Description
These Halloween Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes are a delightful and festive treat, perfect for celebrating Halloween with a fun pumpkin patch theme. Featuring moist cupcakes topped with green buttercream ‘grass’, an orange marshmallow pumpkin, and M&M decorations to mimic pumpkin features, these cupcakes combine playful presentation with delicious flavors. Quick to prepare and visually appealing, they are ideal for parties, school events, or any spooky celebration.
Ingredients
Scale
Cupcakes
- 18 Cupcakes (baked in black cupcake liners)
Buttercream Frosting
- 1 batch of The Best Buttercream Frosting
- Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System – Orange, Blue, Yellow, Red (to tint frosting orange and green)
Decorations
- 18 Regular Sized Marshmallows
- Orange M&M’s (about 20-25 per cupcake)
- Green M&M’s (for pumpkin stems)
Instructions
- Prepare M&M’s: Pull out all the orange M&M’s from a large bag, setting aside about 20-25 orange M&M’s per cupcake.
- Bake Cupcakes: Bake 18 cupcakes using black cupcake liners following your chosen cupcake recipe.
- Color and Prepare Frosting: Make a batch of the Best Buttercream Frosting and tint portions of it orange and green using the Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System.
- Apply Green Frosting: Cover the top of each cupcake with green buttercream frosting to resemble grass. Use a pastry bag fitted with Wilton Frosting Tip #233 to pipe grass effect or smooth green frosting with a knife for a simpler look.
- Prepare Marshmallow Pumpkins: Take a regular sized marshmallow and pull off approximately one-third of the top portion with fingers. Using a knife, spread a thin layer of orange buttercream frosting on the marshmallow to provide a sticky base for the M&M’s.
- Assemble Pumpkin on Cupcake: Place a dollop of orange frosting in the center of the frosted cupcake and set the frosted marshmallow on top.
- Decorate Pumpkin: Position orange M&M’s ‘M’ side down around the marshmallow in rows, starting with the first row, then the second, to form the pumpkin’s rounded shape. For the top, add five orange M&M’s and finish with a single green M&M on top representing the pumpkin stem.
Notes
- These cupcakes are very easy to make and perfect for Halloween parties or school Halloween treats.
- Using a piping tip to create grass adds a professional touch, but smoothing with a knife works well too.
- The orange frosting on the marshmallow is just enough to help adhere the M&M’s—don’t over-frost.
- You can prepare the cupcakes and frosting ahead of time for quicker assembly on party day.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 280 kcal
- Sugar: 28 g
- Sodium: 180 mg
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 36 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 35 mg
