Watermelon Cupcakes
These bright Watermelon Cupcakes feature scratch vanilla cake and a watermelon-flavored buttercream. Everyone loves this summer dessert!
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup yogurt natural or greek
- 1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- green food coloring
Watermelon Buttercream:
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup heavy cream or whole milk, or half and half
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 3 ounces watermelon Kool-Aid drink mix from a packet, unsweetened
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- red food coloring
Decoration:
- ¼ cup mini chocolate chips
- green cupcake liners
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and line a muffin pan with 12 cupcake liners. Set aside while you make the batter.
- In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar at medium speed until lighter in color and smooth. Then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each until it’s well-incorporated. Add the vanilla extract and yogurt, and continue to mix until incorporated. Set the bowl of wet ingredients aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Pour about one-third of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until combined using the electric mixer. Then add the rest of the dry ingredients. Mix just until everything is combined.
- Tint the cake batter with lime green food coloring, adding a drop at a time until you get the color you want.
- Fill the cupcake liners halfway to ⅔ full with batter. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Allow to rest and cool completely before decorating.
- Make a watermelon buttercream cupcake frosting by creaming butter in a large bowl. Slowly add the powdered sugar and Kool-Aid powder and beat until smooth. Add the salt, vanilla, and heavy cream, and continue blending to get a smooth frosting. Add additional cream if needed to get the right consistency for piping. If you want more color, add red food coloring and mix until the frosting is the desired shade.
- Add the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Swirl the frosting over the cupcakes and decorate with mini chocolate chips to look like watermelon seeds.
Notes
- Be sure to use the kool-aid mix that comes in a small packet rather than the type that comes in a tub that is already mixed with sugar. We don't need the sugar, only the flavoring!
- The amount of food coloring you'll need will depend on the type you're using and the level of color you want. I suggest using gel food coloring for the brightest colors.
- Cupcake liners should be filled half way, and definitely no more than ⅔ of the way full so that the cakes don't overflow the liners.
- Make sure to let the cupcakes cool completely before adding the frosting.
- If you’d rather not pipe the icing on top of the cupcakes, simply spread it on generously with a knife or spatula.
- Instead of chocolate chips, you can use chocolate sprinkles or small black sprinkles instead.
- To store: Store these cupcakes with buttercream in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Let them sit for a few minutes at room temperature before serving so that the frosting softens.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupcake with frosting | Calories: 512kcal | Carbohydrates: 66g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 99mg | Sodium: 122mg | Potassium: 89mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 55g | Vitamin A: 845IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 49mg | Iron: 1mg
Find it online: https://littlesunnykitchen.com/watermelon-cupcakes/