If you love peppermint during the holidays, check out this wonderfully easy peppermint cupcakes recipe made with homemade buttercream, which would make a lovely addition to any holiday party table!
Peppermint Cupcakes
It’s officially the holiday season, and we are on a peppermint kick in our household! We shared the best Peppermint Oreo Truffles recipe last week, and these Peppermint Cupcakes are just as delightfully pepperminty as they are easy to make! If you love that delicious minty flavor in your baked goods, these will hit the spot!
Easy Peppermint Cupcakes Recipe
Baking holiday treats with the kids is one of my most favorite past-times. My eleven year old is super huge into baking, watching all kinds of baking shows and wanting to bake every single day of the year (even when it’s eleventy-billion degrees outside during the summer lol). These peppermint cupcakes are easy enough to let the kids help you bake and decorate!
Holiday Peppermint Cupcakes Recipe
There’s nothing like freshly made buttercream icing. We add the hint of peppermint extract to give it an extra pepperminty kick along with the crushed peppermint candies sprinkled over top. Peppermint reminds me of my childhood and visiting grandmas house, she always had these in a dish or candy jar. Just the smell brings me right back!
Simple Peppermint Cupcakes for Christmas
For this recipe, we used peppermint candies but you could easily substitute them for candy canes. Now that it’s the holidays and candy canes are everywhere, you might have them on hand and they taste about the same! You would treat the candy canes as you would the peppermint candies and pulverize them before topping, easy peasy! For me, though, I find smashing the round candies much more satisfying, haha!
Peppermint Cupcakes for the Holidays
Another thing you can do to make this recipe your own is add a chocolate drizzle over top! Or add crushed up peppermint candies to your cupcake batter! The sky is the limit here on what you can do! These are so festive, so gorgeous on a platter, you know? Especially when you bake the cupcakes in festive holiday cupcake liners!
How to Make Peppermint Cupcakes
To make these delicious Peppermint Cupcakes, you will need the following:
- Vanilla cupcakes made with your favorite vanilla cake mix (this one is ours)
- Peppermint candies
- softened butter
- Peppermint extract
- confectioners sugar
- milk
You will also need handy:
Before starting with the decorating process, ensure that your cupcakes are cool to the touch. Cooling them on a cooling rack to will help ensure they are fully cooled before adding icing.
Using an electric mixer, beat butter, confectioners’ sugar, milk and peppermint extract on medium speed. Gradually increase speed to high. Your buttercream is complete once the ingredients are well-mixed and smooth. Scoop the buttercream in a piping bag and frost each cupcake with Wilton Star Tip.
Place your peppermint candies in a sandwich bag and break them into small pieces using a rolling pin.
Sprinkle the peppermint pieces on each cupcake and serve. Enjoy and happy holidays!
Peppermint Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 12 vanilla cupcakes
- 2 sticks butter softened
- 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 4-5 tbsp milk
- ½ tsp peppermint extract
- 7-8 peppermint candies
Instructions
- Before starting with the decorating process, ensure that your cupcakes are cool to the touch.
- Using an electric mixer, beat butter, confectioners’ sugar, milk and peppermint extract on medium speed. Gradually increase speed to high.
- Your buttercream is complete once the ingredients are well-mixed and smooth. Scoop the buttercream in a piping bag and frost each cupcake.
- Place your peppermint candies in a sandwich bag and break them into small pieces using a rolling pin.
- Sprinkle the peppermint pieces on each cupcake and serve. Enjoy and happy holidays!
Be sure to check out my other holiday recipes, cupcake recipes, or my friend Cristy’s awesome Frosted Peppermint Brownies recipe! Happy Holidays to you!