Christmas Tree Cupcakes made with a chocolate sponge base, green vanilla buttercream frosting and sprinkles, a delicious and indulgent Christmas dessert to enjoy during the whole of the festive season. It's a quick and easy to make treat made with easily-available ingredients - the chocolate sponges are moist and chocolatey, while the buttercream is rich and smooth with sugar decorations that resemble baubles. A fantastic family-friendly dessert!
Cupcakes are such a versatile dessert, perfect for literally every occasion, and fantastic edible gifts for friends and families too. Making your own cupcakes is so much easier than you'd think, and they taste tons better than any shop-bought ones.
These adorable Christmas tree cupcakes not only look jolly and scrumptious, but they are incredibly easy to put together too. The sponges can be made from scratch in less than 30 minutes, and the buttercream can be whipped up in less than 5 minutes.
The only waiting around is for the sponges to cool down, other than that, the cupcakes require minimum prep and effort. You don't even need to be a master of cupcake decorating, just a piping bag and a large start nozzle are needed for the job.
Inspired by my Chocolate Cupcakes in the Air Fryer, these festive cupcakes are decadent and divinely rich, but worth every single calorie - after all, it's the season of indulgence, so why not add them to your Christmas Treats list?
Unlike the air fryer cupcakes, these ones are baked in the oven, but can definitely be made in the air fryer too if you wish, that's not problem at all. The frosting can either be made in a blender or by hand using a mixer and a mixing bowl - so easy!
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Ingredients used to make the sponges
- flour - I used plain flour, but if you only have self-raising flour around, that should do too
- baking powder - it can be omitted if you use self-raising flour, but if plain flour is used, then the baking powder is a must for a light texture
- butter - either salted or unsalted, whatever you have around
- milk - full-fat or semi-skimmed, both work here, although the full-fat one is richer and creamier
- sugar - I used granulated sugar, but caster sugar also works
- cocoa powder - it's what gives the sponges a rich chocolatey touch
- vanilla extract - it enhances the chocolatey taste, I love using them together
- eggs - at room temperature
Note!
Go to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions!
Step-by-step photos and instructions on to make the chocolate cupcake sponges
- add the butter and milk to a plan set over a low heat
- allow the butter to melt, then remove the pan from the heat as soon as the butter is melted
- leave the mixture to cool down slightly
- in a mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar and use a hand mixer to beat them together until they triple their volume - see photo 3
- sift in the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder
- add the vanilla extract and milk mixture, and use a spatula to mix everything together into a runny batter -see photo 6
- divide the mixture evenly between each cavity of a 12-hole muffin tin that had been lined with silicone liners
- bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) for 20 minutes
- remove them from the oven and leave them to cool down completely
Ingredients used to make the green buttercream frosting
- icing sugar- or confectioners' sugar, very well sifted to avoid a lumpy frosting
- butter - soft, but not melted, if the butter is too soft, chill it in the fridge for a bit until you get the desired texture
- vanilla extract - or peppermint extract for a festive touch!
- green food colouring - so that the frosting can resemble a Christmas tree
- sprinkles - star ones for the top of the frosting and round ones to resemble baubles
Step-by-step photos and instructions on how to make the green buttercream frosting
- In a blender or kitchen air, add the sifted icing sugar, soft butter, milk, vanilla extract and green food colouring and blitz until it's smooth and uniform
Expert tips
These cupcakes are incredibly indulgent and wonderfully light and rich, so storing them right is crucial if you want to keep them moist for days. Do not refrigerate them, otherwise the buttercream will harden too much and the sponges will dry out.
The best way to store them is at room temperature in a large enough cake tin - mine have kept well for 4 days already and they still look and taste yummy!
Make sure the cupcake sponges have cooled down completely before piping the buttercream on top, otherwise you risk the buttercream melting and ending up with a right mess.
You can dust some icing sugar over te cupcakes to resemble snow falling on the Christmas trees - what a festive treat this is!
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Christmas Tree Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cupcakes
- 125 g plain flour
- 25 g cocoa powder
- 150 g granulated sugar
- 85 g butter
- 2 eggs
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the buttercream frosting
- 400 g icing sugar (confectioners' sugar)
- 200 g soft butter
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon green food colouring
- ¼ cup sprinkles ( to resemble baubles)
- 12 star-shaped sprinkles ( the decorate the top of the cupcakes)
Instructions
- To make the cupcakes, add the milk and butter to a pan set over a medium heat, and allow the butter to melt.
- Remove the pan from the heat as soon as the butter is melted and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar, and use a hand mixer to beat everything together until the mixture triples its volume.
- Sift in the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder, add the vanilla extract and milk mixture, and use a spatula to mix everything into a runny batter.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 12 holes of a muffin tin that had previously been lined with paper or silicone cases.
- Bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and leave the cupcakes to cool down completely.
- To make the buttercream, add all the ingredients to a blender and blitz everything to a smooth paste.
- Use a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle to decorate each cupcakes.
- Decorate the cupcakes with sprinkles for the baubles and palce a star-shaped sprinkle at the top.
Video
Notes
- Do not refrigerate the cupcakes, otherwise the buttercream will harden too much and the sponges will dry out.
- The best way to store them is at room temperature in a large enough cake tin - mine have kept well for 4 days already and they still look and taste yummy!
- Make sure the cupcake sponges have cooled down completely before piping the buttercream on top, otherwise you risk the buttercream melting and ending up with a right mess.
Nutrition
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