Christmas Tree Cupcakes
Gingerbread houses, meet your match. These festive Christmas Tree Cupcakes serve a similar function as part dessert, part decoration for your holiday table. Moist chocolate cupcakes become the base of spruced up sugar cones adorned with bright green frosting, edible silver sprinkle ornaments and, the piece de resistance, a light dusting of powdered sugar snow.
Just imagine an entire forest of these edible trees lining your holiday table or surrounding a gingerbread house, adding a pop of color and flavor alongside each cookie wall. I will leave you with that wistful visual, my friends, as I return to my unsolicited caroling of N*SYNC’s entire Christmas album while counting down the minutes – 20,143 to be exact – until my family members from San Diego, Chicago, Dubai and beyond congregate in Colorado to celebrate the season and taste our way into 2013.
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Christmas Tree Cupcakes
Yield: 6 cupcakes
Prep Time: 45 min
Ingredients:
6 chocolate or vanilla cupcakes
3 cups homemade or store-bought vanilla frosting (See Kelly's Notes)
2 Tablespoons green food coloring
6 ice cream sugar cones
Edible silver ball sprinkles
Powdered sugar, for dustingSpecial equipment: pastry bag or gallon-sized sealable plastic bag; small star-shaped pastry tip (such as Wilton #18)
Directions:
If necessary, slice the tops off of the cupcakes to create a flat surface. Slather a small portion of the frosting on the cupcakes to create a base atop which to position the sugar cone tree.
Stir the food coloring into the remaining frosting, adding more food coloring as necessary to achieve your desired green color. Apply a thin layer of frosting on the exteriors of the sugar cones. Transfer the remaining frosting to a pastry bag fitted with the star-shaped pastry tip.
Place the sugar cones atop the cupcakes then pipe leaves onto the trees. Garnish with the edible silver ball sprinkles and dust with powdered sugar.
Kelly's Notes:
Three cups of frosting is equivalent to two 16-ounce cans of store-bought frosting.
The sugar cones can be decorated and stored (not on top of the cupcakes) for 1 day in an airtight container. Frost cupcakes and top with trees right before serving.
Method inspired by MarthaStewart.com.
Heidi @ Bits of Sunshine — December 12, 2012 @ 12:53 am
EEEEP! These are too too cute! I love them Kelly! These are so on my baking Christmas list!
Noma — December 12, 2012 @ 1:12 am
These are DARLING! I What a wonderful idea and beautiful photos, too!
Kelly Senyei replied: — December 13th, 2012 @ 8:19 am
Thank you, Noma!
Abby @ The Frosted Vegan — December 12, 2012 @ 8:17 am
My first though when opening this post was “Is that whole tree frosting?!” I wouldn’t have hated it if it was : )
shelly (cookies and cups) — December 12, 2012 @ 8:27 am
Totally adorable. Totally.
Rachel Cooks — December 12, 2012 @ 8:54 am
These are super fancy!
Lori @ RecipeGirl — December 12, 2012 @ 8:59 am
Nice! I saw this idea on Pinterest- you did a fabulous job with them!
jen @ one curly fry — December 12, 2012 @ 8:59 am
At first I was like – tons of icing – that’s right up my alley!
These are too cute to eat!!
Diana @ Appetite for china — December 12, 2012 @ 10:30 am
Kelly, these are amazing! Such a work of art. So inspired to be more artistic with my baking now!
katie — December 12, 2012 @ 10:37 am
Ah, these are too stinking cute!!! Seriously, I would much rather have these then a gingerbread house any day of the year!
steph — December 12, 2012 @ 11:07 am
Eeeek!!! I am so in love with these!!
Meagan Wied — December 12, 2012 @ 11:19 am
These are so awesome!
April Jackson — December 12, 2012 @ 1:51 pm
I was planning on making a gingerbread house but I am now reconsidering, these are absolutely gorgeous!
Buckley — December 12, 2012 @ 2:20 pm
These look amazing! Could you use a different decoration other than the silver ornaments? Perhaps a red cinnamon candy, candy cane chips or even mini M&Ms?
Sydney @ Crepes of Wrath — December 12, 2012 @ 2:49 pm
Are you freaking kidding me?! These look insanely awesome. Bravo! I would never have committed to something like this…piping bags are my sworn enemy, but maybe I’ll have to make an exception because you make this look completely doable. Thanks for the inspiration!
Kelly Senyei replied: — December 13th, 2012 @ 8:18 am
I promise it’s not as daunting as it seems, Sydney! I know you’ll be a pro at it
Anna @ Crunchy Creamy Sweet — December 12, 2012 @ 6:55 pm
This is so creative! My girls would love these cupcakes!
Julie @ Table for Two — December 12, 2012 @ 8:11 pm
these are gorgeous and such a creative and smart idea!! i never would’ve thought of using sugar cones!
Jessica @ Portuguese GIrl Cooks — December 12, 2012 @ 10:39 pm
What adorable cupcakes!
Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe | Clever Cake Blog — December 13, 2012 @ 10:36 am
[...] Recipe [...]
sarah k @ the pajama chef — December 13, 2012 @ 2:54 pm
these are so cute!
Stephanie @ Macaroni and Cheesecake — December 13, 2012 @ 8:39 pm
These are gorgeous!!
Kelli @ The Corner Kitchen — December 14, 2012 @ 11:50 am
So, so amazing….love these cupcakes!
Kasia — December 15, 2012 @ 8:20 am
Those are super cute! love them!
Esi — December 16, 2012 @ 11:49 pm
Wow! These are so perfect. I’m dreaming of a white Christmas, but probably won’t see one for a couple more years. This is the perfect way to get one at home.
Melanie — December 17, 2012 @ 11:00 pm
These are THE cutest Christmas treats I’ve ever seen. And I’m so glad they are NOT gingerbread! Will be giving these a try with my three little nephews:)
Kristi @ CherryJasmine — December 18, 2012 @ 9:49 am
What a fantastically clever idea! I love it. So cute! Looks so fun to try.
Julia {The Roasted Root} — December 18, 2012 @ 11:52 pm
These are so cool! What a clever idea and so much fun for the holidays! My nieces and nephews would LOVE to make these with me!
Elise — December 19, 2012 @ 3:06 am
ADORABLE! At first I was worried when I saw all that green frosting. But then I saw that instead of a solid mass of green, the frosting was just coating an ice cream cone. Brilliant!
Just a Taste » Chocolate Gingerbread Bundt Cake — December 19, 2012 @ 7:31 am
[...] houses may have met their match last week in the form of Christmas Tree Cupcakes, but with just six days left until ol’ Saint Nick monopolizes the nation’s cookie [...]
JJ - 84thand3rd — December 20, 2012 @ 10:14 am
These are brilliant!!
Cass @foodmyfriend — December 20, 2012 @ 7:27 pm
These are incredible! I love them. Your icing is spot on too. No bubbles or anything! Very well done. Next year!
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella — December 20, 2012 @ 8:19 pm
These are SO clever! Love the way that you made the trees
Elizabeth — December 23, 2012 @ 10:28 pm
WHOA! At first I was thinking… how did she do that?! So clever and creative, and definitely tasty!
Smitten Foodie — January 5, 2013 @ 9:57 pm
These are so adorable! Love the pics:)
Connie