31 Cupcake Recipes for Bite-Size Celebrations
The best cupcake recipes will still serve you well, whether you’re bringing sweets for a picnic or tailgate and can’t show up with alayer cakethat needs slicing, or you’ve promised not to arrive at thebake saleempty-handed. This list includes cupcakes for every season and occasion; they’re ready for the dessert table at your next family gathering, or to pack up and bring to a friend who could use a little pick-me-up. Scroll down for chocolate, classic vanilla, pumpkin spice, and so many more favorites.
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1/31Devil’s Food Cupcakes
When you need a cupcake that’s really, truly chocolaty, these richly flavored little cakes are the way to go. Like most devil’s food cupcake recipes, this one uses cocoa powder for concentrated chocolate flavor, plusbaking sodafor a fluffy crumb.
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Photo by Greg McBoat4/31Strawberry Champagne Cupcakes
Described by cookbook author Allyson Reedy as “little clouds of cake,” these vanilla cupcakes are chock-full of diced freshstrawberries—plus a pour of sparkling wine.
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Photo by Tara Fisher5/31Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes
This British recipe calls fordigestive biscuits, but graham crackers will work just as well to give the chocolate-filled vanilla cupcakes and toasted ’mallow topping with that classic campfire flavor.
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Photo by Alan Richardson7/31Larry the Turkey Cupcakes
Turn these pumpkin-spice cupcakes intoThanksgivingname cards for a truly adorable table.
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Photo by John Kernick8/31Zucchini Ginger Cupcakes
These exceptionally moist, ginger-spiced cupcakes are a great answer to the annualzucchiniglut problem. The cream cheese frosting on top gets a little cinnamon, ground ginger, and orange zest whipped in.
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Photo by Alan Richardson10/31Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
Turn these fall-spiced cupcakes into apumpkin patch–themed holiday centerpiecefor Halloween or Thanksgiving.
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Tara Donne12/31Vegan, Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes
These vegan AND gluten-free vanilla cupcakes may require a bit of shopping (for ingredients likepotato starchand arrowroot powder), but once you take a bite, it’ll all be worth it.
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Jonathon Kambouris14/31Sweet Potato Cupcakes
Pie shouldn’t get all thesweet potatofun. These cupcakes are a great way to use up a bit of sweet potato left over from dinner. Garnish with chopped dried cranberries for a little zing.
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Photo by Nicole Franzen20/31Double Chocolate Cupcakes With Salted Chia Pudding Frosting
These salty, sweet, coconutty, and chocolaty cupcakes are alsogluten-freeand vegan.
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22/31Amy Sedaris’s Vanilla Cupcakes
To get vanilla frosting like the one pictured, substitutevanillapastefor the extract called for in the frosting recipe here.
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Photo by Romulo Yanes29/31Cranberry Cupcakes
These cranberry-flecked cupcakes are dressed up in dulce de leche and cream cheese frosting that’s mixed with chopped toasted pecans. Use your ownhomemade dulce de leche, or pick up a store-bought version.
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Photo by Katherine Kallinis Berman30/31Lemon and Fig Cupcakes
Earthy-sweet figs and lemon zest and juice give these cupcakes mellow flavor. If you’d like, take them one step further with a silkycream cheese frosting.
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Alex Lau31/31Yellow Cupcakes
Of all the classic cupcake recipes on Epicurious, this may be one of the most essential.Frostthese tender cupcakes however you like.
