Strawberry Butterfly Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1 package (420 g) of dry strawberry cake mix (+ additional ingredients needed)
• 32 small strawberries with leaves
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 green taffy (15g), such as AirHeads Watermelon
• 1 container (340 g) frozen whipped topping, such as Cool Whip, thawed
• Additional equipment: a pastry bag with a medium star tip, a watermelon scoop, a spoon or small vegetable peeler

Preparation:

1. Cupcakes:
   
   Mix the cake batter according to package directions to make 24 cupcakes. Bake and cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.
2. Hull and chop about 8 strawberries (about 1 cup chopped strawberries). Combine the chopped strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Let stand at room temperature, shaking a few times, until the strawberries release their juices, about 15 minutes.
3. Place the remaining 24 strawberries, stem-side down, on a cutting board. Make two vertical cuts across the berries, cutting almost all the way through and stopping just before the stem to keep it intact. Gently pull the four sections apart to form a butterfly. Repeat with the remaining strawberries.
4. Make antennae 2.5 cm long and 1 mm wide by cutting two thin strips of green taffy. Roll the taffy strips between your fingers to form ropes, and lightly twist one end of each rope. Repeat, making two antennae for the remaining 23 butterflies.
5. Assembling cupcakes:
   
   Transfer the whipped topping to a pastry bag fitted with a star tip. Using a watermelon scoop or knife, cut out the top center of each cupcake. Fill each cupcake with a small amount of macerated strawberries and pipe the topping to cover the cupcakes. Decorate each cupcake with a strawberry butterfly. Push a pair of antennae into the topping behind each strawberry butterfly, curling the ends up and outward.