It’s no secret that I have a huge sweet tooth! In my opinion, it’s not a meal unless it ends with dessert. My love of all things sweet has gone on for as long as I can remember, and I enjoy making desserts as much as I enjoy indulging in them. At my wedding in August, we had a wedding cake, a donut wall, mini desserts, and an ice cream truck! Variety is the spice of life, right?
One of my favorite desserts is a cupcake – they’re the perfectly portioned and portable answer to cake. I love not having to bother with the mess of cutting a cake! I have such fond memories of baking cupcakes for bake sales and bringing cupcakes to school for my birthday or holidays (like these reindeer cupcakes).
Once I was an adult I even started experimenting with boozy versions of cupcakes – think Irish Whiskey and Chocolate, Pina Colada and Margarita, to name a few!
I even had cupcakes at my rehearsal dinner in August. They were Molly’s, of course. I say “of course” because if you’re from Chicago, or nearby, you’ve likely heard of Molly’s and hopefully indulged. If you haven’t, you need to treat yourself as soon as possible. Molly’s offers so many delicious flavors, but my favorites are the stuffed cupcakes, and the Cookie Monster in particular!
If you’re looking for crazy and unique flavor combinations, Stephanie Izard’s Sugargoat won’t disappoint. I recently tried the Breakfast in Lima cupcake – a plantain-based cupcake with caramel.
When it comes to making cupcakes though, my go-to cupcake for any whimsical and fun celebration is an ice cream cone cupcake. These are particularly fun to make with kids (but trust me, adults appreciate them too), and look adorable for occasions from birthday parties to barbecues. Feel free to change up the cake flavor or toppings to customize them as you like! You can even cheat and use a boxed mix, but I adapted my favorite recipe to use from Preppy Kitchen.
Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes
Scroll down for a printable version of this recipe
Servings: 12
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 75 min
For the cupcakes:
1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup melted butter
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
12 jumbo cake cones
*Note: you can add gel food coloring if you’d like to have colorful cupcakes
For the frosting:
7 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 cups unsalted butter
2-4 Tablespoons heavy cream (depending on desired texture)
1/2 teaspoon salt
For the toppings:
Hot Fudge (caramel is delicious too!)
Maraschino Cherries (or Bourbon Soaked Cherries if they’re for adults)
Sprinkles
Chopped Nuts
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with cake cones in each cup.
3. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients: flour, sugar, soda, baking powder, and baking soda.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk wet ingredients: butter, eggs, vanilla bean paste, sour cream and milk.
5. Add wet ingredients to dry, and whisk to combine. Do not overmix.
6. Fill each cake cone 3/4 full (where the rim gets wide).
7. Bake for 30-35 minutes, checking for doneness.
8. Let cool for 30 minutes.
9. While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting.
10. In a stand mixer (or with a hand mixer), whip the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy.
11. Add heavy cream and salt, and whip again to combine. You can add more heavy cream if your frosting seems too tight.
12. Once the cupcakes are cooled, frost. You can pipe the frosting to look like soft serve, you can use a scoop to make it look like a scoop of ice cream, or you can use an offset spatula or butter knife to give it a more rustic look!
13. Top each frost cupcake cone with a dollop of hot fudge. Note:I find it works best to slightly heat the hot fudge, but it can’t be too hot or it melts the frosting.
14. Top with sprinkles and/or nuts, and of course, a maraschino cherry!
If these cupcakes have you in the mood to bake, we’ve got some fantastic virtual baking classes coming up at The Chopping Block! Check out:
Our Lincoln Square retail store also has whatever you need to bake the perfect cupcakes from cupcake pans, to silicone liners, to gel food colors, scoops, spatulas, mixing bowls, offset spatulas, vanilla bean paste, Callebaut chocolate, and so much more.
Prep time: 45 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 1 H & 15 M
Ingredients
For the cupcakes
1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup melted butter
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
12 jumbo cake cones
*Note: you can add gel food coloring if you’d like to have colorful cupcakes
For the frosting
7 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 cups unsalted butter
2-4 Tablespoons heavy cream (depending on desired texture)
1/2 teaspoon salt
For the toppings
Hot Fudge (caramel is delicious too!)
Maraschino Cherries (or Bourbon Soaked Cherries if they’re for adults)
Sprinkles
Chopped Nuts
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a 12 cup muffin pan with cake cones in each cup.
In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients: flour, sugar, soda, baking powder, and baking soda.
In a medium bowl, whisk wet ingredients: butter, eggs, vanilla bean paste, sour cream and milk.
Add wet ingredients to dry, and whisk to combine. Do not overmix.
Fill each cake cone 3/4 full (where the rim gets wide).
Bake for 30-35 minutes, checking for doneness.
Let cool for 30 minutes.
While the cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting.
In a stand mixer (or with a hand mixer), whip the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy.
Add heavy cream and salt, and whip again to combine. You can add more heavy cream if your frosting seems too tight.
Once the cupcakes are cooled, frost. You can pipe the frosting to look like soft serve, you can use a scoop to make it look like a scoop of ice cream, or you can use an offset spatula or butter knife to give it a more rustic look!
Top each frost cupcake cone with a dollop of hot fudge. Note: I find it works best to slightly heat the hot fudge, but it can’t be too hot or it melts the frosting.
Top with sprinkles and/or nuts, and of course, a maraschino cherry!