Lemon Blossoms

Guess who's birthday it is! Just one of my most favorite people ever...

You can read a very quick summary of her rags-to-riches (and why I love this woman so much) right here.

To celebrate, I figured I would feature the very first recipe I ever made of Paula's.

We had gone down to Myrtle Beach with my family, not long after we'd gotten married. A couple of my great aunts live there, and we like to visit with them whenever we're there.

Anyway, my Aunt Louise had made a batch of these delicious Lemon Blossoms. I'd seen Paula Deen make them on tv before, but I'd never tried them. My husband isn't much of a sweet eater, so I figured it'd be a waste to bother. However, one bite of these, and my husband just couldn't stop raving about them.

After that trip, I decided to give them a try.

I'm SO glad I did.

The recipe makes so many of them, I took them into work to share with the ladies I worked with. Let me tell you, you would've thought I'd brought in a box full of Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

They actually taste a little like a doughnut with the sweet glaze.

And besides their fabulous taste, they're cheap.

The whole recipe consists of nine ingredients, the majority being items you typically keep in your pantry on a regular basis. The stuff you'd have to buy? All super inexpensive.

Anyway, they've been a staple in my recipe collection ever since.

They're a little time consuming (especially the first time around when you're testing them out), so plan to make these when you're in the mood to bake and don't have anywhere to be for awhile.

It's totally worth it, I promise!

Lemon Blossoms

(Original recipe by Paula Deen)

(Photo courtesy of Food Network)

Ingredients

• 18 1/2-ounce package yellow cake mix (I'm partial to Duncan Hines. Out of all the box mixes, they seem to have the best taste and consistency. I get rave reviews when I use them, every.single.time.)
• 3 1/2-ounce package instant lemon pudding mix
• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil

Glaze:

• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 lemon, zested
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons water

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray. Combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs and oil and blend well with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Pour a small amount of batter, filling each muffin tin half way. Bake for 12 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel
To make the glaze, sift the sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, zest, oil, and 3 tablespoons water. Mix with a spoon until smooth.

With fingers, dip the cupcakes into the glaze while they're still warm, covering as much of the cake as possible, or spoon the glaze over the warm cupcakes, turning them to completely coat. Place on wire racks with waxed paper underneath to catch any drips. Let the glaze set thoroughly, about 1 hour, before storing in containers with tight-fitting lids.

Yields 5 dozen! Get ready to share! :)