Recipe of the Day - Cupcakes in a Jar

Courtesy of The Shabby Nest
(http://shabbynest.blogspot.com/2011/02/cupcake-in-jar.html)

Difficulty Level: Easy
Rating: 4 stars

I found this really cute gift idea over at The Shabby Nest. I made them yesterday as prizes for our guard party. They turned out SUPER cute and it wasn't too hard. I think it's the perfect gift for Valentine's. Here you go:
•First up, make some red velvet cupcakes - do not use cupcake papers, just bake them directly in a greased and floured muffin pan. (I used a boxed red velvet mix, but you can make them whichever way is best suited to your baking style.)
•After the cupcakes have cooled, remove them from the pan and cut each one in half crosswise.
•Find some small mason jars (I found mine at Michael's craft). Then layer the bottom half of one cupcake,

then with a mound of piped cream cheese frosting, (recipe below)
the second half of one cupcake and another large mound of piped frosting. And there you have it. No seriously, that's all.

•Decorate each jar to make it look festive. Since I made mine as hostess gifts for a holiday party, I wanted them to look wintry. I covered the lid of the mason jar with black damask scrapbook paper and tied a thank you card and a snowflake ornament to the lid with matching ribbon.
•For Valentine's gifts, they'd look equally as cute, with pink and red paper and ribbons and a pretty heart dangling on the side. The possibilities are endless.
EDITED TO ADD: I've had a couple of people ask...the best way to eat these is with a parfait spoon...perhaps you could tie one to the jar. ;-)

Cream Cheese Frosting

Courtesy of The Pioneer Woman
1/4 cups softened butter
4 oz. cream cheese
1/2 pounds powdered sugar (about 1 3/4 cups)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients on high until soft and whipped.