by: Lily Wilderose of Enchanting Crumbs Bakery

These cupcakes are soft and fluffy, resembling little clouds that seem to have fallen from the heavens. They are adorned with a heavenly swirl of frosting that glistens like moonlight, capturing the essence of a starlit sky. The frosting is sprinkled generously with edible stardust—tiny, iridescent sugar crystals that glimmer and twinkle like miniature stars.

These cupcakes use extract from my Celestial Vanilla Orchid and sprinkles from my Stardust Blossoms, carefully blended to bring only the most beautiful, inspiring, and whimsical dreams to those who eat them. Some claim their properties even aid meditative trance and astral projection!

And, of course, they’re delicious!

I first got the idea for these cupcakes when I was walking in my garden. It was a tranquil morning, the sun’s gentle rays casting a warm glow and making everything beautiful.

I was plucking off spent blooms from the Celestial Vanilla Orchid when a tiny creature with translucent wings emerged! It was a garden sprite who’d been sleeping in the orchid’s petals. It told me, in its whispering melodious voice, that sleeping in the orchid gave it the best dreams it ever had.

The Celestial Vanilla Orchid is unique because it only blossoms under a full moon, but I went to it every night to listen to its whispers and ask it what it wanted to be used for. Of course, it’s delicious, but there’s no reason to use a magical ingredient when a mundane one will do – especially if you don’t know the magical effects of that ingredient well enough.

But, finally, one evening below stars, it came to me: cupcakes!

Extracting the essence from the orchid’s seeds takes a lot of work – it’s a real labor of love. But the result is worth it, and not just for its subtle, ethereal vanilla flavor and unparalleled sweetness.

I wanted the vanilla in this recipe to shine through, so I optimized this recipe for vanilla cupcakes and the magical impact. You might try adding other ingredients for flavor, but be mindful of interactions with the vanilla and maybe leave off the Stardust Sprinkles so you don’t give yourself nightmares!!

These cupcakes are:

1. Fluffy. Like a cloud, but way sweeter.

2. FUN! The magical ingredients interact to change the colors before your eyes (though I did add a little color myself – shhh, it’s a secret!)

3. The best before-bed treat ever, especially if you have bad dreams or anxiety! Some eat them for breakfast, too, and say it makes them more creative at work. 😉

Recipe for Stardust Cupcakes: Ingredients: 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon salt ½ cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup granulated sugar 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon Celestial Vanilla extract* ½ cup milk Stardust Sprinkles (edible stardust sugar crystals)* Magical Stardust Frosting (recipe below) Instructions: 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a cupcake pan with paper liners. 2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 3. In a separate mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. 4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the Celestial Vanilla extract. 5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk. Begin and end with the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. 6. Fill each cupcake liner about two-thirds full with the batter. 7. Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. 8. Once baked, let the cupcakes cool completely on a wire rack. 9. Prepare the Magical Stardust Frosting (recipe below). 10. Frost the cooled cupcakes generously with the Magical Stardust Frosting. 11. Sprinkle the tops of the cupcakes with the Stardust Sprinkles, allowing them to shimmer and twinkle like stardust. Magical Stardust Frosting: Ingredients: 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 4 cups powdered sugar 2-3 tablespoons milk 1 teaspoon Celestial Vanilla extract* Stardust Sprinkles* Instructions: 1. In a mixing bowl, cream the softened butter until smooth. 2. Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing until well combined and creamy. 3. Add the milk, one tablespoon at a time, until the desired consistency is achieved. 4. Stir in the Celestial Vanilla extract, blending it into the frosting. 5. Once the cupcakes have cooled, frost them generously with the Magical Stardust Frosting. 6. Sprinkle the tops of the cupcakes with Stardust Sprinkles, allowing the cupcakes to shimmer and twinkle like stardust. * These ingredients are essential for the magical qualities and I have not tested the recipe with non-magical counterparts. Feel free to try them with substitutions and report back, or stop in at Enchanting Crumbs to buy the magical versions!

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