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Candy Corn Cupcakes combine the sweet nostalgia of candy corn with the deliciousness of cupcakes, making them a festive, fun, and tasty treat perfect for the fall season.
Why These Cupcakes Are a Hit
Candy corn cupcakes are a hit for several reasons:
- Appearance: These cupcakes are designed to resemble candy corn with layers of yellow, orange, and white. Their vibrant colors make them a fun and unexpected treat during Halloween and fall celebrations.
- Nostalgia: Candy corn is a classic Halloween treat that many people, including me, associate with childhood memories.
- Fun to Make: Making candy corn cupcakes is a fun activity, especially with kids. The layered colors and decorating make the baking process enjoyable and interactive.
- Perfect for Sharing: Like any good cupcake, candy corn cupcakes are easily shareable.
Ingredients
White Vanilla Cake Mix – If you asked me to pick my favorite prepared cake mix, it would be this one. It bakes perfectly every time and stays fluffy and moist.
Egg Whites – For convenience, I keep a small carton of egg whites in my refrigerator. They are easy to measure with no mess or leftover yolks.
Milk – I prefer whole or 2% for this recipe.
Canola Oil – I recommend using canola oil for this recipe.
Cream Cheese – Use cream cheese that has been softened at room temperature. I do not recommend using tub cream cheese or whipped cream cheese; stick to the block cream cheese.
Confectioners sugar – Also called powdered
Yellow and Red Food Coloring to make yellow and orange cake batter layers.
Candy Corn and Sprinkles – I used mini candy corn candies on the cupcakes.
Let’s Make Candy Corn Cupcakes
- Prepare the cake batter by combining the cake mix, egg whites, milk, and oil in a large bowl and beating on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- Separate the batter into two bowls.
- Color one bowl with yellow food coloring and the other with orange food-coloring.
- Place the cupcake liners into a muffin tin.
- Fill all of the liners 1/2 way with yellow cake mix.
- Then add an equal amount of orange cake batter on top of the yellow cake batter.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes at 350°.
- Completely cool on a wire rack before frosting.
- To make the frosting, mix the cream cheese and butter until it is smooth and creamy.
- Add the confections sugar 1/2 cup at a time while mixing on medium speed.
- Place the frosting into a pastry bag or zip-top bag with a pastry tip and decorate the cupcakes.
Krazy Kitchen Mom Tips
- When using food coloring start with a smaller amount and add to it…you can always add more but you can’t take it away. For this recipe, I used 6-8 drops. I also find that once the colored batter sits for a few minutes, the darker it gets.
- I also make my frosting colors very dark or very bright because when it bakes, it tends to dull the color.
- I like to make my frosting the day before I bake. It’s much less of a mess in the kitchen. Simply store the frosting in plastic and place it in the refrigerator. Take it out about an hour before you’re going to use it.
- SPECIAL TIP: Make frosting clean-up a breeze! I place my frosting on plastic wrap and then wrap it up so it looks like a log. When I’m ready to use it, I snip off one end of the log and then place that into a piping bag with a tip. It’s so easy and when you’re finished, just remove the tip and throw everything away.
- To make any box cake mix recipe a little bit lighter, substitute the canola oil for an equal amount of applesauce.
More KKM Fall Recipes
- Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells
- Three-Ingredients Gingersnap Truffles
- Cornbread Spinach Cheese Bites
- Eerie Halloween Black Sangria
Candy Corn Cupcakes
Candy Corn Cupcakes are a fun way to celebrate Halloween and Fall. Just one cake mix, two colors and cream cheese frosting. Everyone loves them.
Ingredients
- 1 box white vanilla-flavored cake mix
- 4 egg whites
- 1-1/4 cups milk
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- red and yellow food coloring
- 1-8 oz. package cream cheese – softened at room tempature softened
- 1/2 cup butter – softened at room temerature softened
- 4 cups confectioners sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine cake mix, eggs whites, milk, and oil in a large bowl.
- Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes until smooth and creamy.
- Separate the prepared mix into two bowls with an equal amount in each.
- Color one bowl yellow using the yellow food coloring.
- Color the other bowl orange using the yellow and red food coloring.
- Place cupcake liners into muffin tin.
- Fill all muffin liners 1/2 way with yellow cake mix. Tap it on the counter a few times so that the yellow settles.
- Then do the same with the orange cake mix.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes.
- Cool for 1 hour before frosting.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- With a mixer, blend the cream cheese and butter until smooth.
- Add confectioners sugar, 1/4 cup at a time and mix until smooth and creamy.
- Place the frosting in a zip-top or pastry bag with a pastry tip and pipe the frosting on top of the cupcakes.
- Decorate and enjoy!
Notes
- When using food coloring start with a smaller amount and add to it…you can always add more but you can’t take it away. For this recipe, I used 6-8 drops. I also find that once the colored batter sits for a few minutes, the darker it gets.
- I also make my frosting colors very dark or very bright because when it bakes, it tends to dull the color.
- I like to make my frosting the day before I bake. It’s much less mess in the kitchen. Simply store the frosting in plastic and place it in the refrigerator. Take it out about an hour before you’re going to use it.
- SPECIAL TIP: Make frosting clean-up a breeze! I place my frosting on plastic wrap and then wrap it up so it looks like a log. When I’m ready to use it, I snip off one end of the log and then place that into a piping bag with a tip. It’s so easy and when you’re finished, just remove the tip and throw everything away.
- To make any box cake mix recipe a little bit lighter, substitute the canola oil for an equal amount of applesauce.
I love all the detail in this recipe. These little cuties need to be in my kitchen soon!
Aren’t they fun?!