Create a Sweet Holiday Tradition with this Christmas Cupcake Decorating Board

The holiday season is the perfect time to gather friends and family for some festive fun, and what better way to celebrate than with a Christmas cupcake decorating party! Imagine the joy on everyone’s faces as they create their own edible holiday masterpieces! Transform your home into a winter wonderland with a delightful cupcake decorating board featuring vibrant red and green frosting, sparkling sprinkles, and shimmering dusting sugar. This post includes recipes for homemade vanilla cupcakes and buttercream frosting, but you could easily use cake mix and premade frosting too! Whether you’re a baking novice or a seasoned pro, this decorating board promises to sprinkle a little holiday magic into your celebrations. So get ready to invite your friends and family to your cupcake decorating party!

Christmas Cupcake Decorating Board (with Vanilla Cupcakes and Buttercream Frosting)

Servings: 10 large cupcakes, 10 mini cupcakes

Prep: 20 minutes| Cook Time: 20 minutes | Cool-Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Cupcake Ingredients

1.5 cup all purpose flour (spooned into measuring cup)
1.5 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup sour cream (full fat)
10 TBSP unsalted butter (room temperature)

Frosting Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 TBSP heavy cream
1/8 tsp salt

Other Ingredients

10 cupcake liners (white or light brown)
10 mini cupcake liners (red and green)
Green sanding sugar
Red sanding sugar
Red sprinkles
White sprinkles
Green & Red food coloring
Any other decorations you’d like – there’s an idea list at the end of this post!

overhead shot of cupcake liners and decorating ingredients

Cupcake Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Add cupcake liners to cupcake pans and set aside (10 normal size, 10 mini).

In a bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.

In a stand mixer combine butter and sugar. Beat together for 30 seconds on medium speed.

Add eggs, vanilla and sour cream. Continue to mix until fully combined.

Reduce speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients into the bowl. Mix until fully incorporated. Scrape the bowl if needed and be careful not to overmix.

Scoop 3 TBSP of mixture into the large cupcake liners and 1 TBSP into the mini cupcake liners.

Bake mini cupcakes for 13 minutes and larger cupcakes for 20 minutes (or until toothpick inserted into the middle of cupcakes comes out clean).

Remove from oven and set on a rack to cool for approximately 30 minutes.

filling cupcake liners and cupcakes on cooling rack

Frosting Directions

Add butter to a large stand mixing bowl with whisk attachment.* Mix on medium speed for 3 minutes.

Turning the speed to low, slowly add powdered sugar until it’s fully incorporated.

Add vanilla, cream and salt and mix on high for 2 minutes.

Pause to scrape the sides of the bowl and mix for 1 additional minute on high speed.

Divide frosting into thirds. Transfer the first third into a piping bag. Place additional two thirds of the frosting into two separate bowls.

adding the food coloring to bowls of frosting

Add red and green food coloring and mix until desired shade has been achieved. Transfer frosting into piping bags.

Once cupcakes have cooled, it’s time to decorate them!

Set out the filled piping bags, bowls of sprinkles and dusting sugar, and any other toppings you’d like to include! Let everyone decorate their cupcakes however they’d like, and then have fun eating them!

decorated cupcakes on board next to bowls of sprinkles and sugar

Additional notes:

*Using a whisk vs. paddle attachment will allow the buttercream to become more light and airy.

Decorating Ideas

Of course, red and green sprinkles and dusting sugar aren’t the only possible Christmas decorations you can use. Here are some other ideas for toppings:

Candy Canes – crush candy canes or soft peppermints for a sweet, minty twist.

Edible Glitter – edible glitter comes in tons of colors, including red, green, gold, and silver – perfect for Christmas cupcakes!

Mini Marshmallows – mini marshmallows are easy and delicious! Plus you can use them to create Santa cupcakes!

Christmas-themed Sprinkles – there are tons of Christmas themed sprinkles out there with fun Christmas shapes!

Gummy Candy – gumdrops or gummy candies can be mixed in with other toppings or used on their own.

Shredded Coconut – Dye it green to resemble Christmas tree needles or leave it white for a snowy effect.

Candy Chips or White Chocolate Chips – Use red and green colored candy chips, white chocolate chips, or mini chocolate chips for a delicious touch.

Colored Decorating Gel – tubes of colored decorating gels can be used for writing or drawing on the cupcakes. Check out these Christmas Present Brownies for ideas!

Create a Sweet Holiday Tradition with this Christmas Cupcake Decorating Board