St. Basil’s feast day is on January 2, and it has become a Catholic tradition to make a “St. Basil’s Cake” to celebrate one of his miracles!
St. Basil was a Bishop, and a friend of the poor. It didn’t look like the poor were going to be able to pay their taxes, so he went around town collecting jewelry as donations so the taxes could be paid. He took it all to the governor, and he was so struck by the gesture that he let the people keep their jewelry. There was just one problem- St. Basil didn’t know which piece of jewelry belonged to who! So he baked cakes with the jewels and gold inside, and distributed them to the people. That’s when the miracle happened- each person got exactly the piece of jewelry back that they had given!
In the past, I have made this very flashy jello jewel cake, which is always a hit!
But last year, I needed something to contribute to a New Year’s party, and I was looking for something a little simpler to make, so we made St. Basil’s Hidden Jewel Cupcakes!
Ingredients Needed:
- Boxed cake mix
- Whatever goes in the cake mix
- Life savers candies
- Canned icing
Bake the cupcakes according to package directions, and allow to cool. Then, slice a small hole in the top of the cupcake using a butter knife, and stick a lifesaver candy “jewel” inside.
Using your finger, push the lifesaver all the way in the cupcake.
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Ice as normal to conceal the “hidden jewel”.
That’s it! These are hardly any more work than baking regular cupcakes, and we always have leftover lifesavers hanging around from Christmas stockings. Take these to your New Year’s party, and tell the story to your friends- even if they aren’t Catholic! 🙂
Related Posts:
- Choosing a Patron Saint For the New Year
- St. Basil’s Jello Jewel New Year’s Cake
- A Catholic New Year
- Setting New Year’s Resolutions That Are Beyond The Diet
More Catholic Resources For January
You can find more Saint feast days and fun ways to living the liturgical year in January here.
Check out my new printable liturgical calendar for Catholics! This includes all your major feast days and liturgical seasons along with holy days of obligation, solemnities, liturgical colors, well known Saint feast days, and more! This easy to use and beautiful calendar will be your best friend when planning out your liturgical year at home. There is both a free option and a paid option for downloading this liturgical calendar, so click here to find your options for downloading your own liturgical calendar.
very cute and easy!
Very cute! I made the jell-o cake again this year, always a hit at New Year’s particularly because it seems ‘lighter’ than all the other desserts and food we’ve been indulging in since Thanksgiving.