Firecracker Cupcakes

Variations Ideas

• Change the Cake – Use Red Velvet Cake Mix instead of white cake mix. Fill with blue sprinkles and top with white frosting for Red, White and Blue Cupcakes.
• Frosting – Top your cupcakes with whipped cream instead of frosting for a lighter version. You can also use a cream cheese frosting.
• Perfect for any occasion – Change it up for different party themes, because everyone loves sprinkles. These would be fun for a unicorn themed party. Red and pink for Valentine’s Day or red and green for Christmas. They would even be great for New Years’ Eve celebrations.
• Add M&M’s – Add some colored M&Ms in with the sprinkles for a little extra fun!
• Pop Rocks – Fill your cupcakes with pop rocks for some added excitement!
• Make a Cake instead – Make a cake version by baking your favorite cake recipe, then layer cakes with frosting between layers. Cut a hole in the middle and fill with sprinkles and M&Ms.
• Candy Melts – Candy melts are a fun way to add melted chocolate to top of these cupcakes. You can melt the candy in a microwave safe bowl to drizzle over the top of the blue frosting.
• Serving – These cupcakes are great served by themselves but you can also serve with ice cream.

How to Make Firecracker Cupcakes

• Step 1 – Bake Cupcakes – Bake your cupcakes as directed on the box. Baking in muffin pan in red, white and blue muffin cups. Allow cupcakes to cool completely. I like to place them on parchment paper to easily decorate them.

Step 2 – Cut Hole – Take a small knife and cut out the center of each cupcake. Do not cut all of the way to the bottom of the cupcake. A melon baller also works great for this.

Step 3 – Save the Top – Save the top and cut the inside of the top of the cupcake out. This makes a lid when cutting out the hole. Pour 4th of July sprinkles inside.

Step 5 – Put lid back on – Place the cupcake lid back on top.

Step 6 – Frost Cupcakes – Ice the cupcakes like normal. I did use a piping bag to make it easier to frost the top of the cupcakes. Add additional sprinkles and top with some fun 4th of July cupcake toppers.

Watch the kids’ faces as they bite into the cupcakes and get the surprise sprinkles inside. Make these 4th of July cupcakes today. Your family with thank you and so will your party guests.

Expert Tips

• Baking Cake – Bake the cupcakes in a muffin pan. We recommend filling the cupcake liners about the same in each one. Check to make sure cupcakes are done by inserting toothpick into the cake.
• Mixing Cake Ingredients – Mix the cake batter with a hand mixer on medium speed.
• Coloring the Cake – If you prefer you can change the color of the cake but separating the cake. Add blue food coloring and red food coloring to two of the three bowls. Then you can layer the cupcakes with the three colors.
• Room Temperature – Make sure that you cupcakes are at room temperature before frosting and decorating them.