Looking for simple and fun Halloween treats the whole family will love to make and eat? Try these adorable Halloween Monster Cupcakes!
Halloween is a time of year that brings families together in the spirit of spooky fun. And what better way to celebrate than by whipping up some delicious and creative treats in the kitchen?
Gather your loved ones and let the culinary adventures begin! From easy Halloween Spider Cookies to Monster Chocolate Bark to fun and festive Halloween Charcuterie Boards, there's no limit to the creative confections you can make!
So summon your inner monster maker as you craft these cute Halloween monster cupcakes. They are so much fun to make and are the perfect Halloween treats!
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🌟 Why this recipe works
Dive into a wonderful world of Halloween fun with these simple, adorable Halloween Monster Cupcakes. We love making these in our house, and hope you will, too!
- Easy - This is an easy-to-follow Halloween treat recipe. It's great for beginning bakers and also so fun to make with the kids!
- Creative - These moist and fluffy chocolate cupcakes serve as the canvas for your culinary imagination. The real magic begins with the decoration – unleash a burst of color and character with vibrant frostings and edible googly eyes that will make your taste buds dance in delight!
- Festive - These bright and cheerful monster cupcakes are perfect for your next Halloween party, for class parties, and to give as Halloween treats.
Ingredient notes
For the cupcakes:
- Cake mix - you'll need one (15-ounce) box of chocolate cake mix. You can use milk chocolate, dark chocolate, Devil's Food cake or your favorite box cake mix.
- Eggs - this recipe calls for 3 large eggs at room temperature. Simply place the eggs on your kitchen counter about 20-30 minutes before you start baking (in hot climates, you won't need as long) so that the eggs come to room temperature by the time you mix them into the batter.
- Oil - Use vegetable oil for moist cupcakes.
- Water
For the buttercream frosting:
- Butter - use unsalted butter softened at room temperature.
- Salt - I use kosher salt in all of my baking.
- Milk - You can use 2% milk, whole milk, or your favorite non-dairy milk such as almond milk.
- Powdered sugar - also known as confectioner's sugar.
- Food coloring - For the most colorful set, use a variety of colors. My favorite colors for Halloween decorations are purple food coloring, blue food coloring, green food coloring, orange food coloring.
- Candy eye balls - small and large candy eyes create fun monster eyes on these cupcakes.
Step-by-step instructions
The full list of ingredients and full recipe can be found in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. But here's a photo step-by-step guide to help you make these fun monster cupcakes.
Preheat the oven to 350° degrees line the cupcake tin with cupcake liners.
- Mix the cake mix, eggs, oil and water.
- Divide equally among the cupcake liners.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes or until no longer warm to the touch before decorating.
Meanwhile, make the frosting:
- Beat together the softened butter and salt until smooth. Add in half of the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until combined. Add in the remaining powdered sugar and about 2 tablespoons worth of the milk. Mix until combined.
2. Divide the frosting equally between four separate bowls and tint each bowl a different color: purple, blue, orange and green. Mix each color well so there are no hidden white pockets.
3. Prepare piping bags by fitting with the grass piping tip #233 (or similar) and transfer colored frosting to the bags.
4. Pipe the decoration (see detailed instructions in the printable recipe card below) and continue placing these “hairy” dollops all around the outside edge of the cupcake.
5. Place the candy eyeballs on each cupcake. You can do any variety of small and large candy eyes to customize your monsters.
Kitchen tools and equipment
Ready to make these adorable monster cupcakes? Here's what you'll need to make this fun treat.
- Cupcake pan - You'll need 2 muffin tins (cupcake pans)
- Cupcake liners - Find some cute cupcake liners to match the theme! These help make taking the baked cupcakes out of the cupcake pan a breeze.
- Stand mixer - You'll either need a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl with electric hand mixer to make the cupcake batter.
- Wire rack - a wire rack or cooling rack helps the cupcakes cool faster and evenly before decorating.
- Piping bag - you'll need a few piping bags, depending on how many different colors you want to create with the frosting.
- #233 grass piping tip - this is to create the "hair" on the monster design, but you can use other piping tips to create different Halloween monster looks.
Frequently asked questions
Candy eyes are a must for creating cute or creepy monster faces. Other candies like gummy worms, mini marshmallows, chocolate chips, and licorice can also be used to add features like mouths, teeth, and hair to your monster cupcakes.
Yes, you can make Halloween monster cupcakes in advance. You can bake the cupcakes a day or two ahead and store them in an airtight container. However, it's best to decorate them closer to the time you plan to serve them to keep the candy eyes and decorations fresh.
Store any leftover Halloween monster cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 or 4 days. However, it's best to consume them within a day or two for the freshest taste and texture.
More Halloween recipes
Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to leave a 5-Star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card, and if you really loved it, please leave a comment further down on the page. Thank you!
Halloween Monster Cupcakes
Equipment
- 2 12-cup Muffin Pans
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 1 box chocolate cake mix
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- ½ cup oil
- 1 ¼ cup water
For the frosting:
- 1 cups unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3-4 Tablespoons milk (2%, whole, or non-dairy milk)
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- Food colors: purple, blue, green, orange
- Candy eyeballs - small and large
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prep your cupcake pans by placing the liners in each cavity. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the cake mix, eggs, oil and water. Mix on low speed for about a minute and then bump up the speed to medium for an additional minute. Mixture should be smooth with only a few occasional small clumps.
- Divide equally among the cupcake liners - fill each one about ½-⅔ full - we used a measuring cup to help scoop and portion out the batter.
- Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes or until no longer warm to the touch before decorating.
- To make the frosting: in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the softened butter and salt. Cream until smooth.
- Add in half of the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until combined.
- Add in the remaining powdered sugar and about 2 tablespoons worth of the milk. Mix until combined. If the mixture appears too dry, add the remaining milk. If the mixture has incorporated, do not add any more milk - we want it to be a stiff consistency, but not dry-looking.
- Bump up the speed to medium and mix for an additional minute to fluff up the frosting and ensure that it is smooth and well mixed. Scrape down the sides and mix again.
- Divide the frosting equally between four separate bowls and tint each bowl a different color: purple, blue, orange and green. Mix each color well so there are no hidden white pockets.
- When ready to decorate, prepare a piping bag by fitting with the grass tip #233 (or similar) and transfer your first color of frosting to the bag. Only fill about ½ full and refill if needed so the bag is not too big and awkward.
- To pipe the decoration, hold the piping bag in your dominate hand and gently twist the top of the bag closed so it does not squeeze out the top. Your non-dominate hand can help hold the top of the bag and for stability. When you’re ready, place the tip of the bag about ½ of an inch from the top of the cupcake, starting around the outside edge. Gently squeeze until the frosting sticks to the cupcake and then carefully squeeze and pull away from the cupcake to create the “hair”. The frosting will follow wherever you move the piping bag so be sure to stop squeezing the bag before trying to move on to the next. Continue placing these “hairy” dollops all around the outside edge of the cupcake. Then proceed with the next row in and all the way around the cupcake until the entire surface is covered. You can go back and fill in any thin areas. The benefit to this style of decoration is that the “hair” is very forgiving.
- Before moving on to the next color, place the candy eyeballs on each cupcake. You can do any variety of small and large eyeballs to customize your monsters.
- Remove the metal tip from the piping bag, rinse and rebag the next color of monster.
- Continue decorating your cupcakes using steps 11-13 until all colors of frosting are used up.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is a general estimate. Actual nutrition details may vary depending on the exact foods & brands you use to make this recipe. It does not take into account any substitutions, toppings, or optional ingredients.
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