Description
Create festive and adorable Easy Reindeer Cupcakes perfect for holiday celebrations. These cupcakes are decorated with chocolate antlers, bright red noses, and cute eyes, making them a fun and visually delightful treat for kids and adults alike. Using your favorite cupcake base, the method includes baking cupcakes, crafting chocolate antlers, and decorating with colorful icing to bring these reindeer to life.
Ingredients
Scale
Cupcakes
- Your favorite cupcake recipe batter
- Festive cupcake liners
Decoration
- Candy melts chocolate
- Wilton red icing
- Wilton brown icing
- Wilton black decorator icing
- Eyeball sprinkles (optional for extra decoration)
Equipment
- Cupcake baking pan
- Cooling rack
- Cookie scoop
- 2 Wilton #4 decorating tips
- 2 Wilton #10 decorating tips
- Disposable decorating bags
- Parchment paper
Instructions
- Prepare Cupcakes: Preheat your oven according to your favorite cupcake recipe, usually 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with festive cupcake liners. Using a cookie scoop, evenly portion the cupcake batter into the liners to ensure uniform cupcake sizes.
- Bake Cupcakes: Place the filled cupcake pan in the oven and bake for approximately 17 minutes or as directed by your cupcake recipe until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Make Chocolate Antlers: While cupcakes bake, melt the candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl on 30% power in 30-second increments, stirring until fully melted. Snip the tip of a disposable decorating bag fitted with a #4 Wilton tip, fill with melted chocolate, and pipe Y-shaped antlers onto parchment paper. Make extra antlers to account for breakage. Allow them to dry completely.
- Cool Cupcakes: When baked, remove cupcakes from the oven and place them on a cooling rack. Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes before decorating.
- Prepare Icing Bags: Fit two disposable decorating bags with #10 tips, filling one with red icing and the other with brown icing. Fit another bag with a #4 tip and fill it with black icing for details.
- Apply Brown Icing: Holding the brown icing bag vertically, start at the cupcakes’ outer edge and carefully swirl icing in a clockwise motion towards the center, creating a smooth top layer.
- Attach Antlers and Add Eyes: Gently place two chocolate antlers on top of each cupcake. Using the black icing, pipe two small dots to form the reindeer’s eyes.
- Add Red Nose: Finish each cupcake by applying a dollop of red icing on the front center to serve as the reindeer’s bright red nose.
Notes
- Use a cookie scoop to ensure even cupcake sizes for uniform baking.
- Make extra chocolate antlers as they are delicate and may break during handling.
- If eyeball sprinkles are available, they can be used instead of black icing dots for eyes for an extra fun look.
- Allow cupcakes to cool fully before decorating to prevent icing from melting.
- Baking time may vary depending on your cupcake recipe and oven; always check doneness with a toothpick.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 280
- Sugar: 22g
- Sodium: 150mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 35mg
