I do want to let my readers know, in the pictures,  I made 3 boxes of cake mix, yielding around 72 of these cupcakes, celebrating two birthdays, for co-workers. My recipe below is for 24 cupcakes, 1 box. It’s really important to note, anytime you want to make more than one box, only mix one box mix at a time. After the completion of the box mix then you can combine them together in one large bowl. The frosting you can mix all the ingredients at one time together, no problem!

I’m start with the candied oranges.

  Creamsicle cupcakes: Equipment: cupcake pan, paper liners Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes ( follow the cook time on the back of the cake box) Total Time: 30 minutes Yields: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients: For the cupcakes: 1 Box Duncan Hines French Vanilla 3  room temperature egg whites ( large eggs) 1/3 cup of vegetable oil 1 cup of Orange Crush soda ( this replaces the water from the box instructions) 1/3 cup of room temperature Ricotta cheese 2 tablespoons of Orange Jello Mix

Ingredients for Creamsicle Frosting: 2 sticks of room temperature unsalted butter 3 cups of powdered sugar 1-3 tablespoons of Orange Crush Soda 2 tablespoons of Orange Jello Mix

Directions for Creamsicle Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pan with paper liners. In one large bowl mix egg whites, Ricotta cheese, vegetable oil, jello mix, and Orange Crush soda. Once all these ingredients are well combined, slowly add in the dry cake mix, stirring ( do not over mix) until just combined. Fill the liners 3/4 of the way full and bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on sheet pans with cooling racks.

Directions for Creamsicle Frosting: In a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer, whip butter until light and fluffy. Add in jello mix. Next, gradually add in the powdered sugar a little at a time. Finally, add in the Orange Crush Soda as needed to reach the desired consistency. Pipe the frosting ( using piping bag and preferred tip) on the cooled cupcakes.

Candied Oranges: Prep Time: 10 minutes Inactive Prep Time: 1 hour Cook Time: 1 hour (stove top) Bake Time: 2 hours @ 200 degrees F. (leave in the oven 1 extra hour with oven off) Total Cook Time: 4 hours Equipment: 3-1/4 sheet pans with racks, aluminum foil

Ingredients: 1 orange yields:  around 25 triangles 3 navel oranges sliced into rounds around 1/8 inch thick. Discard seeds and ends. Large bowl of ice water 3 cups of granulated sugar 3 cups of water 6 tablespoons of orange juice Turbinado sugar

Directions for candied oranges: Fill a large bowl with ice water and set aside. Bring a large sauce pan with water to a boil and add in orange slices. Boil for 1 minute then place the orange slices in the bowl of ice water to shock and stop the cooking process. Once the orange slices have cooled, drain and place them into a large container and set them aside.

In another large sauce pan over medium heat, bring 3 cups of water, 3 cups of sugar, and 6 tablespoons of orange juice just to a boil. Heat until sugar has dissolved stirring occasionally. Turn the heat down to med-low and place the orange slices into the sugar-water. Simmer ( do not boil) the orange slices for 1 hour, until the rinds are slightly translucent, turning the slices over every 15 minutes.

Place racks on sheet pans lined with foil and lay the orange slices in single layer on the racks. Sprinkle each of the orange slices with Turbinado sugar. In a preheated 200 degree oven F., place the racks of oranges into the oven for 2 hours. This process will dry the candied oranges out so they are not so sticky. Turn the oven off and do not open the oven for an extra hour.

I’ve made extra candies oranges in this recipe and that’s because I want to use only the best looking ones as toppers and, at the end of the day, the cooks needs a treat too! Once the candied oranges have come out of the oven after the 3 hours, slice the candied oranges into triangle. Do this by using a paring knife and start at the center of the circle using the segment lines within the circle, cut into triangles.For appearance reasons, use only the best ones to place on top of each cup cake. Each circle yields around 5 triangles.