These Valentine's Cupcakes are super cute and easy to make. Classic vanilla sponge with silky, pink buttercream frosting and heart-shaped sprinkles.
There's no better way to show your sweetheart that you care than by baking them some sweet treats. These Valentine's Day cupcakes are pretty, easy to make, and absolutely delicious.
You can choose from so many fun recipes for Valentine's treats, such as my Red Velvet Brownies, or these gorgeous Mini Bundt Cakes decorated with pink sprinkles. You could even go all out and make some Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes, but these Valentine's Cupcakes are a classic.
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Ingredients
For the Vanilla Cupcakes
- Milk - This will help to make the cupcakes extra soft and fluffy. I use whole milk, but you can use any kind of milk you have on hand.
- Vegetable Oil - The oil helps to keep the cupcakes moist, I used vegetable oil, but any kind of flavorless oil will do.
- Eggs - Use large eggs and always free-range if you can.
- Cake Flour - The recipe calls for cake flour which helps to make a more delicate crumb. If you don't have cake flour you can use all-purpose flour instead.
- Butter - It's best to use unsalted butter so you can control the level of salt in the cupcakes.
- Sugar - Use white superfine sugar (also known as caster sugar).
- Vanilla - You can use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
For the Russian Buttercream
If you choose to make Russian buttercream for your cupcakes, here's what you'll need:
- Butter - As with the cupcakes, you'll want unsalted butter.
- Condensed Milk - Sweetened condensed milk can usually be found in either the baking aisle or the coffee aisle of the grocery store. Don't get it confused with evaporated milk which looks very similar.
- Vanilla - For a classic flavor, use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste - but you can also add other extracts of flavorings for a twist.
- Gel Food Coloring - To get that pink color you'll want to use some food coloring. Make sure you use gel food coloring as the liquid kind is typically not strong enough for baked goods and may mess up the consistency of your frosting. I used this food coloring.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Valentine's Cupcakes
For these Valentine cupcakes, I used my favorite vanilla cupcakes recipe as the base recipe. For more cupcake flavor inspiration, see my section below on alternative flavors.
- Make sure your butter, eggs, and milk are all at room temperature before beginning. Preheat your oven to 335°F / 170°C and line two muffin pans with cupcake liners. (If you only have one muffin pan you can bake the cupcakes in batches).
- Split the milk into two containers, one with ½ cup of milk (118g) and one with ¾ cup of milk (177g).
- Mix the ½ cup of milk with the vegetable oil and set aside. Mix the ¾ cup of milk with the eggs and vanilla. Whisk together lightly and set aside.
- Sift the dry ingredients, including flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer and turn on low with a paddle attachment. You can use a handheld electric mixer and a large bowl for this if you prefer.
- Slowly add the butter, one small chunk at a time, letting it mix for a few seconds in between additions. Once it's all in it should look kind of like chunky breadcrumbs.
- Add the milk/oil mixture and turn your mixer up to medium speed. Beat for exactly two minutes. It's best to turn your mixer speed up slowly so the liquids don't splash everywhere.
- Scrape the sides of your bowl to make sure there are no lumps, then turn the mixer back on low. Pour the milk/egg mixture in slowly and mix on low speed until just combined.
- Divide the cupcake batter into 24 cupcake liners, I like to use a large cookie scoop to make sure I have an even amount in each cupcake.
- Bake cupcakes for 18 minutes or until the tops are springy and a skewer comes out clean. Let the cupcakes sit in the muffin pan for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
How to Make the Easy Buttercream Frosting
There are so many different types of frosting you could pair these Valentine's cupcakes with. I have included this recipe for my Russian Buttercream, but there are some suggestions below for alternative frosting combinations that would also work really well.
Russian Buttercream is a super easy, 2 ingredient frosting that creates a luxurious, glossy texture and takes on color and flavor very well. You can mix it with things like raspberry reduction or espresso powder to make a flavored frosting, like in my Raspberry Cupcakes and my Coffee Cupcakes, or you can just leave it plain.
It's super simple to make but it is vital that the butter is at the right temperature. I have detailed information on how to make it, along with a troubleshooting guide in my Russian Buttercream Recipe post.
- Put the room temperature butter in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whip on high for 5 full minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.
- Turn the mixer down to medium speed and slowly drizzle in ⅓ of the condensed milk while it's going - whip until totally incorporated. Repeat until all the condensed milk is added.
- Add vanilla and salt and then beat on high speed for 1 minute. The buttercream should look thick and glossy. If it doesn't, check the troubleshooting guide in this post.
- If you are adding food coloring or flavoring, add it now and whip until incorporated.
Tip: If you'd like to make pink cupcakes but don't want to use food coloring, try adding some ground-up freeze-dried strawberries to your buttercream to make strawberry frosting with a pretty pink tint. Or you could also add real strawberries or raspberries in the form of coulis - read my Strawberry Coulis recipe post for instructions on how to easily make this at home.
How to Decorate Valentine's Cupcakes
If you want that classic cupcake swirl like I have in the pictures, you can use a piping bag and an open star tip. Alternatively, you can just spread the frosting on with a palette knife.
To finish off, add some heart sprinkles for a cute Valentine's touch.
If you'd like to go an extra step, why not add some chocolate-covered strawberries on top of your Valentine's cupcakes? Or you could temper some chocolate and pipe some chocolate in the shape of a heart to place on top of the frosting.
Substitutions
Milk - You can swap the whole milk for any kind of milk you like. If you don't want to use milk, you could try sour cream instead - this will have the same effect and make nice fluffy cupcakes.
Oil - You don't have to use vegetable oil, you can use any kind of flavorless oil you like such as canola oil or sunflower. You can use a flavored oil like coconut oil, but just know you will be able to taste it in the cupcakes.
Flour - It is not essential to use cake flour, though it does make for beautifully tender cupcakes. If you don't have it you can use the same amount of all-purpose flour instead and the recipe will still turn out great.
Variations
There are so many variations you can make of these Valentine's cupcakes.
Alternative Flavors - I used a classic vanilla cupcake for my Valentine's cupcakes, some ideas to try are Red Velvet Cupcakes, Strawberry Cupcakes, or even fluffy Chocolate cupcakes.
Alternative Frostings - The Russian buttercream is one of those super simple recipes that come together quickly, but if you'd like to put a bit of extra love and time into your cupcakes, you could always try an Italian Meringue Buttercream or chocolate ganache instead. If you want to keep the pink color, you could do a white chocolate ganache with a little food coloring in it.
Add a Filling - For a fun surprise center, add a filling to your cupcakes. You could try a raspberry reduction like I have in my Raspberry Cupcakes, or a delicious Pistachio Cream. You could even fill them with Nutella or Peanut Butter - whatever makes the perfect treat for your Valentine!
Equipment
- Stand Mixer - with paddle attachment for cupcakes and whisk attachment for buttercream.
Storage
Store your cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature. For best results, line the base of the container with paper towels to absorb any excess moisture.
The cupcakes will be good like this for 3 to 5 days. Don't put them in the fridge as this will dry them out.
More Valentine's Dessert Recipes
If you're in the baking mood this February 14th, check out some of these other Valentine's Day desserts!
Pairing
A few recipes that you may want to pair with these Valentine's cupcakes.
Recipe
Valentines Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 1 ¼ cups Milk 295g
- ⅓ cup Vegetable Oil 72g
- 3 Eggs
- 2 ¾ cups Cake Flour 315g
- 2 sticks Unsalted Butter 227g
- 1 ¾ cups Superfine Sugar 350g
- 1 ½ tablespoon Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
For the Frosting
- 2 sticks Unsalted Butter 227g
- 1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk 395g
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 4 drops Pink Gel Food Coloring*
Instructions
Make the Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 335°F / 170°C and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners. Make sure the butter, eggs, and milk are at room temperature before beginning.
- Split the milk into two containers, one with ½ cup of milk (118g) and one with ¾ cup of milk (177g).1 ¼ cups Milk
- Mix the ½ cup of milk with the vegetable oil and set aside.⅓ cup Vegetable Oil
- Mix the ¾ cup of milk with the eggs and vanilla. Whisk together lightly and set aside.3 Eggs, 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- Place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of your mixer and turn on low with your paddle attachment.2 ¾ cups Cake Flour, 1 ¾ cups Superfine Sugar, 1 ½ tablespoon Baking Powder, ½ teaspoon Salt
- Slowly add the butter, one small chunk at a time, letting it mix for a few seconds in between additions. Once it's all in it should look kind of like chunky breadcrumbs2 sticks Unsalted Butter
- Add the milk/oil mixture and turn your mixer up to medium speed. Beat for exactly two minutes.
- Scrape the sides of your bowl to make sure there are no lumps, then turn the. mixer back on low.
- Add the milk/egg mixture slowly and mix on low until just combined.
- Divide the batter into 24 cupcake liners and bake for 18 minutes or until the tops are springy and a skewer comes out clean.
- Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Russian Buttercream
- Make sure the butter is completely at room temperature.
- Put the butter in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whip on high for 5 full minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.2 sticks Unsalted Butter
- Turn the mixer down to medium speed and slowly drizzle in ⅓ of the condensed milk and whip until totally incorporated.1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Repeat until all the condensed milk is added.
- Add vanilla and salt and then beat on high speed for 1 minute.1 teaspoon Vanilla, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- The buttercream should be thick and glossy. If it isn't, see the troubleshooting guide in my Russian Buttercream post. Once it's the right consistency, add the food coloring and whip until evenly distributed.4 drops Pink Gel Food Coloring*
- Pipe or spread the buttercream onto your cupcakes and decorate with heart sprinkles.
Notes
It really helps and I love hearing all your feedback!
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