Here's a recipe for making THREE different cupcakes with one box of cake mix. I came up with these last year and served them at our annual family Christmas Eve party. They turned out light and fluffy and each variation had its own distinct flavor.

The three cupcakes were: Rolo candy filled with caramel icing, cherry filled with vanilla almond icing, and cream filled with chocolate glaze.

My 3 in 1 Mini Cupcake Recipe

Makes 24 cream filled, 24 Rolo filled with caramel icing, and 24 cherry filled with vanilla almond icing

1 box dark chocolate cake mix

1 1/3 cups chocolate milk (I made my own using chocolate syrup)

1/2 cup oil

3 eggs

Cream Filling: 1 tablespoon butter, 6 tablespoons marshmallow creme

Rolo Filling: mini rolo candy

Cherry Filling: small can cherry pie filing

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 mini cupcake tin with paper liners.

In a large bowl, add all the ingredients and blend on low for 30 seconds. Scrap down sides and beat on medium for 2 minutes.

Fill a quart size ziplock bag 2/3 full of batter. Cut off one corner, seal and then pipe batter into cupcake liners, 2/3 full. This really makes it easy to fill those little liners with just the right amount of batter. Place remaining batter in the frig.

Step 1: Rolo and Cherry Filling

Place one mini Rolo candy in the center of the batter.

Place one cherry in the center of the batter, pressing down slightly.

Bake all cupcakes for about 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted close to the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. Cool completely before icing.

Caramel Icing
2 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 cup powdered sugar

In a 1 cup glass measuring cup, melt butter in microwave. Stir in brown sugar and microwave for 1 minute, stirring every 15-20 seconds.

Stir in milk and microwave in 10-20 second intervals until mixture is completely blended and sugar is dissolved. Cool until lukewarm, stirring occasionally.

Gradually stir in powdered sugar, beating with a spoon until smooth and desired consistency. You can place the measuring cup in a bowl of cold water while beating in the sugar.

This recipe made just enough to pipe a circle around the Rolo center of each cupcake. It’s a rich icing so that was plenty.

Vanilla Almond Icing
2 tablespoons softened butter

2 tablespoons milk

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon almond extract (or to taste)

In a small bowl, beat butter, milk and vanilla until smooth and fluffy. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, a little at a time until smooth. Set aside 2 tablespoons for swirls on cream filled cupcakes. Stir in almond extract to taste, adding more powdered sugar if necessary to get the right consistency.

Pipe or spread over cooled cherry filled cupcakes.

Step 2: Cream Filling and Chocolate Glaze

Cream Filling
Place 1 tablespoon butter in a small microwave safe bowl and microwave until melted, about 20 – 30 seconds. Stir in 6 tablespoons marshmallow creme and microwave about for 30 seconds more. Stir mixture until smooth and let cool.

Make a slit in the center of each cupcake. Spoon filling in a pastry bag or ziplock bag fitted with a long round tip and pipe filling into slits.

Chocolate Glaze
3 tablespoons semi chocolate chips

2 tablespoons whipping cream

1/2 teaspoon light corn syrup

Place chocolate chips in a small glass bowl and set aside.

Combine whipping cream and corn syrup in a 1 cup glass measuring cup and microwave for about 50 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds or so. Pour mixture over chocolate chips and stir until completely smooth. If necessary, microwave for 20 – 30 seconds more until mixture is completely smooth. Allow mixture to cool and thicken. I put it in the refrigerator and kept stirring it. If it’s not cool and thick it will run off the cupcakes when you try to dip them.

Dip cupcake tops into the chocolate mixture allowing excess to drip off. If needed, use a knife to spread it around the edge.

For the vanilla swirl, I took about 2 tablespoons of the vanilla almond icing BEFORE I added the almond extract, put it in a baggie, snipped the very end of the corner and piped on the swirls. What was left I added back into the vanilla almond icing.

I served these, and other mini cupcakes, on my handmade cupcake stand, which you can find here on my blog.

Happy Baking!