With Valentine’s Day quickly approaching, everything in my home is taking on pink and red hues. The decorations are up. The treats are out. And my cupcakes are getting a little makeover. I’ll tell you that cupcakes are pretty much perfect for this time of year. You can take them to parties, serve them to your family or even gift them as a way to spread a little love. That’s why I think everyone should have a recipe for a perfect Valentine’s Day cupcakes and I’ve got the exact one you need with this easy red velvet cupcakes recipe.
These adorable (and totally delicious) individual sized cakes are simple to make from scratch and are beyond cute! With the addition of what looks like a smaller cupcake on top (which just happens to be a mini Reece’s cup), this is a fun and easy way to spread the love in a sweet way. Let’s make them.
- For the Cupcakes
- 2 and ½ cups of flour
- 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
- 1 and ½ teaspoon of baking soda
- ½ teaspoon of salt
- ½ cup of softened butter (plus 4 tablespoons)
- ⅓ cup of softened shortening
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon of red velvet extract
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 tablespoon of red food coloring (I recommend gel)
- For the Frosting
- 1 cup of unsalted butter (softened)
- 4 ounces of cream cheese
- 4 cups of confectioner's sugar
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 4-5 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
- Pink food coloring
- 1 large piping bag with large star tip
- 1 medium piping bag medium star tip
- 22 mini Reece's peanut butter cups
- Pink and white heart sprinkles
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and link your cupcake tins with liners.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- Add the butter, shortening and sugar to your mixer and beat them together until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg, vanilla, red velvet extract and red food coloring and mix until they are combined.
- Alternate between adding the dry ingredients and milk. Mix just until the batter is smooth.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared cupcake tins, filling the tins ¾ of the way full.
- Bake the cupcakes for 21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool completely.
- While the cupcakes are cooling, add your butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and heavy whipping cream to your mixer and beat until smooth.
- Scoop 1 cup of the frosting into a bowl and mix in 2-3 drops of the pink gel food coloring.
- Add the pink frosting to the medium piping bag.
- Add the remaining icing to the large piping bag.
- Using the large piping bag, frost the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle heart sprinkles over the top.
- Unwrap the Reece's peanut butter cups and frost them with the pink icing, topping them with sprinkles.
- Carefully place the frosted Reece's cup onto the white frosting, pushing down gently to secure it.
- Serve and enjoy!
This easy red velvet cupcakes recipes combines simple scratch made red velvet cupcakes with a tangy cream cheese frosting and completes it with an adorable “mini-cupcake” made from a Reece’s peanut butter cup.
It’s not difficult at all to make and the best part is, you can serve up a homemade treat that everyone is sure to adore.
Tell me, do you think these easy red velvet cupcakes would be a hit at your Valentine’s Day celebration?
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