Grinch Cupcakes

These festive Grinch-inspired Cupcakes are one mean dessert that will steal Christmas (in a good way)!

Mr. Grinch might be a mean one, but these cupcakes inspired by our favorite holiday curmudgeon are totally sweet! These Grinch Cupcakes are easy to make, and are the perfect treat to enjoy during a Grinch movie night, or to share at a Grinch day at school. I hope these Grinch Cupcakes brighten up your festive Holiday Whobilations this Christmas season! 

Mix up the delicious yellow cupcake batter according to the recipe below. Use a large scoop to fill cupcake liners about ¾ full and bake for about 20 minutes.

Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes. Carefully remove the cupcakes to cool completely on a wire rack.

Whip up the frosting and color it Grinch-green using food coloring. Frost the cupcakes with a spatula, or scoop frosting into a piping bag fitted with an 1M decorating tip to pipe a rosette on top of each cupcake.

Color a small portion of the frosting mixture with red food coloring. Pour the red frosting into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton #3 tip. Pipe a heart on top of each cupcake by applying heavier pressure to make the rounded part of the top of the hearts and then reduce pressure as you pull down to make the points at the bottom.

Repeat the process to decorate all of the cupcakes. If you don't want to pipe the hearts on top of the cupcakes, you can use large heart sprinkles or candy hearts instead.

Grinch Cupcakes

Servings: 12 cupcakes

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Yellow Cupcake Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ cup salted butter (room temperature)
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup full-fat sour cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Cupcake Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until well combined.
3. Separate one egg and add the yolk to the bowl. Add another whole egg and vanilla and beat until creamy.
4. Add the sour cream and mix well.
5. In a separate mixing bowl, combine flour and baking powder and whisk until combined.
6. Slowly add the flour mixture to the large bowl and mix until smooth.
7. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again to make sure all ingredients have been incorporated.
8. Pour batter evenly into the paper liners until about ¾ full.
9. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. Place baked cupcakes on a wire rack to cool completely.

Frosting Ingredients:

• 4 cups powdered sugar
• ½ cup butter, room temp
• 4 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Red and green food coloring

Frosting Directions:

1. Add the butter to a large mixing bowl and mix on high speed until creamy.
2. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk and beat until fluffy.
3. Separate a small amount of frosting (about ½ cup). Add red food coloring and mix well. Set aside.
4. Add green food coloring to the remaining frosting and mix well.
5. Fill a piping bag fitted with a 1M decorating tip with the green frosting and pipe a swirl of frosting on top of each cupcake.
6. Add the red frosting into a separate piping bag fitted with a Wilton #3 tip. Pipe hearts on top of each cupcake.

Tips: 

• Storage: Refrigerate cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
• Freeze: Cupcakes can be frozen for up to 3 months! Be sure that the cupcakes are completely cool, unfrosted, and are wrapped well in plastic wrap and then placed in a freezer bag. Before frosting and serving, thaw cupcakes in the fridge overnight or for a couple of hours at room temperature.

Variations:

• Instead of piping the hearts, top the cupcakes with large heart sprinkles or candy hearts.
• If you are short on time, don't be afraid to use a cake mix and canned frosting!

I'm so excited to make Grinch Cupcakes to share at our Christmas parties, and hope you try them for yourself! Not only are they adorable, but they are SO yummy and are so easy to make!! If you decide to give this recipe a try, I'd love to hear all about it! Please share your creations on Instagram, Facebook, or leave a comment/photo on the project pin on Pinterest!

Need even MORE Grinch craft & recipe inspiration?

Check out this collection of OVER 100 creative Grinch craft ideas!!

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