My favorite gluten free cake mix is King Arthur Flour’s Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix. I add 1 (3oz) package of dry chocolate pudding mix, 4 eggs, 1 cup almond milk or water, 1/2 cup oil (coconut or avocado), and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth, pour into prepared muffin cups and bake according to box directions.

Quick Ganache: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan or double boiler, gently melt 1 cup chocolate chips + 3-4 Tbsp coconut milk (or your favorite milk) over low heat. Whisk until completely smooth. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla extract. Set aside for a few minutes to cool slightly before using on cupcakes.

Go slow. These are SUPER easy to make. The “trickiest” part of making them is opening your chocolate sandwich cookies. This isn’t too tricky (see my next tip), but works best if you don’t try to speed through. Also, I always plan to only get to use one half of each cookie, which makes it much easier. You can freeze the leftover cookie halves for another time–chocolate pudding “dirt” cups, mixing into vanilla ice cream, making a chocolate cookie crumb crust, etc.

If you’re having trouble opening your cookies, hold one side completely still and only twist one half. Sometimes, if you twist both halves, the frosting doesn’t split as nicely. If your frosting doesn’t split well, you can usually coax it right back into place with a spatula. And remember: go slow. Don’t try to rush this.

Best Tip for Decorating: Work in Batches. I actually assemble all my “eyes” (cookie + candy) before frosting any of the cupcakes, so that the candy will best stick to the frosting on the cookie. Similarly, I find it’s best to frost & assemble only a few cupcakes at a time. That way, my frosting is fresh enough that the cookies will easily stick to them. Make sense?

Tip for the Cutest Eyes: Place your candies in a bottom “corner” of the frosting circle, almost to make them look cross-eyed. If you put the candy dot in the center of the cookie, your owls will look a little “stunned.”