Flavor-of-the-Month: Tribute to John Hughes

When this September's Flavor-of-the-Month theme was announced, I added several films to the my Netflix list so I could properly execute the theme: A Tribute to John Hughes (1950-2009). Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink, Weird Science, and The Breakfast Club all made it to the top of my queue. I am a child of the '80s. Literally. Pretty in Pink came out when I was what? Three? Four? Needless to say, I can't count myself among those who can say that they grew up watching John Hughes films, and thus I needed a refresher :) After watching the films and brainstorming for ideas, I settled on "Pretty in Pink" cupcakes, mentioned by Bridget of Bake at 350 when she revealed the theme. I 'may' or 'may not' have 'stolen' her idea...

Dreamy Pretty in Pink strawberry cupcakes (with "Duckie" topper* You gotta love the sweet & dorky best friend, although he did border on the stalker-y side... Oh and am I the only one who thinks the dress she made was not pretty?!?!  Even for the 80's!).

*Get your own Duckie toppers over at Bake it Pretty, quite possibly the sweetest baking supply shoppe around!  I can't spend too much time on their website though, because I want to buy EVERYTHING I see. 

 I found the recipe in Cupcakes! from the Cake Mix Doctor. View the cupcake recipe here. I topped them off with a rich strawberry cheesecake frosting, which you can lighten up by using 8 or 12 oz. cream cheese instead of the full 16 oz. (I went whole-hog with this one and used a full pound!)

Click here to visit Bridget's blog and view the other Flavor-of-the-Month participants!

Strawberry Cheesecake Frosting
Enough to generously frost 24 cupcakes with leftovers

• ½ cup salted butter, softened
• 1 lb. powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
• 2 tsp. strawberry extract
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3 Tbl. mashed strawberries
• 8-16 oz. cream cheese, cold--cut into pieces

In a mixer bowl, beat softened butter until creamy. Add powdered sugar gradually, beating after each addition until combined. Add extracts and strawberries, and beat until combined. Add cold cream cheese pieces to bowl, and beat on low speed until combined. Increase speed and beat briefly until smooth and fluffy.