French Vanilla Cupcakes with Creamsicle Filling

Course Cake, Dessert

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword filled-cupcake-recipes, french-vanilla-cupcakes, vanilla-cupcakes-with-dreamsicle-filling

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Chill time 2

Total Time 2 40

Servings cupcakes

Calories 211kcal

Author Melissa Sperka

Cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare a 16 cup muffin tin with liners. Set aside.
Prepare cake mix per the instructions on the box using the amount of eggs, water and oil called for. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes back clean. Set aside to cool completely.
Filling: In a mixing bowl using an electric mixer cream the cream cheese. Add instant vanilla pudding and milk. Whip on medium-high speed for at least 2 minutes or until thickened and the mixture is smooth.
Fold in chopped clementines, 1 cup of vanilla whipped topping and zest by hand.
Assemble: Using a sharp knife cut out a portion of the center of each cupcake leaving approximately a 1/2 inch border around the edge. Be careful not to cut all the way to the bottom of the cake shell.
Divide filling between cupcakes. Using a piping bag fitted with a large star tip, pipe a dollop of whipped topping onto each cupcake, and garnish with additional zest.
Chill for at least 2 hours to allow the filling to set-up before serving.

If you prefer to make the cupcakes from scratch, use the recipe for my Old Fashioned Butter Cake. Add 1/2 tsp of vanilla bean paste, to give it the creamy French vanilla flavor.
If you are unable to find Clementines you can use equivalent amount of tangerines.