These Peppermint Cupcakes are super easy to make and really festive! Take these cupcakes to any holiday party and everyone will love them!
Delicious and easy to make- what more could you ask for?
I am so happy with how these candy cane cupcakes turned out! They are tasty, moist, and have the perfect peppermint flavor.
Check out these other delicious peppermint recipes:
Layer the batter then swirl with a toothpick- it’s that easy!
How to make Peppermint Cupcakes:
- Mix up a batch of white cake batter and stir in half of the crushed candy canes
- Mix up a batch of red velvet cake batter and stir in the remaining half of crushed candy canes
- Combine the two batters in each cupcake liner swirling them together gently
- Bake
- Frost with vanilla buttercream.
- Decorate with crushed candy canes and mini candy canes!
Can I use peppermint extract instead of crushed candy canes in the batter?
Yes. However, I prefer the taste of the candy canes to that of the peppermint extract. The extract can be a little overwhelming where as the candy canes give you pockets of peppermint flavor in the delicious cupcakes. If you want to use extract add 1-2 tsp instead of candy canes.
I tried piping in layers of red velvet batter and white batter to give the cupcakes a striped look but it didn’t work as well as I had hoped. I finally tried swirling the two and loved how they came out!
How to make a box cake taste homemade?
Easy! Simply add in some heavy cream, some sour cream, an extra egg and some extra vanilla extract! You can follow the instructions here for doctoring a box white cake mix, and here for doctoring a box red velvet cake mix batter (but don’t add the extra cocoa powder or espresso powder!).
I love how the swirl turned out in the cupcakes!
How many cupcakes does a box make?
This recipe will make 48 cupcakes since you are combining two boxes of cake mix.
Frosting tips:
- I used a 1M piping tip to create the swirl in the same manner as the Christmas Tree Cupcake (you can see a quick video here on how I made the swirl).
- If you want to frost all the cupcakes like that you will probably need to double (or make 1.5 batches) of the frosting.
- You can also add a little (1/2-1 tsp) of peppermint extract to the frosting for more peppermint flavor.
How do I store the cupcakes?
Any leftover cupcakes store in an airtight container in the fridge. I have a few really large tupperware containers that hold cupcakes nicely. That’s what I use.
Peppermint Cupcakes- the perfect Christmas Cupcake!
You can sprinkle these cupcakes with more crushed candy canes for a pretty effect.
Make sure to check out these other Christmas recipes:
- Hidden Mickey Christmas Cupcakes
- Cranberry Vanilla Coke-tail
- Sugared Cranberries
- Snowman Truffles
- Peppermint Marshmallow Wands
- Snowball Cupcakes
Don’t forget to pin this recipe!
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Peppermint Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 batch of white cake mix
- 1 box red velvet cake mix
- 12 candy canes crushed
- Mini Candy Canes for Decoration
Vanilla Buttercream
- 2 cups butter, cold
- 10 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbs vanilla*
- 10 tbs heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F and line a cup cake pan with cupcake liners
- Mix up one batch of my white cake mix, add half of the crushed candy canes and gently mix in – set aside
- Mix up the red velvet cake mix then mix in the remaining crushed candy canes.
- Scoop 2 spoonfuls of red velvet batter into each cupcake liner. Then scoop 1-2 spoonfuls of white batter on top of the red velvet batter. Then using a knife or toothpick swirl the mixtures together. Be careful not to mix them together too thoroughly or else the white will completely incorporate.
- Bake the cupcakes for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Vanilla Buttercream- depending on how you frost these you may need to double this recipe*
- In a stand mixer, whip your butter chunks on medium high speed until the butter is light and fluffy.
- Add in the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, letting it mix into the butter completely. Add in the vanilla*, heavy cream, and pinch of salt, allowing the ingredients to incorporate fully. If it's not thick enough mix in another 1/4 cup of powdered sugar.
- Pipe on top of the cooled cupcakes with a 1M Piping Tip then sprinkle with more crushed candy canes or stick a mini candy in each cupcake.
Notes
- You can also add 1/2-1 tsp of peppermint extract to the frosting for even more peppermint flavor. Just add a little, mix, and add more if you want. Peppermint flavor can easily overwhelm everything.
- If you go really big on frosting these cupcakes you might need to double the frosting recipe. If you frost them like these cupcakes you won't need to double the recipe, but if you want a large swirl like in the picture in this post you will likely need to double it.
Nutrition
Post updated on 12/7/2020
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