Nothing screams holiday cheer quite like a batch of these festive treats. This Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe combines soft, buttery cupcakes with a creamy, dreamy frosting studded with Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes—making every bite feel like a celebration.
Jump to:
Why You'll Love This Recipe
I’ve made a lot of holiday cupcakes over the years, but this Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe holds a special place in my kitchen. The creative twist of using Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes right into the frosting makes the flavor pop in a way that’s unexpected but absolutely delightful.
- Unique Frosting: The crushed Christmas Tree Cakes mixed into the cream cheese frosting add incredible texture and holiday flavor.
- Perfect Presentation: The tall swirl of green frosting topped with red drizzle and sanding sugar instantly captures the festive spirit.
- Moist Cupcakes: The buttery, slightly golden cupcakes bake up moist with just the right crumb—no dry bites here.
- Make-Ahead Friendly: You can prep these a day or two in advance, keeping them fresh and delicious with simple fridge storage.
Ingredients & Why They Work
Each ingredient in this Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe plays a crucial role in balancing texture and flavor, so don't skimp or substitute without care. Here's why these ingredients shine together.
- Butter: Provides richness and helps with the cupcake’s tender crumb.
- Granulated Sugar: Sweetens and assists in the creaming process for fluffy cupcakes.
- Vegetable Oil: Keeps the cupcakes moist and soft for days.
- Vanilla Extract: Adds warm, comforting aroma and depth to the flavor.
- Eggs: Bind ingredients and incorporate air, essential for cupcake lift.
- Whole Milk: Offers richness and moisture balance in the batter.
- All-Purpose Flour: The foundation of your cupcakes; the correct amount ensures perfect texture.
- Baking Powder: Leavens the cupcakes, giving them a light texture.
- Salt: Enhances overall flavors and balances sweetness.
- Cream Cheese: Makes the frosting luxuriously tangy and smooth.
- Powdered Sugar: Sweetens the frosting without graininess.
- Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes: The secret star—crushed into the frosting for extra holiday flair.
- Milk (for frosting): Adjusts the frosting’s consistency for piping and drizzle.
- Green Sanding Sugar: Adds sparkle and festive crunch on top.
Make It Your Way
One of the things I love about this Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe is how easy it is to adapt. Whether you want to swap flavors or make it allergy-friendly, you have options.
- Variation: I once experimented by adding peppermint extract to the frosting instead of vanilla. It gave the cupcakes a refreshing wintery vibe that guests adored.
- Dairy-Free Option: Try substituting the butter and cream cheese with vegan alternatives—just expect a slight difference in frosting texture.
- Colorful Twist: Feel free to swap the red food coloring drizzle for gold or silver edible glitter for a shimmer effect.
Step-by-Step: How I Make Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe
Step 1: Creaming the Butter and Sugar
Start by preheating your oven to 350°F and lining your pans with paper liners. Then, get your stand mixer or hand mixer ready and beat the butter with sugar until that glorious fluffy texture forms. This step is key to light, tender cupcakes, so don’t rush it—it usually takes about 2 to 3 minutes on medium speed.
Step 2: Adding the Wet Ingredients
Next up, add your eggs, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Mix everything until it’s fully combined and smooth. Adding the oil alongside the butter keeps the cupcakes tender and moist, so trust the recipe on this one.
Step 3: Incorporate the Milk
Pour in the whole milk and mix. The batter might look a little curdled at this point—that’s completely normal. The acid in the milk reacting with baking powder creates those lovely light bubbles that’ll puff up your cupcakes.
Step 4: Mixing Dry Ingredients
Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt before adding them to the wet mix. To avoid overmixing (which can make cupcakes tough), start beating on low speed just until most of the flour is incorporated, then bump up the speed to medium briefly to finish. Your batter should be smooth and thick but scoopable.
Step 5: Baking the Cupcakes
Spoon the batter into the liners filling them half to two-thirds full—too much and they’ll spill over, too little and they won't rise properly. Bake for 14–16 minutes. Watch for the edges to turn lightly golden and use the toothpick test—insert one in the center, and if it comes out clean or with a few crumbs, you’re good.
Step 6: Making the Cream Cheese Frosting
While cupcakes cool on a rack, whip together the butter, cream cheese, and salt until silky smooth. Don’t skip room temperature ingredients here—cold butter makes clumps. Then add vanilla and powdered sugar, mixing gently on low speed to avoid a sugar cloud in your kitchen.
Step 7: Folding in Crushed Christmas Tree Cakes
This is the fun part—throw your Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes into a food processor and pulse until they’re finely crumbled or almost creamy. Add the crumbs to your frosting and mix until smooth. If you don’t have a food processor, a hand mixer works too, but expect tiny lumps and a bit chunkier texture.
Step 8: Color and Decorate
Reserve about half a cup of the frosting to mix with milk and red food coloring—this will be your festive drizzle. Fit the rest of the frosting into a piping bag with a large star nozzle and pipe tall swirls on each cupcake. Then cut a tiny hole in the red frosting bag and drizzle over the green swirl like holiday lights. Finish with a sprinkle of green sanding sugar for sparkle.
Top Tip
From my experience baking these cupcakes, it’s worth paying special attention to the frosting consistency and the piping step. A few tricks can turn your cupcakes from great to truly show-stopping.
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Don’t rush the frosting step—cold butter or cream cheese won’t whip up smooth, and you’ll end up with lumps.
- Food Processor Love: Crushing the Little Debbie cakes into a creamy consistency is key. I noticed chunkier bits didn’t spread as evenly and looked less polished.
- Pipe with Confidence: Use a large star tip for a pretty swirl, but if your frosting has bits, a round tip can help prevent clogging and keep your swirl flawless.
- Drizzle Control: When piping the red drizzle, use a gentle back-and-forth motion with light pressure. Too much drizzle can overpower or look messy.
How to Serve Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe
Garnishes
I stick to green sanding sugar because it adds just the right sparkle and a little crunch on top. Sometimes I like to toss on a few mini edible pearls to mimic ornaments—it looks adorable and tastes great.
Side Dishes
These cupcakes are a sweet ending, so I usually pair them with lighter, festive drinks like eggnog or spiced cider. For savory sides, a simple cheese board with crackers balances out the sugar perfectly during a holiday gathering.
Creative Ways to Present
One time, I created a cupcake "Christmas tree" stand by stacking them on a tiered platter, placing larger cupcakes at the base and smaller ones on top to form a giant cone shape. It was a smashing hit at a party and made the cupcakes the centerpiece!
Make Ahead and Storage
Storing Leftovers
Because the frosting has cream cheese, I always keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. They stay fresh for up to a week, and the cupcakes maintain their moisture without drying out.
Freezing
Freezing works well if you want to prep ahead! I freeze un-frosted cupcakes individually wrapped, and fridge the frosting separately. When ready to serve, thaw both, then frost and decorate. Freezing fully frosted cupcakes is trickier due to the texture change in cream cheese.
Reheating
Since these are cakes, I typically enjoy them cold or at room temperature. If you want them slightly warmed, I gently microwave for 8–10 seconds—but never more, so the frosting doesn’t melt.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Absolutely! While the Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes add a unique flavor and texture, you can experiment with other holiday-themed snack cakes or even crumbled gingerbread for a twist. Just keep in mind that the flavor will vary based on your choice.
If your frosting feels too thick, add a teaspoon of milk at a time until it reaches a smooth, pipeable consistency. If it’s too thin, gradually add more powdered sugar. Room temperature ingredients help get the right texture from the start.
You sure can! Just swap the all-purpose flour for a gluten-free blend that’s meant for baking cupcakes. Make sure your gluten-free blend includes xanthan gum for structure. The texture will be slightly different, but still delicious.
These cupcakes can be baked up to 2 days ahead and stored in an airtight container in the fridge once frosted because of the cream cheese. For longer storage, freeze the cupcakes unfrosted up to 3 months and frost when ready to serve.
Final Thoughts
This Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe is one of those feel-good desserts that brings warmth and joy, not just from the festive look but from the delicious flavors layered together. I hope you get the chance to make these for your holiday table—friends and family will be asking for the recipe, just like I did when I first stumbled upon this gem!
Print
Christmas Tree Cupcake Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 16 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 27 cupcakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cupcakes are delightful festive treats featuring moist vanilla cupcakes topped with a creamy cream cheese frosting blended with crumbled Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes. Decorated with green sanding sugar and a drizzle of red frosting, these cupcakes bring holiday cheer to any celebration.
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- ¾ cup butter room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- 1 ¼ cups whole milk
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Frosting
- ½ cup butter room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 10 Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes
- 2 tablespoons milk
- Red gel food coloring (quantity as needed)
- Green sanding sugar (for decorating)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line 2 cupcake pans with paper liners.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a stand mixer bowl, cream the ¾ cup butter and 1 ½ cups granulated sugar on medium speed until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add Wet Ingredients: Add 4 large eggs, ½ cup vegetable oil, and 3 teaspoons vanilla extract. Mix until thoroughly combined.
- Add Milk: Stir in 1 ¼ cups whole milk until combined; the mixture may appear curdled, which is normal.
- Add Dry Ingredients: Add 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt to the wet mixture. Beat on low speed until the dry ingredients are mostly incorporated, then increase to medium speed and beat until fully combined.
- Fill Cupcake Liners: Fill each cupcake liner about ½ to ⅔ full with batter.
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 16 minutes or until the edges are slightly golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely before frosting.
- Prepare Frosting Base: In a stand mixer bowl, beat ½ cup butter, 8 ounces cream cheese, and ½ teaspoon salt on medium speed with a whisk attachment until smooth and creamy.
- Add Sugar and Vanilla: Add 3 cups powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to the frosting. Mix on low speed until combined and smooth.
- Crush Christmas Tree Cakes: Using a food processor, pulse 10 Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes on high until crumbled and creamy. Alternatively, use a hand mixer in a bowl, though the texture will be lumpier.
- Combine Frosting and Crumbs: Add the crumbled cakes to the frosting and mix with the paddle attachment on medium speed until the frosting is smooth.
- Prepare Red Frosting: Take ½ cup of the frosting in a separate bowl, add 2 tablespoons milk and red gel food coloring. Mix thoroughly to get a vibrant red color, then transfer to a piping or storage bag.
- Pipe Green Frosting: Place the remaining frosting in a piping bag fitted with a large star tip (or large round tip if frosting isn’t smooth) and pipe a tall swirl on each cupcake.
- Drizzle Red Frosting: Cut a small hole at the tip of the red frosting bag and gently drizzle it back and forth over the green swirled frosting on each cupcake.
- Decorate: Sprinkle green sanding sugar on top of each cupcake for a festive touch.
- Storage: Store cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 to 7 days. They can be kept at room temperature for 1 to 2 days safely due to the cream cheese frosting.
Notes
- Ensure butter and cream cheese are softened to room temperature for smooth frosting.
- If you don’t have a food processor, crumbling the Christmas Tree Cakes with a hand mixer works but results in a less smooth texture.
- Use gel food coloring for vibrant red frosting without altering consistency.
- Do not overfill cupcake liners to avoid overflow during baking.
- Allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting to prevent frosting from melting.
- Store cupcakes refrigerated because of the cream cheese to keep them fresh longer.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 25 g
- Sodium: 180 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 55 mg
Leave a Reply