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Spring has finally sprung, and what better way to celebrate than with these deliciously colorful Easter cupcakes?! This a delicious cupcake recipe with an adorable bunny on top!
These Easter cupcakes make a tasty addition to your Easter dinner. Also, make sure to check out our full list of cakes and cupcakes for more sweet recipes.
Featured with this recipe
- Ingredients for Easter Cupcakes
- Homemade Frosting Ingredients
- Steps to Making Easter Cupcakes
- Instructions for Cream Cheese Frosting
- Making and Assembling Bird’s Nest Cupcakes
- Decorating the Easter Cupcakes
- Suggestions for this Recipe
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Storing Easter Cupcakes
- More Easter Dessert Recipes to Love
- Delicious Easter Dessert Recipes
- How to Make Easter Cupcakes
- Easter Cupcakes Recipe
These easy Easter cupcakes are not only cute but delicious too! Fluffy cake with sweetened coconut flakes topped with pillowy cream cheese coconut frosting… oh my goodness! Nothing tastes better, I promise. It is the perfect combination!
Easter cupcakes are a delightful springtime treat that’s perfect to take along on a spring picnic, enjoy after an egg hunt, or serve after Easter dinner. Continue reading below to see how to decorate these cupcakes into darling Easter treats. They are so easy, my kids can help with the decorating!
Ingredients for Easter Cupcakes
Take your pantry staple ingredients and mix together creating a moist and fluffy cupcake every time! These are going to be vanilla in flavor with a hint of almond in the batter. These Easter bunny cupcakes are so adorable it will be hard to eat them!
- Butter – Soften the butter ahead of time. Butter gives moisture and softness to the cupcakes.
- Sugar – Added for sweetness in the vanilla cupcake base.
- Eggs – Room-temperature eggs are the best for baking with.
- Extracts – Vanilla extract and almond extract are both used in this recipe for enhanced flavors.
- Flour – This is the all-purpose flour that will hold together the batter. It is the thickness the cupcakes need. You can also use cake flour if you have it on hand.
- Leavening mixture – Baking powder, baking soda, and salt combined to give a lift to the cupcakes as they are baking. This is where you will see a nice round dome on top of the cupcake base.
- Buttermilk – The secret ingredient to moist and delicious homemade cupcakes every time!
- Coconut – Sweetened shredded coconut adds a hint of texture and flavor to the Easter bunny cupcakes.
Homemade Frosting Ingredients
Create a family favorite Easter bunny with these delicious cupcakes topped with a homemade frosting everyone loves! These will be your new Easter and springtime traditions for making this special dessert. Kids love to make these with a sweet and delicious frosting.
- Cream cheese – Soften the cream cheese ahead of time. Leaving it on the counter to get to room temperature will help.
- Butter – Room temperature butter is best. It is easier to mix and cream. Butter gives a creamy and rich flavor to the vanilla frosting.
- Extracts – Vanilla and almond extract are used in the frosting for a sweet and savory frosting flavor. It will also balance out the cupcake flavor too!
- Powdered sugar – Confectioners’ sugar is the thickness and base of the frosting. It is a sweeter type of sugar and has a slightly different texture. It is a smooth texture that will give your frosting that smoothness it needs to be rich and creamy.
Steps to Making Easter Cupcakes
- Cream – Line muffin tins with cupcake liners. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about five minutes.
- Mix – While mixing on low, add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each egg. Add vanilla and almond extract and mix well.
- Sift – In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Combine – Alternately add dry ingredients and buttermilk to the batter, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Fold in ½ of the coconut.
- Fill liners – Fill cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full. Do not overfill the cupcake liners.
- Bake – Bake in the oven until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in the pan. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely.
- Make frosting – While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting. Cream together the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and almond extracts. Mix until smooth.
Instructions for Cream Cheese Frosting
Frosting can go a long way! It can do so much to a cake or cupcake when decorating. Create the best Easter bunny cupcakes using frosting and a few other toppings to make the cute bunny come to life!
- Mix – Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl frequently. Mix until desired consistency.
- Frost – Once the cupcakes are completely cool, frost them with a piping bag or knife.
- Bird’s nest cupcakes – To make bird’s nest cupcakes, add a drop or two of green food coloring to a bowl of the remaining coconut flakes and stir until the coconut is all tinted green. Sprinkle the green coconut onto the cupcakes and shape into a nest. Add Cadbury mini eggs to the nest.
- Easter bunny cupcakes – To make Easter bunny cupcakes, cut a marshmallow in half diagonally and push the sticky side of each half into the pink sprinkles. Then press both marshmallows, pointy side up, into the top of the cupcake. Sprinkle with the remaining coconut flakes.
Making and Assembling Bird’s Nest Cupcakes
Bird’s Nest cupcakes are so sweet and are great for springtime celebrations and Easter! It is the perfect cupcake with just a few toppings to make it look bright and pretty. These cupcakes are adorable and fun to make alongside the Easter bunny cupcakes!
- To make bird’s nest Easter cupcakes, frost the cupcakes with the cream cheese frosting.
- Then, add a drop or two (you can always add more) of green food coloring to a bowl of coconut flakes and stir until the coconut is all tinted green. After the coconut is all green, then sprinkle it onto the cupcakes.
- Finally, for your “easter eggs”, add jelly beans, Cadbury mini eggs, M&Ms, or any of your favorite Easter candies to the top to make the cupcakes look like little nests. They’re so fun to make and even more fun to eat!
Decorating the Easter Cupcakes
For the Easter Bunny cupcakes, you will need a few toppings to complete the bunny ear look! These Easter bunny cupcakes can be decorated in any way though! Get out your creative side and make colorful and unique Easter bunny cupcakes to share with friends and family!
- Ingredients – Sweetened shredded coconut, marshmallows, a small bowl of pink sprinkles, and also a pair of sharp scissors.
- Frosting – Start by frosting the cupcake with cream cheese frosting. You can use an offset spatula to help layer the frosting onto the bunny cupcakes.
- Ears – Then, cut a marshmallow in half diagonally and push the sticky side of each half into the pink sprinkles. Then press both marshmallows, pointy side up, into the top of the cupcake.
- Sprinkle – Finally, sprinkle the rest of the cupcake with coconut flakes. These Easter cupcakes are a hit with the kids.
Suggestions for this Recipe
- Room temperature – Make sure that when it says, “softened” or “room temperature” you stick to that! The batter will come out SO much smoother if everything is at room temperature, especially butter and cream cheese.
- Don’t overmix – Do not over-mix the batter! Mix it well enough to combine the ingredients, but then stop. Scrape the sides of the mixing bowl very frequently to make sure there aren’t any surprises when you start scooping the batter into the liners.
- Don’t overfill – It is best not to overfill the liners in the muffin tins. I used my melon-baller to scoop the batter in, and that was just the right amount, but you could use a small cookie or ice cream scoop as well.
- Frosting tip – To frost your Easter cupcakes, use a thick round tip on your piping bag or use a knife and slather it on top. The great news is you’re going to cover it all with coconut so it doesn’t have to be perfect.
- Decorations – Use more than just the bunny ears to make an Easter bunny cupcake. Try pink jelly beans, licorice for whiskers, and M&Ms for eyes.
- Cake – Make an Easter bunny cake recipe! Instead of putting your cake batter into muffin tin liners, try round cake pans or a 9×12 cake pan. This will make an adorable bunny cake!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This easy cupcake recipe can be made even easier by using a cake mix. You can make vanilla cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes, lemon cupcakes, or even carrot cake cupcakes! Whatever flavor you make, your guests are going to love these adorable and delicious cupcakes.
No, you can use any frosting recipe that you like, as long as it is thick enough to stay on top of the cupcake and hold the decorations. I have used buttercream frosting for these cupcakes before and they have come out great.
I would suggest using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer for this recipe because you want all your ingredients to be really smooth cake batter and it is difficult to achieve that by hand.
Storing Easter Cupcakes
It is easy to store cupcakes in the fridge or freezer! They are great to make ahead or quickly make the day of. These Easter bunny cupcakes are so cute to share with friends and family!
- Frosting – If you have added the frosting and toppings onto the Easter bunny cupcakes, place them in an airtight storage container that you can place a lid over but not touch the top of the ears. The ears are high and can be tricky to find a deep container. Place plastic wrap over top with a toothpick carefully placed in the cupcake to avoid the wrap from touching the bunny’s ears.
- Freezer – Before icing and adding the toppings to the Easter bunny cupcakes, individually wrap the cupcakes and place them in an airtight container to be stored in the freezer.
- Chill – Once the frosting and toppings are added to the cupcakes, place the Easter bunny cupcakes in the refrigerator to chill until you are ready to serve them. This will help hold together the toppings.
More Easter Dessert Recipes to Love
Make your Easter extra special and enjoy making these kid-approved desserts! They are all simple recipes with easy ingredients you have right at home.
Delicious Easter Dessert Recipes
If you’ve already tried our Easter cupcakes and you are looking for another sweet Easter treat, then try one of our other favorites!
How to Make Easter Cupcakes
Easter Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups butter softened
- 2 cups sugar
- 5 large eggs room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 14 ounces sweetened shredded coconut divided in half
For the frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- ¾ cup butter softened
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 pound powdered sugar
For Decorations
- mini cadbury mini eggs
- large marshmallows
- pink sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325. Line muffin tins with cupcake liners. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about five minutes.
- While mixing on low, add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each egg. Add vanilla and almond extract and mix well.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Alternately add dry ingredients and buttermilk to the batter, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Fold in ½ of the coconut.
- Fill cupcake liners ⅔ of the way full. DO NOT OVERFILL.
- Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely.
- While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting. Cream together the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and almond extracts. Mix until smooth.
- Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl frequently. Mix until desired consistency.
- Once the cupcakes are completely cool, frost them with a piping bag or knife.
- To make bird’s nest cupcakes, add a drop or two of green food coloring to a bowl of the remaining coconut flakes and stir until the coconut is all tinted green. Sprinkle the green coconut onto the cupcakes and shape into a nest. Add Cadbury mini eggs to the nest.
- To make Easter bunny cupcakes, cut a marshmallow in half diagonally and push the sticky side of each half into the pink sprinkles. Then press both marshmallows, pointy side up, into the top of the cupcake. Sprinkle with the remaining coconut flakes.
What adorable cupcakes! I will be making these for Easter this year!
You had me at coconut! These cupcakes are going to be such a perfect dessert for a baby shower I’m hosting!
I can’t believe it’s already time to be thinking about Easter! I love coconut & the hint of almond in the frosting!
Yummy! My family and I are going to love these cupcakes! I can’t wait to make these with my daughter!
does this recipe actually work? scale of 1 – 10 . 1being the worst and 10bengthe best. please be honest even though you created this recipe.
What exactly do you mean by “work”? Every time we have made these they have worked perfectly. We think they taste great! They are some of my favorite cupcakes.
All purpose flour or cake flour?
Salted or unsalted butter?
We just used all-purpose but cake flour would be wonderful. We typically almost always used salted butter. Hope this helps!
What equates to a stick of butter.
A stick of butter is 1/2 cup. Hope this helps!
How many cupcakes does this recipe make?
30 cupcakes
l cant wait till l try this recipe .love to cook, ela vermont