This recipe makes 12 standard sized double chocolate cupcakes plus 1 8" pie pans worth of muffin mix for small shapes which are optional. If not making the small shapes you can make 14-16 muffins.
Fill paper-lined muffin cups about 2/3 full and 8" pie pan about 1/4 inch on bottom, spreading out batter with spatula to edges if need be.
Bake muffin pan about 13-15 mins (check at 12 mins) or till toothpick inserted comes out clean. 8 inch pan bakes 10-11 mins or till toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Let cupcakes cool slightly on wire racks 5-10 mins before removing from pan.
Then let cool completely on wire rack before frosting.
To Make Frosting
Blend or process all ingredients. (Make sure your cherries are well squeezed as mentioned above. Too much juice will make your frosting too runny.
*Note- If your frosting is too soft from a warm climate, place the frosting in the freezer about 5 mins just to cool more for better frosting of cupcake tops.
To Decorate Cupcakes
Use a ziplock baggie with a hole cut out of corner or an actual cake decorating kit with a wide opening tip to swirl on your frosting.
If making small cupcake topping shapes, 1st flip out your thin cake like pie shape onto a plate. Cut out your shapes with your little cookie cutters. Dust the shapes with powdered sugar with a sifter.
Top your cupcakes with your shapes atop the frosting, pressing them down a little to set them into the frosting.