Halloween Skeleton Cupcakes
Servings 24 cupcakes
Halloween Skeleton Cupcakes are made with from-scratch chocolate cupcakes, chocolate frosting, white chocolate-covered pretzels, and fluffy marshmallows!
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour 200g
- 1½ cups granulated sugar 295g
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 80g
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ¾ cup buttermilk room temperature
- ¾ cup prepared hot coffee
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 12 ounces white chocolate melting wafers 340g
- 72 tiny twist pretzels
- black food-grade edible marker
- 24 large marshmallows 147g
- 24 small marshmallows 14g
- 1 batch Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting about 4 cups
- ⅓ cup chocolate cookie crumbs 47g
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and line the cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, whisk together the 1½ cups all-purpose flour, 1½ cups granulated sugar, ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1½ teaspoons baking soda, ¾ teaspoon baking powder, and ¾ teaspoon salt on low speed until fully combined, about 1 minute.
- Add in 2 large eggs, ¾ cup buttermilk, ¾ cup prepared hot coffee, ¼ cup vegetable oil, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Beat at medium speed until the mixture is smooth.
- Fill each cupcake liner about ¾ of the way full. You should be able to get 24 cupcakes.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean and the cupcakes spring back slightly when pressed. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before moving the cupcakes to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- While the cupcakes cool, prepare the skeletons by adding 12 ounces white chocolate melting wafers to a small microwave-safe bowl. Melt at 30-second intervals, stirring between each one, until the chocolate is smooth, about 5 minutes.
- Using a fork or a candy dipper, dip the 72 tiny twist pretzels into the white chocolate, completely covering them. Allow the excess chocolate to drip off the pretzel before transferring it to a sheet of parchment paper to set completely.
- Using the black food-grade edible marker, draw a skeleton face on the side or top of each of the 24 large marshmallows. Take one of the 24 small marshmallows and thread it onto the skewer, leaving enough room to place the large marshmallow on top. You don’t want to poke the skewer through the larger marshmallow; you'll want to go about three-quarters of the way through.
- Prepare the chocolate frosting according to recipe directions. I recommend my 1 batch Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting, but any chocolate frosting will work.
- Once the cupcakes are cooled and the white chocolate has set, it’s time to assemble your cupcakes. Pipe the chocolate frosting on the tops of the cupcakes. Sprinkle the ⅓ cup chocolate cookie crumbs over top. This gives the illusion of dirt or the ground. Stack three of the chocolate pretzels on top of each other and thread the skewer through an opening of the pretzels. This will give the “ribs” to our skeleton. Top each cupcake with the skeleton skewers.
Notes
- Nutritional information is an estimate that does not include frosting.
- Two tubs of store-bought frosting may be used in place of homemade.
- White Chocolate Flips pretzels may be used instead of making them at home.
- Store leftovers, covered, on the counter for up to 3 days.
- You can freeze the cupcakes and the icing, but I wouldn’t suggest freezing the marshmallows. You can freeze marshmallows, but the edible marker will run when it is thawing out. Freeze the frosted cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
- The pretzels must be intact for this to work.
- I used a Wilton Food Safe Writer in Black.
Nutrition
Calories: 171kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 214mg | Potassium: 90mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 35IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1mg
Find it online: www.sugarandsoul.co/halloween-skeleton-cupcakes/