Description
Get ready to light up your taste buds with these festive Firecracker Cupcakes—red, white, and blue bursts of sweetness that are as fun to make as they are to eat. Perfect for patriotic parties and summer BBQs, these eye-catching treats will be the stars of your July 4th dessert table.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 box white cake mix (plus ingredients listed on box)
- Red gel food coloring
- Blue gel food coloring
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- ½ cup salted butter (softened)
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- 2–3 tbsp heavy cream
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Red pull-and-peel licorice (cut into 2-inch strips)
- Patriotic sprinkles or star-shaped toppings
- Optional: 4th of July cupcake toppers
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup cupcake tin with festive liners.
- Prepare the white cake mix according to package instructions. Divide the batter evenly into three bowls. Color one red, one blue, and leave one plain.
- Add spoonfuls of each batter into cupcake liners—red, white, then blue. Gently swirl with a toothpick.
- Bake for 18–21 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.
- Melt white chocolate chips in 20-second bursts in the microwave until smooth; let cool slightly.
- Beat softened butter until creamy. Add white chocolate, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and 2 tbsp cream. Beat until fluffy, adding more cream if needed.
- Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes with a star tip. Top with licorice ‘fuses’ and patriotic sprinkles.
Notes
Cool white chocolate slightly before mixing into frosting. For a bolder look, use star-shaped sprinkles and 4th of July cupcake toppers. If it’s warm, chill the frosting for 10 minutes before decorating.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 417
- Sugar: 50g
- Sodium: 320mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 10g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 63g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 45mg