Red, White and Blue Cupcakes are a delightfully festive patriotic treat! Patriotic swirl cupcakes are a fun dessert to bring to your next 4th of July celebration!
If you are looking for cupcakes for 4th of July, look no further than this easy and delicious recipe. These patriotic cupcakes come together quickly, we use a boxed cake mix to quicken up and simplify the process, the results are sensational!
4th of July Red, White & Blue Cupcakes
I love a recipe that combines my two favorite things, cupcakes and patriotism, and this recipe delivers! When I came across these cupcake wrappers and tiny flags in the Dollar Store I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them. The tricky part was to figure out how to use the least amount of food coloring as possible, I am not a fan of the taste of it. So I improvised and came up with these beauties, the swirls provide the perfect amount of festiveness and the food coloring taste is not overwhelming at all. Plus, adding the marshmallow buttercream frosting takes these treats to the next level. Topping them off with the festive sprinkles and little flags will make these the center piece for your holiday table!
Why we think you will absolutely love these patriotic cupcakes!
If you need more convincing to give this recipe a try, here are a few more reasons why we think you will love them.
- Super simple. These cupcakes might look complicated, but they really are so simple to make. We use a boxed cake mix for the base of the cupcake recipe, mix up the batter and then create the two colors. It is so simple to create these stunning and festive treats.
- Basic ingredients. We keep it very simple for this recipe, most of the ingredients needed are probably already in your kitchen. Although you can follow the cake mix box exactly per the ingredient instructions, we prefer to chance up the ingredients for more flavorful options. Give it a try and see just how delicious it is!
- Pretty and festive! Who doesn’t love a good holiday recipe that is appetizing and can be enjoyed visually?! I love these cut festive cupcakes on my holiday treat table, everyone compliments them on their looks and taste!
Red, White & Blue Patriotic Cupcakes Ingredients
Swirl Cupcakes
Cake mix: You will need 1 box of classic white cake mix, mixed per the alternate instructions below. I personally like to change up the box mix ingredients for more rich and flavorful options.
Butter: Swap out the called for amount of oil on the cake box with melted butter, this will create a wonderfully rich cupcake.
Milk: You will want to change out the required water (amount shown on cake box) with milk, trust me you will love the taste!
Egg: Adding 1 extra egg will give these cupcakes amazing texture and moisture.
Food coloring: You need red and blue food coloring to make the swirl pattern in these amazing treats.
Sprinkles: Grab a jar of red, white and blue festive sprinkles to top these cupcakes with.
Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting
Butter: You need 1 cup butter, room temperature, for a lovely creamy frosting base.
Marshmallow creme: Use 1 7-ounce jar of marshmallow creme to add a nice fluffy and deliciousness to this topping.
Powder sugar: Add in 2 cups powdered sugar for extra sweetness to this cupcake frosting.
Vanilla extract: Using 1 teaspoon vanilla extract will help enhance all the yummy flavors.
Milk: You will need 2-3 tablespoons milk to create the perfect consistency for this topping.
How to make 4th of July Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting
Prep
Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F. Then, line a muffin tin with paper cupcake liners. I used a patriotic theme liner, you can use a solid color or silicon cups if that is what you have on hand.
Cupcake Batter
In a large bowl, begin by pouring in the dry cake mix.
Then, melt the butter in the microwave and pour into the cake mix.
Add the milk and additional egg (include the egg count called for on the cake mix box too, this is an extra 1 egg). Stir all ingredients until combined.
After the cupcake batter is complete, pour 1/3 of the batter into two separate bowls, having 1/3 of the batter into three bowls….one remains white batter, one will be red and the other blue.
Then, add about 1/8 teaspoon of red and blue food coloring in each bowl, mix to combine.
Proceed to scoop 1 tablespoon of white batter into the bottom of each cupcake liner.
Then scoop 1 tablespoon of red batter onto one side of each cupcake, followed by the same amount of the blue batter on the other side.
Add 1 more tablespoon of white batter to the top of each cupcake. The cupcake liners should be full at this point. Take a toothpick and gently stir the batter in each cupcake around a few times to create the swirl effect.
Bake
Place the muffin pan in the preheated oven and bake according to package directions- mine baked for 18 minutes.
Let cool completely before adding the frosting and sprinkles.
Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting
In a medium size bowl, using an electric handheld mixer (or Kitchen Aide mixer), cream the butter until it is light and fluffy.
Next, add in the marshmallow creme, whip for 2 minutes.
Then, add the powdered sugar and continue to beat for 2 more minutes.
Lastly, pour in the vanilla extract and milk and mix for 1 minute.
For frosting cupcakes, a slightly thicker frosting is better because they hold their shape. However if you are frosting a cake, I would add more milk- 3 TBSP or even 4, so that you can spread the frosting well.
Using a knife or piping bag, add the frosting to each cupcake after they have cooled. Top each with festive sprinkles, a tiny flag (if you have them) and serve!
Enjoy this tasty and festive treat!
Ingredients
- 15.25 oz Classic White cake mix mixed per alternate instructions below
- swap out half the required oil with butter
- swap out the required water with milk
- add one extra egg
- red and blue food coloring
Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup butter room temperature
- 7 oz marshmallow creme
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2-3 tbsp milk
Toppings
- festive sprinkles
- tiny American flags
Instructions
- Start by preheating the oven to 350degrees F. Then, line a muffin tin with paper cupcake liners. I used a patriotic theme liner, you can use a solid color or silicon cups if that is what you have on hand.
- In a large bowl, begin by pouring in the dry cake mix.
- Then, melt the butter in the microwave and pour into the cake mix.
- Add the milk and additional egg (include the egg count called for on the cake mix box too, this is an extra 1 egg). Stir all ingredients until combined.
- After the cupcake batter is complete, pour 1/3 of the batter into two separate bowls, having 1/3 of the batter into three bowls….one remains white batter, one will be red and the other blue.
- Then, add about 1/8 teaspoon of red and blue food coloring in each bowl, mix to combine.
- Proceed to scoop 1 tablespoon of white batter into the bottom of each cupcake liner.
- Then scoop 1 tablespoon of red batter onto one side of each cupcake, followed by the same amount of the blue batter on the other side.
- Add 1 more tablespoon of white batter to the top of each cupcake. The cupcake liners should be full at this point. Take a toothpick and gently stir the batter in each cupcake around a few times to create the swirl affect.
- Place the muffin pan in the preheated oven and bake according to package directions- mine baked for 18 minutes.
- Let cool completely before adding the frosting and sprinkles.
Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting
- In a medium size bowl, using an electric handheld mixer (or Kitchen Aide mixer), cream the butter until it is light and fluffy.
- Next, add in the marshmallow creme, whip for 2 minutes.
- Then, add the powdered sugar and continue to beat for 2 more minutes.
- Lastly, pour in the vanilla extract and milk and mix for 1 minute.
- For frosting cupcakes, a slightly thicker frosting is better because they hold their shape. However if you are frosting a cake, I would add more milk- 3 TBSP or even 4, so that you can spread the frosting well.
- Using a knife or piping bag, add the frosting to each cupcake after they have cooled. Top each with festive sprinkles, a tiny flag (if you have them) and serve!
Video
Notes
📫 Save this recipe! Send it to your email! 📩
I consent to receiving emails from this site.
Can you freeze swirl cupcakes?
You can definitely freeze the cupcakes, but wait to frost them until after they are thawed. I like to place the cupcakes in a single layer in a ziplocked freezer bag and make sure all of the air is out of the bag before freezing. To thaw, leave the cupcakes at room temperature for about an hour.
Do I have to use red, white & blue for the swirl colors?
Great question, no, you do not. You can switch up this for other holidays or color themes for parties. If you are throwing a unicorn theme birthday party, using pink and yellow would make a fun swirl color combination. Or for Christmas you can do a red and green color combo. Have fun with this recipe and make your own swirl color patterns! You probably will want to stick to a white cake mix so the colors pop, you could get away with a yellow cake too but that also may affect the colors you use.
If you enjoyed this festive treat, try some other amazing summer recipes here!
- Easy Kool Aid Sherbet
- Little Lemon Drops
- Strawberries and Cream Bites
- Raspberry Meltaway Cookies
- Mint Chocolate Pudding Cookies
- Copycat Swig Cookies
- Harry Potter ButterBeer recipe
- Strawberry Banana Ice Cream Float
- Fruity Summertime Treats
- Glazed Strawberry Bundt Cake
- Banana Split Pie
- Flower Pot Cookies
- Easy Lemon Cheesecake Bars
- Cookie Salad
- Cookies and Cream Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Rich and Creamy Grape Salad
Red, White and Blue Swirl Cupcakes are a soft, moist and delightful patriotic treat! These swirl cupcakes are a fun and festive dessert to bring to your next 4th of July celebration!
[…] White and Blue Dessert Skewers from Made with HappyRed White and Blue Tarts from Summer ScrapsRed White and Blue Swirl Cupcakes from Butter with a side of […]