Sundae Cupcakes are the best chocolate cupcakes topped with sugar cone frosting and dunked in chocolate shell topping and sprinkles.
These are some pretty impressive sundae cupcakes. I mean…the chocolate cupcake is delicious in itself. And then you’ve got a delicious vanilla buttercream frosting that has real bits of sugar cone mixed inside of it. Dunking the swirl of frosting in chocolate shell is brilliant, and the sprinkles make them festive.
I’m thinking these would be a super fun cupcake for a celebration. And kids would love them for a birthday party, for sure. My ice cream sandwich cake is another favorite birthday party treat!
This recipe comes from The Big, Fun Kids Baking Book by Food Network Magazine. This is a great first baking book for kids! There are big, beautiful photos for every recipe. I’d say this is a good book for anyone over the age of 10 or 11 who has a strong interest in learning to bake. The instructions are easy to follow and well laid out, but they’re not super simplistic for smaller kids. Younger kids could bake from this book with help from a parent and then eventually grow into using it to bake on their own.
Here’s a sampling of some of the recipes in the book that I found interesting for kids who are learning to bake:
- Snickerdoodle Muffins
- Design-Your-Own Banana Bread
- Lemon-Raspberry Quick Bread
- Sugar Cookie Bars
- Classic Brownies
- S’Mores Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Lemonade Pinwheel Cookies
- Cookies and Cream Cupcakes
- Jelly Doughnut Cupcakes
- Chocolate Candy Bar Layer Cake
- PB&J Sheet Cake
- Ice Cream Sandwich Cake
- DIY How to Make Colored Sprinkles
How to make Ice Cream Sundae Cupcakes:
The full, printable recipe is at the end of this post. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
The next step is making the frosting. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer on medium-speed to beat the butter, powdered sugar and salt until combined. Add the vanilla and milk. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar cone crumbs and beat 1 more minute.
Spoon the frosting into a piping bag with a large star tip. Place the cupcakes on a baking sheet and pipe tall swirls of frosting onto the cupcakes. Refrigerate until the frosting is firm, about 20 minutes.
The Best Cupcake Recipes:
- Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream Frosting
- White Wedding Cake Cupcakes
- Chocolate Overload Cupcakes
Sundae Cupcakes
Ingredients
CUPCAKES:
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1 medium banana, finely chopped
- ¼ cup salted roasted peanuts, chopped
FROSTING:
- 1¼ cups (2½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 2 sugar ice cream cones, crushed into small crumbs
TOPPINGS:
- One 7-ounce bottle chocolate shell topping
- rainbow sprinkles
Instructions
MAKE THE CUPCAKES:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
- In a large, microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and chocolate. Microwave, stirring every 30-seconds, until melted. Let cool slightly, then whisk in the sugar and eggs until smooth. Whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt until just combined. Add the milk and whisk until smooth. Stir in the banana and peanuts with a wooden spoon.
- Spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling each ¾-full. Bake until the tops of the cupcakes spring back when pressed gently, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. Let the cupcakes cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove from the pan and let cool completely on a rack.
MAKE THE FROSTING:
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer on medium-speed to beat the butter, powdered sugar and salt until combined. Add the vanilla and milk. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar cone crumbs and beat 1 more minute. Spoon the frosting into a piping bag with a large star tip. Place the cupcakes on a baking sheet and pipe tall swirls of frosting onto the cupcakes. Refrigerate until the frosting is firm, about 20 minutes.
DIP THE CUPCAKES:
- Pour the chocolate shell into a short, wide drinking glass. One at a time, turn each cupcake upside down and dunk the frosted tops into the chocolate; rotate to coat and let the excess drip off. Return to the baking sheet and top with sprinkles while the chocolate is still wet. Refrigerate until set, at least 30 minutes.