Valentine's Day Mini Rose Cupcakes

Valentine’s Day is coming soon! February is rushing by very quickly.
 

The "rose" is made by rolling a length of strawberry "Fruit by the Foot" around a toothpick. "Fruit by the Foot" is sold in grocery stores near the fruit bars and comes in a lot of colors and also – has a lot of perforation variations in each package- they really vary.

Peel away one edge of the fruit strip so there's a curved edge on one side and a flat side on the other. I prefer using the “wave” or the”ripple” edges (left side of picture above) but the strips can be cut as well. Cut the strip if the perforations are angles, squares or long curves.

 

Use a pencil, marker or just a toothpick tip to scribe a cutting line on the PAPER SIDE and then cut the fruit strip with clean scissors (I used kitchen scissors).

Roll one end of the strip around a toothpick tip, then continue to roll the strip with the straight edge lined up.

 

After the rose gets going, remove the toothpick and just keep rolling the strip.

If the “petals” line up too much, cut the strip- wet the end with a dab of water, stick it back on in a new place and start rolling again.

At the end of the strip, add a dab of water to hold it in place.

When the "rose" is done, gently spread the "petals."

 

And yes- I originally made these for FamilyFun magazine 10 years ago when the boy was very tiny.

Rose mini cupcakes- Elliott loved them when he was little and he loves them now; any excuse to eat a cupcake.