Corn on the Cob Cupcakes

These were too cute not to make! Typically, I am anti-making one type of food look like some other type of food, but this looked too fun. Someone on the What's Cooking board found them on the Martha Stewart website, and I decided I had to make them for a summer party.

These were pretty easy to throw together, you could probably use any vanilla cupcake recipe you like (but I don't have a favorite so I made the one from the website). Just get some frosting, yellow and white jelly beans, a few yellow starburst, and you are on your way! They are fun to decorate and super cute.
Corn on the Cob Cupcakes
From Hello, Cupcake!, by Karen Tack
Yield: 24 Cupcakes (I only got 19)

For the Cupcakes:
~2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
~2 teaspoons baking powder
~2 teaspoons baking soda (I used 1.5 tsp)
~1/2 teaspoon salt
~1/2 cup milk
~1/2 cup vegetable oil
~1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used 2 tsp)
~1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
~1 cup sugar
~3 large eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 standard 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners; set aside.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside. Combine milk, oil, and vanilla in a small bowl; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture, alternating with milk mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture; beat until well combined, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
Fill muffin cups two-thirds full with batter. Transfer muffin tins to oven and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to a wire rack; let cool completely before decorating.

For Decorating:
~Vanilla Frosting
~yellow food coloring
~3 1/2 cups small yellow, cream, or white jelly beans, such as Jelly Belly
~4 pieces yellow fruit chews, such as Laffy Taffys or Starbursts
~1 tablespoon black decorating sugar (I skipped)
~1 tablespoon white decorating sugar (I skipped)
~8 sets of corn holders (optional)

Directions
Color the frosting pale yellow with food coloring.

Working with 3 cupcakes at a time, frost cupcakes with yellow frosting. Arrange 5 rows of jelly beans, close together, on each cupcake. Place the 3 cupcakes side by side on a corn dish or serving platter to resemble an ear of corn. Repeat process with remaining cupcakes, frosting, and jelly beans.

Cut the fruit chews into eight 1-inch squares. Soften the edges slightly by hand so that they look like melted butter. Place 1 square on top of each ear of corn. Sprinkle with sugars. Insert a corn holder in the end of each ear of corn, if using. Serve.