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Christmas Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.6 from 123 reviews
  • Author: Mia
  • Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 2 hours
  • Yield: 12 cupcakes
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: No-Cook
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Description

Celebrate the festive season with these Easy Christmas Cupcakes featuring four delightful designs: Christmas trees, snowmen, reindeer, and Santa hats. Each cupcake is topped with beautifully piped buttercream frosting in vibrant colors and adorned with charming decorations that bring the holiday spirit to your dessert table. Perfect for parties or holiday treats, this recipe walks you through making a rich vanilla buttercream and transforming simple cupcakes into stunning seasonal masterpieces.

Ingredients

Scale

Cupcakes

  • 12 cupcakes (a mix of vanilla and chocolate)

Vanilla Buttercream

  • 2 cups (448g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 8 cups (460g) powdered sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 4–6 tbsp (60-90ml) heavy cream or milk
  • Salt, to taste (start with less than 1/8 tsp)

Tree Cupcakes Decorations

  • Green gel icing color
  • 1 piping bag
  • Ateco 847 tip
  • Star sprinkles
  • Colorful nonpareil sprinkles

Melted Snowman Decorations

  • Brown gel icing color
  • Marshmallows
  • Food writing pens (black and orange)
  • 2 piping bags
  • Ateco 808 tip
  • Wilton 5 tip
  • 1 coupler
  • Large nonpareil sprinkles (for buttons)

Reindeer Cupcakes Decorations

  • Brown gel icing color
  • 4 oz melting chocolate
  • 2 piping bags
  • 1 coupler
  • Wilton 5 tip
  • Ateco 808 tip
  • Eyeball sprinkles
  • Large round red sprinkles (for nose)

Santa Hat Cupcakes Decorations

  • Red gel icing color
  • 2 piping bags
  • 1 coupler
  • Ateco 808 tip
  • Wilton 21 tip

Instructions

  1. Make the Buttercream: Add the unsalted butter to a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add half the powdered sugar and mix well. Next, incorporate the vanilla extract and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk, mixing until smooth and combined. Add the remaining powdered sugar and beat until the mixture is smooth. Adjust consistency by adding more cream as needed, then add salt to taste to balance the sweetness.
  2. Color the Buttercream: Divide the buttercream into four bowls, adding a bit more to the portions for green and red because these colors are used in larger quantities. Tint one bowl green, one red, one brown, and leave one white. Note that these colors will deepen as they sit.
  3. Make Christmas Tree Cupcakes: Fit a large piping bag with the Ateco 847 tip and fill it with green buttercream. Starting at the outer edge of the cupcake top, pipe a tall swirl by moving the bag inward in three full rotations, finishing with a small peak. While the frosting is still soft, decorate with star and colorful nonpareil sprinkles so they stick before the buttercream crusts.
  4. Make Snowman Cupcakes: Use food coloring pens to draw eyes, nose, and mouth on marshmallows ahead of time. Fill a large piping bag fitted with the Ateco 808 tip with white buttercream and pipe a floral pattern swirl on the cupcake. Smooth the top with an offset spatula. Attach the marshmallow face at the back of the cupcake and add large nonpareil sprinkles as buttons down the center. Then, use a medium piping bag fitted with a coupler and Wilton 5 tip filled with brown buttercream to pipe reindeer-like arms onto the cupcake.
  5. Make Reindeer Cupcakes: Melt the 4 oz of melting chocolate and pipe antler shapes onto parchment paper using a piping bag fitted with a coupler and Wilton 5 tip. Let them dry completely and set aside. Fill a large piping bag fitted with the Ateco 808 tip with brown buttercream and pipe a short, flat swirl offset near the lower center of the cupcake to form the reindeer’s snout. Place a large round red sprinkle for the nose, eyeball sprinkles for eyes at the upper part of the swirl, and attach the chocolate antlers on top.
  6. Make Santa Hat Cupcakes: Fill a large piping bag fitted with the Ateco 808 tip with red buttercream. Pipe a tall swirl similar to the tree cupcakes but leave space at the base. Using a medium piping bag fitted with a coupler and Wilton 21 tip filled with white buttercream, pipe dollops around the base of the red swirl and a fluffy ball on top to mimic the pompom of Santa’s hat.
  7. Serve and Store: Serve cupcakes at room temperature ideally the day they are decorated as some sprinkles and eyeball colors can bleed after sitting too long. Leftover cupcakes can stay at room temperature for up to 24 hours or be refrigerated up to 3–4 days in an airtight container. Bring refrigerated cupcakes back to room temperature before serving.

Notes

  • The buttercream recipe yields approximately 5 cups, enough for 12 cupcakes with multiple decorative styles. Adjust the quantity as needed when making fewer cupcakes or simpler designs.
  • Melting chocolate quantity of 4 oz is sufficient for 12 pairs of reindeer antlers. Using less than 2 oz may make piping difficult, so adjust accordingly based on your batch size.
  • Buttercream colors will darken slightly over time; prepare and color them closer to decorating time for best results.
  • Decorate cupcakes promptly after frosting to ensure sprinkles adhere well before the buttercream crusts.
  • Use airtight storage containers to maintain cupcake freshness and prevent decorations from smudging.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 cupcake
  • Calories: 350
  • Sugar: 32g
  • Sodium: 90mg
  • Fat: 22g
  • Saturated Fat: 14g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 7g
  • Trans Fat: 0g
  • Carbohydrates: 35g
  • Fiber: 1g
  • Protein: 2g
  • Cholesterol: 60mg

Find it online: https://mealsbymia.com/christmas-cupcakes-with-buttercream-frosting-recipe/