to be put in cupcake pan.

2. I spray the pan with PAM and then fill each hole up 2/3 with the batter. 

3. Usually they are done after about 17 minutes in my oven at temperature of 350℉,  put them on a wire rack to cool completely.

4. Once they are cool, slice them in half. You will have a stack of tops and a stack of bottoms.

5. Place 1 bottom in each jar.

6. Put a layer of the frosting.

7. Take the top of the cupcake and place on top of the layer of frosting.

8. Flatten (gently smash) the top part of the cupcake inside the jar. You want to get the top sort of flat.

9. Beautifully frost the top of the cupcake.

10. Cover with lids and package however you like!  b it is so yummy!

Easy, right? See, I told you I am not a genius. I did also want to give a crack at actually baking it in a jar (crossing my fingers that I wouldn't shatter or explode in the oven) and it came out pretty good too.

I followed the instructions, but the lid I boiled shrank, so I just ran it in piping hot water right before I put in on the jar. Also, I let the whole jar cool completely, which was 2.5 hours. After it cooled, I opened the jar up, I scooped out a hole in the middle and then filled it with frosting. I finished it off by frosting the top too! Then, I sealed it again and packaged it to my liking. Something I would change next time I bake it in a jar, is to only fill it up a quarter of the way because it came up higher than I wanted it too.

Just as cute and delicious as the other way of making it!