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Easy Decorated Halloween Cupcakes Recipe

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3.9 from 2 reviews

Create festive and fun Halloween cupcakes with these easy decorating ideas including monster, jack-o’-lantern, and spider designs. Start with your favorite cupcake recipe and use homemade vanilla buttercream tinted with vibrant gel food colors for spooky decorations perfect for Halloween parties or celebrations.

Ingredients

Cupcakes

  • 12 pumpkin cupcakes or your favorite cupcake recipe

Vanilla Buttercream

  • 1 and 1/2 cups (340g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 6 cups (720g) confectioners’ sugar
  • 6 Tablespoons (60ml) heavy cream, half-and-half, or whole milk, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • Salt, to taste

Monster Cupcakes

  • Gel food coloring: Leaf Green, Fuchsia + Violet, Super Black
  • 2 piping bags
  • 2 couplers
  • Piping tip: small open star tip such as Wilton #21
  • Small candy eyeballs
  • Large candy eyeballs
  • Optional: sprinkles

Jack-o’-Lantern Cupcakes

  • Gel food coloring: Orange, Leaf Green, Super Black
  • 3 piping bags
  • Piping tips: Wilton #125, Wilton #21, small round tip such as Wilton #4

Spider Cupcakes

  • Gel food coloring: Super Black
  • 1 piping bag
  • Piping tip: small round tip such as Wilton #4
  • Oreo Mini cookies
  • Mini candy eyeballs

Instructions

  1. Make the vanilla buttercream: Beat the softened butter on medium speed with a handheld or stand mixer until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add 5 and 1/2 cups (660g) confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes. Taste and add a pinch of salt (about 1/8 teaspoon) if frosting is too sweet. To remove air bubbles, stir by hand with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon for 1–2 minutes until bubbles pop.
  2. Adjust frosting consistency: If frosting is too thin, add up to 1/2 cup more confectioners’ sugar. If too thick, add heavy cream 1 tablespoon at a time, beating and tasting until desired consistency is achieved.
  3. Tint the frosting: Divide frosting into bowls for each color needed. Use gel food coloring drops to tint each bowl to your desired shades—green, purple (made from fuchsia + violet), orange, black, and leave one bowl white for the spider cupcakes. Optionally, add a tiny dot of black gel to tone down colors. Color will deepen as frosting sets.
  4. Decorate Green Monster Cupcakes: Fit a piping bag with a small open star tip (Wilton #21) and coupler. Fill with green frosting. Pipe a spiral starting from the outside working inward on the cupcake. Place one large candy eyeball in the center and gently press it into the frosting.
  5. Decorate Purple Monster Cupcakes: Using the same tip and coupler setup as green monsters, fill the bag with purple frosting. Pipe stars all over the cupcake surface to cover it. Press small candy eyeballs into the frosting and add sprinkles if desired.
  6. Decorate Jack-o’-Lantern Cupcakes: Fill one piping bag with orange frosting fitted with a large petal tip (Wilton #125), another with green frosting and a small open star tip (Wilton #21), and a third with black frosting and a small round tip (Wilton #4). Pipe rounded vertical lines alternating sides with orange frosting to create pumpkin ridges. Use green frosting to pipe the stem on top. Use black frosting to pipe eyes, nose, and mouth for the jack-o’-lantern face.
  7. Decorate Spider Cupcakes: Spread white frosting evenly on the cupcake with a small offset spatula or knife. Fit a piping bag with black frosting and a small round tip (Wilton #4). Pipe three crisscross lines to form six triangular sections, connect with curved lines to make webbing. Place half a Mini Oreo cookie onto the web for the spider body, pipe two small black dots for eyes and place mini candy eyeballs on top. Pipe four legs on each side of the Oreo to complete the spider.
  8. Storage: Store decorated cupcakes uncovered at room temperature for a few hours before serving. Leftover cupcakes can be covered and refrigerated for up to 5 days. Use a cupcake carrier for transport and storage.

Notes

  • Make Ahead Instructions: These cupcakes are best served the day they are decorated, as candy eyes can become runny if stored too long. Cupcakes can be baked 1 day ahead, covered at room temperature, but decorate just before serving.
  • Special Tools: Electric mixer (handheld or stand), silicone spatula or wooden spoon, reusable or disposable piping bags, cupcake carrier, various piping tips, gel food coloring, candy decorations (eyeballs, Oreos).
  • Confectioners’ Sugar: For best results, sift the confectioners’ sugar once or twice if it is lumpy before measuring.
  • Heavy Cream: Use heavy cream for creamier buttercream. Half-and-half or whole milk can be substituted but may produce less creamy frosting. Ensure dairy is at room temperature to avoid grainy or separated frosting.
  • Vanilla Buttercream Yield: The recipe makes about 4+ cups of frosting, sufficient for decorating 12 cupcakes with multiple designs.

Find it online: https://bitezly.com/easy-decorated-halloween-cupcakes-recipe/