How to Make Easy Turkey Cupcakes For Thanksgiving

We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post.

Are you looking for a cute thanksgiving cupcake idea? We have you covered! It is easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the holidays, so it can be easy to forget about what you are thankful for. This year let’s celebrate with easy turkey cupcakes! These tasty treats are sure to be a hit at your next Thanksgiving dinner, especially with the littles!

How to Make Easy Turkey Cupcakes For Thanksgiving

Turkey cupcakes are easy to make, easy to store for the holiday, and easy to serve. No one can resist a sweet treat on Thanksgiving. Try these easy turkey cupcakes this year!

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. If you’re looking for easy Thanksgiving cupcake recipes, you’ve come to the right place! These easy turkey cupcakes are perfect if you want to make your kids some easy but delicious treats this holiday season. You can use any flavor of cake mix that you like as the base – and even toss a little pumpkin pie spice into the batter for a fun flavor treat.

Easy Turkey Cupcakes for Kids

Think back to when you had to sit at the kids’ table – the way you felt wanting to be a “part” of the action with the adults. These whimsical treats can be a solution for that: a special treat that is just for the littles.

You can use it as a place setting decoration – but know that the kids will literally rip into them like a monkey on a cupcake – and probably before dinner is served.

You can use them as an activity the day before the holiday – simply baking them up in advance and then letting the kids have their way with the decoration. It is a proven fact that they take ownership of items when they have been a part of the process to make them. Just imagine how happy they will be as they present their gems to other guests at the holiday celebration. Kids of all ages will appreciate these festive cupcakes! It really is a great family activity.

Easy Turkey Cupcakes with Candy Corn

These are the most common decorations you see in the world of cupcake decorations. Candy corn makes for great turkey feathers, but we have a different, more colorful option in our version. So- unless you got that bag of candy corn on Halloween clearance, we have you covered. We also aren’t using Nutter Butters as that is obviously not a nut-safe alternative for an option on the Thanksgiving dessert table.

Easy Turkey Cupcake Idea

Seeing the Turkey Candy Cupcake decor at a Hobby Lobby gave me the ideas for these – you can also find it at Walmart, Michaels, or your local Target. If you can’t find it – use Wilton Candy Eyes, and then something like Mike and Ike candies for your beak and turkey feathers. eyes https://amzn.to/2ZilTmQ and https://amzn.to/3HNAWqb Some people also use candy fish – like Sweedish Fish, but with different colors of the fish to make the tail feathers for your Thanksgiving cupcake decoration.

How to Make Turkey Cupcakes

We use a yellow base for these cupcakes but if you want to use my favorite chocolate cupcakes? You can get the recipe here to make your adorable turkey cupcakes.

Turkey Cupcakes Recipe

For my favorite recipe you will need:

1 1/2 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 C sugar
1/2 C unsalted butter, room temp
1 large egg, room temp
2 large egg whites, room temp
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 C buttermilk

How to Make Cute Turkey Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pan with paper cupcake liners.

To make the cupcake batter, let’s start with the dry ingredients. Stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Set it aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer let’s get the wet ingredients going. Whip the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy in the mixing bowl.

Add in an egg, then the egg whites one at a time. Add the vanilla with the second egg white.

Measure out the buttermilk.

Mix 1/3 of the flour mixture alternating with 1/2 of the buttermilk. Mix after each addition only until just combined.

With all ingredients blended spoon the batter into the paper-lined cupcake pan until each tin is 3/4’s filled.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Allow cupcakes to cool in the cupcake pan for 10 minutes.

Remove cupcakes from the muffin tin and place each on a wire rack until cooled.

Easy to Make Turkey Cupcakes

Use a dressed-up boxed cake mix. (snort) Seriously the most common box mix at your local grocery store can work for the base too and help these easy cupcakes get to the table a little faster.

How do you store Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes?

Here is the thing – with the more futzy designs, I like to make them in advance of an event or get-together. The best way to usually store your finished creations? Room Temperature.

Granted, they aren’t going to be around that long – my family of three could easily take them out in two to three days. Since you are using canned frosting instead of buttercream frosting or fondant, they should be fine for five to six days. You can learn more about that in our article How To Frost A Cupcake.

You can also make the cupcake bases in advance. Just pop them into an airtight container and keep them in the freezer.

Chocolate Frosting Ingredients:

1 C unsalted butter, softened
3/4 C cocoa powder
3 C powder sugar
3/4 C heavy cream

Frosting Directions:

Beat the softened butter on its own until smooth in a large bowl.

Add the cocoa and powder sugar alternately with heavy cream into the creamed butter until it becomes a smooth and thick texture.

If the frosting is too thick, add more heavy cream, if too thin, add more powder sugar.

Scoop frosting into a large pastry piping bag with a frosting round tip.

Twist the open end of the pastry bag to push the frosting to the tip.

Pipe the frosting onto the top of the cupcake.

Thanksgiving Cupcakes Decorations Directions:

Following the outline for the layout of the decorations on the cupcake.

Using the Turkey candy cupcake product found at Walmart, Michaels, Target, or Hobby Lobby

Place the eyes in the front of the cupcake facing you above the 1/2 way point in the frosting in front of the cupcake.

Add the turkey’s beak and the waddle just below the eyes.

Now place 2 yellow pieces in the front below the eyes for the gobble, making sure to spread them apart like the picture shows.

Begin to create the tail feathers. There is no color order that is right or wrong. Be creative and have a blast with it – it is supposed to be a fun treat.

I started with the back row first and then row two and finished with the row closest to the eyes.

Now, look at your cute little turkey cupcakes! Aren’t they a fu

Now, look at your cute little turkey cupcakes! Aren’t they a fun idea? Whatever you do this Thanksgiving season, create memories with the family and littles. Time goes so fast that you are looking back at the memories before you know it – make them great ones.

Other great Thanksgiving recipes:

Other cupcake recipes you may enjoy:

Dannelle

A Monkey on a Cupcake