N is for Neapolitan Cupcakes (Jessica)

Nie hao ma!
(That means "How do you do?" in Chinese...and it starts with an N!)

Happy summer to all. This week, it really feels like summer to me! I say that with joy because it's FINALLY not cold out. If you know much about me, you know I'm typically colder than everyone else. I have a space heater in my office that I use frequently and I won't go anywhere without an extra layer. This time of year, when it's, oh, 90 degrees out, I am (at last) not cold. At least until I go into the air conditioning at the office or the mall, of course.
Why am I talking about this? No reason, just that I'm pleased about the weather. It makes me feel like I'm on vacation even when I'm not, and everyone wants to have fun in the summer!
You know what else is fun? Cupcakes!
This week's recipe came from my very first cupcake cookbook. It's a fun one. The recipes are so easy because they all start with a boxed cake mix and go from there into deliciousness! I've tried a lot of these recipes before (Oreo cupcakes, a Hershey kiss baked into the cupcake, cappuccino cupcakes) and always had good experiences with them. When I found one that started with N, I knew it was time to return to the Cake Mix Doctor's wise teachings....


Neapolitan Cupcakes
from Cupcakes from the Cake Mix Doctor

Ingredients: 
1 package plain white cake mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix
1 container (6 ounces) low-fat vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
4 large eggs
1/2 cup chocolate syrup
3 tablespoons strawberry gelatin powder (I used a packet of jello mix)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners.

2. Blend cake mix, pudding mix, yogurt, oil, water, and eggs in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, scraping down the sides as needed.
3. Divide the batter equally into 3 small mixing bowls. Add the chocolate syrup to one bowl, stirring until mixed. Add the strawberry gelatin powder to another bowl, stirring until mixed. Leave the third bowl plain.

4. Beginning with the chocolate batter, scoop a heaping tablespoon of batter into each lined cupcake cup.

5. Carefully scoop 1 tablespoon of the plain batter on top of the chocolate batter. Don't spread the batter out, just let it spread on its own.
6. Finally, scoop 1 tablespoon of the strawberry batter on top of the plain. Again, don't spread the batter out and make sure you drop the batter into the middle of the cupcake.
7. Bake until cupcakes spring back when lightly pressed, 18-20 minutes. Remove from pans to cool completely.
8. Frost as desired (for me, that means buying frosting and putting just a thin layer on the cupcakes).

Review: 
I think these cupcakes are beautiful! The three layers look great. I liked this recipe, but had a little trouble with the strawberry layer. Maybe because it was flavored by gelatin powder, but it just didn't taste like real strawberries! (surprise)! To me, the strawberry layer tasted too artificial. Also, I tried to divide the batter evenly, but apparently I didn't do such a great job (even though I used measuring cups). I ended up with some cupcakes that only got two kinds of batter because I ran out of the third. Oops! If you make this recipe, divide the batter carefully.  Regardless, I think this is a really cute idea and would be fun for kids or adults. The frosting and sanding sugar didn't hurt either. :)

Thanks for reading! And now, to the kitchen!

-Jessica