Think “inside the box” this year and wow the ones you love with these truffle box-style Valentine cupcakes! Maybe that was a bad pun, but seriously, these Valentine cupcakes are really easy to make! Also, their truffle-like appearance gives a sweet, artisan look to your gift, making it just that much more special! I have made these sweet treats for Valentine’s before, so they were at the top of my list of things to share with you for Valentine’s Day!
This time around, I decorated a few cupcakes, then let my kiddos create the rest! As much as I love cake decorating, I have come to love watching my children’s expressions even more as they decorate and explain their creations to me! I am learning to go with the flow and am determined not to let the perfectionist (or clean kitchen-lover) in me crush their love of baking! Keep scrolling to see how we created this smooth, frosted look and decorated our mini cupcakes!
Truffle Box Valentine Cupcakes
For this recipe, you will need:
Mini muffin tins (like these ones)
Mini muffin cup liners
Cake mix or favorite cake recipe
Canned frosting in chocolate and vanilla (not the whipped kind)
An old candy tin (or a box like this one)
Assorted sprinkles, mini chocolate chips, red candies, and whatever edible decorations you have on hand
Piping bag or sandwich bag with a tip cut off
Food coloring (if you wish to make a little pink icing)
Line the mini muffin tins and make your cake mix according to its directions. Fill each tin 2/3 full, then bake at the temperature specified in your recipe. NOTE: you will need to shorten the baking time – my guess is somewhere between 8-10 minutes. Once baked, allow cupcakes to cool.
Once your cupcakes are cool, the real fun begins! Scoop some chocolate frosting into a small, deep bowl and microwave in 8-second intervals, stirring in-between, until slightly runny. Repeat in a separate bowl with the vanilla frosting.
Dip each cupcake top into the runny frosting and give a gentle shake to smooth out the frosting. Voila! You have shiny-smooth tops!
They key to decorating your cupcakes is to THINK TRUFFLE!
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of truffles is squiggly-lined tops! To do this, place a little frosting of contrasting color into a sandwich bag, snip off a tip, and squiggle away!
To get the feathered look, take a toothpick and lightly pull it through the lines, alternating direction each time.
One of my favorite chocolateries dips their truffles into mini chocolate chips and sprinkles! The possibilities are endless; just think of the ones you are making these Valentine’s treats for, then HAVE FUN!
If you had as much fun decorating as I did, please share with your friends through the social media buttons below!
These are so cute! My family would love this. I will definitely give it a try!
I am so happy you like them! 🙂
You and the kids did such a good job with these. They are adorable, and what a perfect Valentines treat to share with the special people in our lives. Homemade treats as cute as these really say “I love You!”
Thanks so much Lisa! We really had a lot of fun together! 🙂
You make it look so easy! I love these!
Thank you! 🙂
Aww, such a sweet idea! My hubby would love this! 🙂 <3
Thank you so much!
Yummy! I have a terrible sweet tooth and I see myself making these for a Valentine’s present to myself 🙂 Will enrol my 5 year old to be the helper 🙂 Thanks for sharing 🙂 xx
You and me both! LOl 🙂 I hope you guys have fun together! 🙂
Love this idea! I’m totally going to try this for Valentine’s Day ! Great post !
Thank you so much! I hope you really enjoy them!
Aww so cute! I may have to give up my not baking so many sweets to try something like these 🙂 …though I don’t know whether I should thank you or blame you 😉
Thank you! Lol 🙂 Maybe give some away QUICKLY!? 🙂
What a cute and easy idea! The chocolate idea has my heart💟
Thank you! I am so glad you like them! 🙂
These are adorable! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for checking them out! 🙂
These look so yummy and adorable too! 🙂
Thank you! 🙂
These are so adorable! Adding them to my To-Do list for Valentines Day for sure! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for checking them out! It makes me so happy to hear you like them! 🙂
These look amazing and what a great idea putting them in a chocolate box. I love chocolate so this is right up my alley!
I love Chocolate too and I have a hard time tossing the pretty heart tins it comes in at valentine’s! So This is a perfect way for me to get around it and repurpose something in the process! Thank so much for checking them out! 🙂
This is so adorable!! Thanks for being so detailed about the process!
Thank you so much and I am so glad you found the instructions helpful! That is awesome to hear! 🙂
Those cakes look yummy. I love the way you decorated them, Valentine is by the corner wow
Thank you so much and yes it’s coming up fast!
These are soo cute! I’m always looking for clever ways to decorate cupcakes!
Thank you! The best part is there super easy to make! 🙂
These are so cute, and they look like they would be so fun to make! My oldest daughter would love to do this with me.
Thank you! I hope you have fun making them together! 🙂