Celebrate spring with our best Easter cupcake ideas. From sweet and nutty coconut to punchy lemon and every seasonal flavor in between, these are treats no bunny will be able to resist.
34 Easter Cupcake Ideas for a Sweet Celebration
Published on Mar. 03, 2022
Like many other holidays, Easter brunch stars classic recipes. A glazed ham will most likely grace your table, as well as an egg dish or two. What better way to use hard-boiled eggs than making deviled eggs or Easter egg bread? The spring holiday also calls for hot cross buns and old-fashioned green beans, but if you’re looking to switch up your traditional Easter desserts, why not try one of our sweet Easter cupcake ideas?
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April Shower Cupcakes
This Easter cupcake hack is downright adorable and a super easy Easter dessert. Start by slicing baked, unfrosted cupcakes in half. Then, add a snipped straw to serve as the umbrella handle. Frost the tops with pastel-hued icing, then finish with a piped-on umbrella shape and sprinkles.
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Coconut Tres Leches Cupcakes
Three types of milk (buttermilk, evaporated and sweetened condensed) moisten these cupcakes that are sprinkled with toasted coconut to add texture. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, make buttermilk: Use 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice plus enough milk to measure 1 cup, stir, then let stand for five minutes.
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Salted Caramel Cupcakes
These salted caramel cupcakes are the best of both worlds, thanks to a brown sugar cake mix and slightly salty frosting. A drizzle of caramel sauce and a smidge of flaky sea salt are the perfect finishing touches.
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Cupcake Easter Baskets
Name a cuter cupcake…we’ll wait. These creative Easter baskets get the confectionary treatment, complete with a licorice handle and egg-shaped candy on top. Plus, the grated orange zest adds a nice flavor bonus to boot.
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Carrot Cupcakes
Turn a classic carrot cake into cupcake form. These Easter-worthy sweets sneak in a healthy dose of vitamin A-packed carrots that help make the batter super moist and contribute to their pretty orange hue. Dot the cream cheese frosting with chopped raisins and pecans for texture.
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Red Velvet Cupcakes with Coconut Frosting
Somewhere between vanilla and chocolate cake, red velvet is the ultimate cupcake base. When topped with a shredded coconut frosting, they’re irresistible. If you can’t get enough of these, try our other red velvet recipes.
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Hummingbird Cupcakes
A traditional hummingbird cake, is slightly akin to a banana muffin with pineapple, bananas and walnuts. When you turn this recipe into a moist cupcake, you’ll wish you made this brilliant discovery long ago.
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Lemon Cream Cupcakes
Instead of another layer cake, surprise your Easter guests with a batch of cupcakes tinged with a tangy lemon flavor. This picture-perfect frosting is flavored with lemon juice and topped with lemon zest. Pucker up!
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Creme de Menthe Cupcakes
Creme de menthe (which is French for “mint cream”) adds a cool touch to these impressive mascarpone-frosted cupcakes. Ideal for Easter or St. Patrick’s Day, they’re bound to be the star of the dessert table.
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Strawberry Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Frosting
Fresh strawberries are full of water, so they have a tendency to weigh down cake batters and make soggy cakes. That’s why these strawberry cupcakes rely on strawberry jam or preserves. The concentrated flavor is just right for light and tender cupcakes.
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Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes
What can’t you turn into cupcakes? Pineapple upside-down cakes have never looked cuter—or more scrumptious— than with a maraschino cherry center. Use any leftover maraschino cherries to garnish beautiful spring cocktails.
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Key Lime Cupcakes
Bring a taste of the Florida Keys to your Easter spread with Key lime cupcakes. This recipe is light, tangy and perfect for Key lime pie fans. For a healthier take, make just half of the frosting. You’ll save 90 calories and 4 grams of fat for each dollop of rich Key lime topping.
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Special Mocha Cupcakes
Topped with fluffy frosting and chocolate sprinkles, these extra-rich, extra-delicious cupcakes smell wonderful while baking. Plus, they give your dessert spread a chocolaty treat for guests who don’t love the usual fruit-forward flavors of Easter desserts.
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Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
Vanilla bean flecks give these moist, tender cupcakes special-occasion status, but as a few reviewers pointed out, vanilla bean paste works in place of whole beans if you’re trying to keep this recipe budget-friendly.
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Boston Cream Cupcakes
If you love a Boston cream pie, these cupcakes are a must-try variation. You’ll feel like a professional baker when it comes time to fill the cupcakes with the cream filling.
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Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes
Easter is for pastels, lemons and cheerful desserts, so these strawberry lemon cupcakes fit right in. Frost them to your heart’s content, then garnish with fresh strawberry slices.
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Oreo Cupcakes with Cookies and Cream Frosting
Buttery bottom, decadent top—these Oreo cupcakes do double duty, especially for your vanilla-loving, chocolate-craving enthusiasts who want it all. If you want to pipe the frosting, be sure to thoroughly crush the cookies.
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Lemon Coconut Cupcakes
Zesty and bright, rich and light, these lemon-coconut cupcakes pack a citrusy punch and taste like summer in bite-size form. To garnish with lemon, be sure to opt for lemons that have little to no brusing, scaring or marks that could tarnish that fresh look of the slices.
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Pina Colada Cupcakes
“If you like pina coladas,” turn them into cupcakes! With petite umbrellas, pineapple wedges and cherries on top, these Easter cupcakes can be served solo or layered into individual dishes to make mini trifles. If the umbrellas make the cupcakes too tropical for your Easter celebration, leave them off.
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Chocolate Macaroon Cupcakes
A delightful coconut and ricotta cheese filling hides inside chocolate cupcakes dusted with confectioners’ sugar. It sounds complicated, but the bake is ready in 30 minutes! For extra points in the decorating department, make homemade macaroons to serve atop the macaroon cupcakes.
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Cherry Cheese Cupcakes
Miniature cheesecakes as cupcakes? Don’t mind if we do. With a glazed cherry pie filling as the topping, these are sure to go fast, so think ahead and double the recipe.
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Yellow Cupcakes
Nothing is better than homemade cupcakes, but this yellow cupcake recipe might just beat the competition. It’s a blank slate that you can pair with pretty much any frosting; we recommend a classic chocolate buttercream frosting, a fruity blackberry buttercream or an easy vanilla buttercream frosting.
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Carrot Blueberry Cupcakes
Before you knock this one—hear us out: Carrots, blueberries, pineapple and zucchini make a surprisingly delicious combination. The produce keeps the cake batter moist and provides fresh flavors you might not think to mix in a sweet dessert.
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Pink Velvet Cupcakes
Don’t discount our love for all things red velvet, but pink velvet cupcakes give us a springtime pastel we can’t get enough of. Festive for Easter, Valentine’s Day or a spring bridal shower, they’re the tasty definition of pretty-in-pink treats. For a super silky smooth ganache, pour hot cream over the baking chips; wait for a minute or two, then whisk.
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Chocolate-Pecan Cupcakes
Inspired by a Michigan restaurant’s pie recipe, these chocolate-pecan cracker cupcakes are rich, creamy and crunchy. If your marshmallow frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add a little milk or heavy cream.
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Maple Carrot Cupcakes
The key to nailing these maple carrot cupcakes is to use a high-quality maple syrup brand. Pair the syrup with staple pantry ingredients, grated carrots and a walnut-topped frosting to turn out a divine cupcake every time.
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Berry-Topped White Cupcakes
Your Easter guests will love these yummy white cupcakes topped with a cream cheese frosting. The strawberry-blueberry garnish makes them the perfect take-home party favor—and bonus points if you can find strawberry-dotted cupcake liners.
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Margarita Cupcakes
If you prefer your cocktails fashioned into cupcakes, you’ll love this margarita-infused treat. While we would avoid replacing the fresh lime juice in the recipe entirely, an additional dash of lime extract or oil would work fine. A drizzle of lime oil over the frosting is a colorful addition too. Find more tips for adding flavor to baked goods.
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Aloha Cupcakes
Coconut and pineapple are always a winning combo, and the island-inspired ingredients are unstoppable in this cupcake recipe. The macadamia nuts are completely optional if you are allergic.
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Arnold Palmer Cupcakes
Turn everyone’s favorite thirst-quenching iced tea-lemonade beverage into a dessert. Not a fan of iced tea? Use powdered lemonade mix instead of the tea mix in the frosting.
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Chocolate Ganache Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Although the flavors in this peanut butter chocolate cupcake recipe are divine, the best part is the chocolate curls on top. To make them, warm a chocolate bar in the microwave for 10 seconds at a time, until just pliable. Using a vegetable peeler, run the blade along the edge of the chocolate bar and repeat until the desired amount of curls have been created.
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Orange Buttermilk Cupcakes
Easy Easter cupcakes? We can’t get enough of these citrusy gems. You’ll be surprised at how well the orange flavor comes through in every bite. For an extra elegant presentation, top the cupcakes with a dried blood orange wheel.
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Coconut Cupcakes
Warning: These coconut cupcakes will cause cravings. Once you figure out your favorite method for toasting coconut, you’ll want to put it on everything, and a garnish on these cupcakes is just the ticket.
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Chocolate-Coconut Angel Cupcakes
Just when you think you’ve seen it all—baking wise—a meringue-topped cupcake recipe rolls around. These light-as-air treats get a dusting of confectioners’ sugar before serving, and you can use pastel liners to play up the Easter hues.
