These were for the girls in my class at church and they are divine!  The recipe comes from “Cupcakes from the Cake Mix Doctor” by Anne Byrn.

cupcakes:

1 (18.25 oz) plain devil’s food cake mix

1 (3.4 oz) package vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cup whole milk (I only had skim so used that and they turned out great)

1/2 cup oil

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup milk chocolate chips (I only had semisweet)

milk chocolate rocky road frosting:

3/4 cup sugar

5 tablespoons butter

1/3 cup whole milk (only had skim and it worked just fine)

1 cup milk chocolate chips

3/4 cup coarsely chopped unsalted dry-roasted peanuts (I didn’t have any peanuts so used walnuts)

1 heaping cup miniature marshmallows

1  Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin tins with paper liners.

2  Prepare cupcake batter:  Blend cake mix, pudding mix, milk, oil, eggs and vanilla on low for 30 seconds then on medium for 2 minutes.  Fold in chocolate chips.  Place 1 scoop of batter in each liner.

3  Bake cupcakes until they spring back when lightly touched, 18 – 20 minutes.  Let cool in pans 5 minutes.  Place on wire rack and let cool 15 minutes before frosting.

4  Prepare frosting:  Cook sugar, butter and milk over medium low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil, 3 – 4 minutes.  Boil, stirring constantly, 1 minute.  Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips until they are melted.  Let pan rest to cool slightly but not completely, 3 – 4 minutes.  Fold in nuts and marshmallows until well combined and marshmallows begin to melt.

5  Place a heaping spoonful of frosting on each cupcake and swirl to spread it out, covering tops completely.

Yields 24 cupcakes