Impostor Pasta & Mock Meatballs

Adapted from Hello, Cupcake! Irresistably Playful Creations Anyone Can Make

1 batch of cupcakes

white frosting

strawberry jam

chocolate truffles, preferably Ferrero-Rocher hazelnut chocolates

white chocolate for grating

1. Bake a batch of cupcakes (any kind you like). Frost them lightly with white frosting and place them close together on a plate.

2. Use a pastry bag (or ziploc bag with a corner cut off) to pipe frosting over the tops of them, like a heap of spaghetti.

3. Use strawberry jam (Low sugar Smuckers seems to have the best shade of red) to make a pool of “tomato sauce” over the top of the “spaghetti.”

4. Place chocolate balls on top for “meatballs.” The book recommends Ferrero Rocher Hazelnut Chocolates, and I think they would be the most realistic, as they have a bumpy texture. We settled for what our store had in stock: Truffles. Close enough!

5. We also skipped this step, but the book recommends that you grate white chocolate over the top to look like grated cheese. Cool idea, but I was out of white chocolate, and the kids weren’t complaining anyway.

It was that easy! Who can resist this kind of fun with frosting? –Danielle Bean