Kids’ Kitchen: Burger Cupcakes (with Video)
It seems like Spring has just arrived and the internet is in full-on summer mode! Well, if you can’t beat them, join them? Here’s my contribution to your next summer barbecue: burger cupcakes!
Burger Cupcakes Recipe
These cute burger cupcakes are the perfect BBQ dessert, using a delicious chocolate buttercream in the place of the burger patty – or you can use a small two-bite brownie for the patty – your choice!
Unlike other cupcakes where you have to worry about presentation and getting that swirl just right, you can easily hide any frosting flaws or mishaps since you’re smooshing the top of the cupcake on top of the frosting – making this an excellent kids’ kitchen project.
This presentation also avoids the frosting-on-nose mishaps that can come with conventional cupcakes. It’s like having a frosting sandwich!
We served these at a recent BBQ with friends and everyone got such a kick out of them – especially the kids. You could even safe some prep time and set out a “make your own burger cupcake” tray with the little frosting bottles and a bunch of different toppings.
In addition to swapping out the frosting for brownies (if desired), you can also swap out the coconut “lettuce” for fruit roll-up lettuce, or add in fruit roll-up “tomatoes” – there are just so many fun and creative options for these dessert burgers!
While I’m providing a from-scratch vanilla cupcake recipe below, feel free to use a boxed cake mix… but I’m going to have to insist that you make the chocolate frosting from scratch. The store-bought stuff just doesn’t even come close to a delicious, homemade buttercream.
Watch my quick video on how to assemble these burger cupcakes and then don’t forget to scroll down to grab your free printable recipe:
How to Make Cupcakes that Look Like Burgers
First, assemble your ingredients:
For the vanilla cupcakes:
- Butter, room temperature
- Eggs, room temperature
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Baking Soda
- Buttermilk <– I always have this powdered buttermilk in my fridge to make instant buttermilk whenever I need it.
- White sugar
- Boiling Water
- Vanilla extract <– can use vanilla bean paste
For the frosting:
- Butter, room temperature
- Powdered icing sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Heavy Whipping Cream
- Cocoa powder
- Red and Yellow food coloring <– this set of food coloring has lasted me forever and I love that it creates highly saturated colors with just a drop
- Coconut Flakes, optional <– dyed green
Scroll down to the printable recipe card for full measurements.
Tip: you can also alternatively use brownies instead of the chocolate frosting. And I used gel frosting pens instead of making individual yellow and red frostings.
Kitchen Tools You May Find Helpful:
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Electric mixer<– this is a great hand mixer if you don’t want to make the investment into a stand mixer
- Large mixing bowl
- Piping bag
- Large star tip <– a basic piping set will have all you need
- Cupcake pan
- Cupcake scoop
- Cooling racks <– I have and love these tiered cooling racks, they save so much counter space and are also oven-safe
How to Make Cupcakes that Look Like Burgers
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Line cupcake pan with silicone muffin liners for easy removal. (Don’t bother using the pretty cupcake liners for this recipe as you’re just going to remove them to make the burgers.
Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl and set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then add in the vanilla bean pasta and eggs, one at a time.
Alternate adding half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk until everything is combined.
Fill the cupcake liners until 2/3 full, and bake for 18-22 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes before attempting to remove the cupcakes from the liners.
Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by creaming together the butter, vanilla, heavy cream and powdered sugar. Add more or less cream or powdered sugar to get your desired consistency.
Remove 1/4 cup of the frosting mixture to be dyed as “ketchup” and “mustard.” (Approximately 2 Tablespoons of each colour.)
Add the cocoa powder to the remaining frosting and mix thoroughly.
Add the chocolate buttercream to a piping bag fitted with your desired frosting tip – I used a 4B. Swirl the frosting onto the bottom halves of each cupcake, starting on the outside and swirling inward. Ensure you apply even pressure to the frosting bag and pull the tip up abruptly to stop the frosting.
Place the red and yellow frostings into separate piping bags – you can just make a small cut at the bottom or use a Wilton #2 tip for that fine line of frosting, doing zig zag patterns that drip down the sides of the cupcake so that you can still see it when the top of the cupcake is added.
Sprinkle on the optional green coconut for some lettuce shreds.
Carefully place the top of the cupcakes on top of the frosting, and lightly pat down to prevent it from slipping off.
Pin this easy Burger Cupcake dessert idea:
Here’s your printable version of my Burger Cupcake recipe:
Want to Save This Recipe?
Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Sugar, Spice and Glitter.
Kids’ Kitchen: Burger Cupcakes
A super fun party cupcake recipe that looks just like a burger! Two different ways to make it - using frosting or brownie bites.
Ingredients
For the vanilla cupcakes:
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 4 eggs
- 4 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 3 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
For the frosting:
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 3-4 cups powder sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- red food colouring
- yellow food colouring
- 1/4 cup green coconut flakes, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Line cupcake pan with silicone muffin liners for easy removal. (Don't bother using the pretty cupcake liners for this recipe as you're just going to remove them to make the burgers.
- Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl and set aside.
- Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then add in the vanilla bean pasta and eggs, one at a time.
- Alternate adding half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk until everything is combined.
- Fill the cupcake liners until 2/3 full, and bake for 18-22 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool for 10 minutes before attempting to remove the cupcakes from the liners.
- Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by creaming together the butter, vanilla, heavy cream and powdered sugar. Add more or less cream or powdered sugar to get your desired consistency.
- Remove 1/4 cup of the frosting mixture to be dyed as "ketchup" and "mustard." (Approximately 2 Tablespoons of each colour.)
- Add the cocoa powder to the remaining frosting and mix thoroughly.
- Add the chocolate buttercream to a piping bag fitted with your desired frosting tip - I used a 4B. Swirl the frosting onto the bottom halves of each cupcake, starting on the outside and swirling inward. Ensure you apply even pressure to the frosting bag and pull the tip up abruptly to stop the frosting.
- Place the red and yellow frostings into separate piping bags - you can just make a small cut at the bottom or use a Wilton #2 tip for that fine line of frosting, doing zig zag patterns that drip down the sides of the cupcake so that you can still see it when the top of the cupcake is added.
- Sprinkle on the optional green coconut for some lettuce shreds.
- Carefully place the top of the cupcakes on top of the frosting, and lightly pat down to prevent it from slipping off.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
-
Cookie Scoop Ice Cream Scoop Melon Scoop 18/8 Stainless Steel with Trigger Cupcake Scoops (#14) -
Cake Decorating Supplies Kit for Beginners, Set of 137, Baking Pastry Tools, 1 Turntable stand-55 Numbered Icing Tips with Pattern Chart, Angled Spatula, 8 Russian Piping nozzles-Baking Tools
-
Wilton Excelle Elite 3-Tier Cooling Rack for Cookies, Cakes and More
-
Wilton Red Gel Tube
-
Baker's, Angel Flakes Sweetened Coconut, 14 oz
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
24Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 731Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 75mgSodium: 322mgCarbohydrates: 143gFiber: 1gSugar: 126gProtein: 4g
Sugar, Spice and Glitter uses an auto-generate nutrition calculator. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate unless analyzed in a scientific lab, so these should be considered more of a guideline than medical information.
Do you have any fun summer events coming up? What kind of dessert will you be making?
Be sure to check out some of our other summer dessert recipes, like our No-Churn Cookies & Cream Ice Cream and 10-minute S’mores Cake.
Original picture from when we first made this recipe in May 2016:
