Valentine’s Day doesn’t look much different than any other day in our house. We still have a full school load as well as chores and other responsibilities. However, I do try to fit in a couple of things to make the day special. One of which is to bake some kind of treat.

This year I’ve decided to make some homemade Hostess Cupcakes ~ Valentine’s Day style.

This treat is sure to be a hit with both you and your children! You’ll love the simplicity and they’ll love how yummy it is.

Step 1: Bake up a batch of cupcakes using your favorite recipe.

Step 2: Using either canned frosting or homemade frosting, tint a large portion pink and leave about 1/4 cup white. Place about half of the pink frosting {set the other half aside for now}  into a decorator bag with Wilton tip #12 and do the same with the white frosting using Wilton tip #5. If you don’t have any Wilton tips, don’t worry! Simply place your frosting in Ziploc bags and cut the tip off of one of the corners.

Step 3: Using the bag of pink frosting, sink the tip down into the cupcake ~ until it covers the tip completely. Start squeezing and slowly raise the bag up. Continue to squeeze until the frosting is level with the top of the cupcake. Run a butter knife over the top to make the filling even with the top of the cupcake.

Alternate-Step 3: If you don’t have any Wilton tips or you just want more filling in the center, cut out a cone shape from the middle of each cupcake and fill ~ smoothing out the top when finished.

Step 4: Take the other half of pink frosting and microwave it just until it is just slightly runny ~ about 20 or 30 seconds. Dip the tops of each cupcake into the frosting and set onto a cooling rack.

Step 5: Allow the cupcakes to set ~ about 10 minutes.

Step 6: Using the bag of white frosting, draw squiggly lines on the top of each cupcake.

Step 7: Sit back and enjoy your children’s excitement!

Ruthanne has been homeschooling for just over a decade. She’s passionate about many things ~ the Lord, her principal and students (mother to four boys and a girl), photography, baking and really good coffee. You can find her blogging at www.eclecticwhatnot.com where she shares a few random thoughts and loads of pictures.