Pink Coconut Snowball Cakes - cooking recipe

Ingredients

CUPCAKES
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups flaked coconut
FROSTING
1/2 cup butter, softened
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar
red food coloring
FOR SNOWBALLS
2 1/2 cups flaked coconut

Preparation

Make the cupcakes:
Heat oven to 350\u00b0F; prepare 10 large size muffin tins. I suggest not using paper liners for this. If you do you will have to remove them before frosting.
Beat butter and sugar in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, about five minutes.
Beat in eggs, one at a time.
Beat well.
Sift flour with baking powder and soda.
Add 1/4 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then add vanilla and 1/3 of the buttermilk.
Repeat, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Scrap well after each addition.
Fold in coconut.
Pour batter into muffin cups. Bake about 18-20 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.
Cool in tins about 5 minutes. Remove and cool completely. If you used paper liners, remove the liners.
Make the frosting:
Combine butter, cream cheese, vanilla and sugar in a large bowl and beat until smooth and spreadable. Add a drop of food coloring and blend to make a light pink frosting.
To make the snowballs:
When cupcakes are cool, freeze them on parchment paper about 20 minutes.
Spread a thick, even layer of frosting all over each cupcake, sides and bottom too.
Freeze on parchment again for at least 30 minutes, up to 1 day.
Spread a second, thick, even layer of frosting all over them.
Sprinkle generously with coconut, about 1/4 cup per snowball.