Festive Cupcake Christmas Tree (Printable)

Tower of vanilla cupcakes with green buttercream frosting arranged in a tree shape and decorated with colorful sprinkles and edible star.

# What You'll Need:

→ Cupcakes

01 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
03 - ½ teaspoon baking soda
04 - ¼ teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup granulated sugar
06 - ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
07 - 2 large eggs, room temperature
08 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
09 - ¾ cup whole milk

→ Buttercream Frosting

10 - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
11 - 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
12 - 2–3 tablespoons whole milk
13 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
14 - Green gel food coloring

→ Decorations

15 - Multicolored round sprinkles
16 - Edible gold star topper
17 - Mini candy canes or sugar pearls
18 - Shredded coconut

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with cupcake liners.
02 - Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
03 - Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, then stir in vanilla.
04 - Add dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix until just combined.
05 - Divide batter evenly among liners, filling about 2/3 full. Bake for 18–20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.
06 - Beat butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, then vanilla and milk as needed for desired consistency. Tint with green gel food coloring.
07 - Pipe buttercream in a tall swirl on each cooled cupcake using a large star tip.
08 - Arrange cupcakes in a tree shape on a large board or platter: start with 7 cupcakes at the base, then 6, 5, 4, and finish with 2 and 1 at the top to form a triangle.
09 - Decorate with sprinkles as ornaments. Place the gold star topper at the peak. Add candy canes, pearls, or coconut for extra decoration.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • You get the drama of an impressive centerpiece without actually having to decorate an entire cake
  • People can serve themselves without awkward slicing moments
  • The assembly part is strangely therapeutic, like edible Tetris
02 -
  • Completely cool cupcakes are non negotiable, I once put frosting on slightly warm ones and watched it slide right off like a sad green waterfall
  • Gel food coloring is infinitely superior to liquid, get the good stuff or your frosting will taste like artificial dye and have weird texture issues
  • The tree shape needs a big board, like way bigger than you think, I learned this when I had to rearrange everything three times
03 -
  • Use a small glass or cup to trace your tree shape on your serving board before you start placing cupcakes, it saves so much rearranging
  • If your frosting gets too soft while piping, pop the bag in the fridge for ten minutes and itll firm right back up

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