Candy Cane Cupcakes

Candy cane cupcakes combine soft peppermint cupcakes with sweet, creamy peppermint buttercream. Fun and festive, they’re perfect for the holidays!

This post is sponsored by C&H® Sugar. As always, opinions are 100% my own—thank you for supporting the brands that make IBK possible!

Helloooo, Christmas! I’ve partnered with C&H® Sugar to bring you a super-fun and extra-Christmas-y recipe today: candy cane cupcakes!

I always use C&H® Granulated Pure Cane Sugar and C&H® Confectioners Sugar when I bake because it’s such great quality. Consistency is key in baking and I know what I’m getting with C&H® Sugar products: confectioners sugar that I don’t have to sift and granulated sugar that lets my cupcakes bake up perfectly every time.

Just look at the pics—these cupcakes wouldn’t be possible without high quality sugar!

Truth be told, candy canes aren’t my favorite Christmas treat. These cupcakes, though, are another story. They’re pretty much all I want to eat between now and December 25. Festive, fun, and super minty, they pack a huge flavor punch in a tiny (and adorable) package.

Soft peppermint cupcakes are topped with creamy, red-and-white swirled peppermint buttercream—I’m pretty sure Santa will take a batch of these over cookies any day of the week. (Or better yet, serve him a batch of cupcakes alongside some cookies and make it onto his nice list for sure!)

Notes:

• I layered my cupcakes like this: 1 tablespoon white batter, 1 tablespoon red, 1 tablespoon white, 1 tablespoon red. The layering can get tedious and if you prefer, you can just throw 2 tablespoons of red on top of 2 tablespoons of white. The cupcakes will still be pretty.
• I like to use red gel food coloring when I bake but if you only have liquid that’s fine to use.
• When dividing the batter in half, I weighed it with a kitchen scale but you can just eyeball it; if you end up with more of one color it’s totally fine to use heaping tablespoons of one batter and scant tablespoons of the other.

How to make peppermint buttercream frosting

• Beat vegetable shortening until creamy (see notes below for substitution option)
• Beat in flavorings, salt, and milk or cream
• Gradually beat in powdered sugar
• Dye half of the frosting red (use a little cocoa powder to deepen the color if you like)

Notes:

• I used vegetable shortening in my frosting so I could get a really true white—butter tends to tint the frosting yellow. You can substitute room temperature unsalted butter for some or all of the shortening if you prefer.
• If you don’t want to pipe the dual-toned frosting you can just leave it all white or dye it all red and spread the frosting on top of the cupcakes. (Or just spread the frosting on in two colors.)
• If you opt to spread the frosting rather than pipe it you may want to halve the frosting recipe (but that’s totally up to you).

How to finish candy cane cupcakes

To pipe two-toned frosting you’ll need three piping bags (I strongly recommend using 16-inch disposable bags.)

I used a large open star tip but you can also use a large round tip.

• Fill one bag with each color of frosting, then snip off the bottom of each bag
• Carefully fit those bags into a third bag that you’ve fitted with your tip of choice

The piping technique is for two-toned frosting is the same as for a single color; just squeeze the bag gently while you’re turning the cupcake.

How to store candy cane cupcakes

Uneaten candy cane cupcakes can be stored at room temperature, covered, for up to 2 days.

You can also store them in the fridge, covered, for up to 3 days; the cupcakes tend to dry out this way, though, so I recommend storing them at room temp, or freezing them if you won’t eat them quickly.

The cupcakes can be stored in the freezer, tightly wrapped, for up to 2 months. I like to set them on a baking sheet, freeze for about an hour to set the frosting, then wrap each cupcake in plastic wrap and aluminum foil.

A few more recipes you might enjoy
Eggnog Cheesecake
Gingerbread Loaf
Grinch Cake
Gingerbread Cupcakes
Green Velvet Cake

Did you make these candy cane cupcakes? Hooray! Let me know what you think with a comment and a rating below. Then post a pic on IG–tag @theitsybitsykitchen so I can see your delicious creations!

5 from 11 votes

Print

Candy Cane Cupcakes

Prep Time

1 hr 10 mins

Cook Time

16 mins

Cooling time

3 hrs

Total Time

1 hr 26 mins

 

Candy cane cupcakes feature soft peppermint cupcakes topped with sweet minty buttercream frosting. They're delicious and so fun for the holidays!

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 14

Author: Kelsie

Ingredients

Candy cane cupcakes

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 cup C&H® Granulated Pure Cane Sugar
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract clear if you have it
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder see note
• red food coloring

Peppermint buttercream

• 3/4 cup vegetable shortening see note
• 5 to 8 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract clear if you have it
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 1/2 to 5 cups C&H® Confectioners Sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder
• red food coloring
• mini candy canes for decoration if desired

Instructions

Cupcakes

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 14 to 15 muffin cups with paper liners and set pans aside.
2. Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Use an electric mixer to beat the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and creamy.
4. Add the egg whites, vanilla, and peppermint, and beat until well combined.
5. With mixer on low, beat in half of the dry ingredients followed by half of the milk and beat to combine. Add the remaining flour mixture, then the remaining milk and beat until just incorporated.
6. Pour half of the batter into a second bowl and beat in the cocoa powder and enough food coloring to achieve the shade of red you want.
7. Use four tablespoons of batter in each prepared muffin cup, alternating colors. It should go like this: 1 (scant) tablespoon of white batter, 1 (scant) tablespoon of red, 1 tablespoon white, 1 tablespoon red.
8. Bake 16 to 22 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean.
9. Remove cupcakes from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack before frosting them.

Buttercream

1. Place the shortening in a medium mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until very smooth. Add 5 tablespoons of milk, the vanilla, peppermint, and salt and beat to combine.
2. With mixer on low, gradually beat in 4 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar. Turn mixer to medium and beat until frosting is smooth.
3. Add add additional powdered sugar if frosting is too thin; if it’s too thick add additional milk.
4. Place half of the frosting in a second bowl and beat in the cocoa powder and red food coloring. (If you don’t want to pipe the frosting you can either leave it all white or tint it all red, then just spread on top of the cooled cupcakes.)
5. To pipe colored swirls of frosting, transfer some of the white frosting to a 16-inch disposable piping bag and some the red frosting to a second (also 16-inch) piping bag. Don’t fill either bag more than half full.
6. Snip off the bottom tip of each bag and carefully place in a third disposable bag that you’ve fitted with a large open star tip.
7. Pipe swirls of frosting on top of your cooled cupcakes, refilling the bags with frosting as necessary. Decorate each cupcake with a mini candy cane, if desired.
8. Uneaten cupcakes can be stored, covered, at room temperature for up to 2 days, in the fridge, covered, for up to 3 days, or in the freezer, tightly wrapped, for up the 2 months.

Recipe Notes

• The cocoa powder in both the cupcakes and the frosting helps deepen the red color from the food coloring; without cocoa powder your cupcakes/frosting might be more pink than red, but you can omit the cocoa powder if you want.
• You can substitute room temperature unsalted butter for some (or all) of the shortening. I like to use shortening here because it makes the frosting really white, where butter tends to tint the frosting a little yellow.
• If you prefer to spread the frosting on the cupcakes rather than pipe it, I recommend halving the frosting recipe.