We had some friends coming over for treats last night so I thought about this recipe that I’ve been wanting to try and it seemed right since summer is here (or is here and gone, here and gone, due to the unpredictable weather!)  It’s a Pampered Chef recipe and usually those are a guaranteed success, both in taste and preparation so I decided to go with it and everyone really liked them.

crust:

1 1/2 cups mini pretzel twists (about 3/4 cup crushed)

1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted

2 tablespoons sugar

cake:

1 (9 oz) white cake mix

1/2 cup sour cream

1 egg

1 tablespoon water

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

filling, strawberries and garnish:

2 1/2 cups thawed frozen whipped topping, divided

2/3 cup strawberry ice cream topping, divided

1 cup sliced strawberries

1  Preheat oven to 350.  Place paper liners into wells of muffin pan.  For crust, place pretzels into a large resealable plastic bag and finely crush using a rolling pin.  Combine pretzel crumbs, butter and sugar and mix well.  Using a scant medium or cookie scoop, drop scoops of pretzel mixture into liners.  Press crust into liners using mini tart shaper or the back of a spoon.

2  Combine cake mix, sour cream, egg, water and vanilla and whisk 1 minute or until smooth.  Divide batter evenly among muffin cups using large or ice cream scoop.  Bake 18 – 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes.  Remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely.

3  Meanwhile, combine 1 cup whipped topping and 3 tablespoons strawberry ice cream topping and mix well.  Gently toss strawberries with 1 1/2 tablespoons strawberry ice cream topping.

4  When ready to serve, attach open star tip to Easy Accent Decorator and fill with remaining whipped topping.  Remove paper liners from cupcakes.  Slice off tops of cupcakes using a serrated knife.  For each serving, place bottom of cupcake on serving plate; using a scant medium or cookie scoop, scoop filling over center of each cupcake.  Spoon a rounded tablespoon of strawberries and juice over filling; top with cupcake top.  Pipe whipped topping over desserts and drizzle with about 1 teaspoon slightly warmed remaining ice cream topping.

Makes 12 desserts.  To double recipe, use an 18.25 oz package of cake mix and increase water to 1/3 cup, double all other ingredients.