Rainbow Cupcakes

I have seen this recipe all over the place! It’s so fun and easy, especially if you’re using a mix. Well, I did use a mix, but a homemade one, but it’s worth making for the piece of mind it brings knowing what is in it. In order to make sure I had an equal amount of each color for these, I weighed out the amount in cups (8 ounces) and used my smallest disher to make sure I put roughly the same amount of each color batter in the cups. These were a lot of fun to make, and the kids enjoyed helping add the color to the batter. I liked the flavor of these and the almond extract tastes kind of like cherry to me for some reason. Next time I will try the same recipe, but with cake flour because I think all the stirring made the cupcakes more dense than I expected. I’m sure if I left the batter white, that wouldn’t have been a problem.
The buttercream was so fluffy, light and not too sweet. I found a recipe that I knew I needed to cut in half and it worked out perfectly. I’m not a “frosting” lover, but this buttercream was spoon licking good!

Overall, I’m really pleased with how these turned out. It was my first white cake I have ever made. I had never used almond extract before either, but I liked the flavor that it gave to these cupcakes. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Rainbow Cupcakes – 

  • One batch of white cake mix
  • 3/4 cup of unsalted butter, at room temp
  • 5 egg whites (or 1 cup of Egg Beaters pure egg whites)
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • *equipment – five cups, five spoons, gel food coloring, #60 disher, and muffin papers
Directions –
1. Cream butter. Add egg whites, one at a time until mixed, (mine never became a cohesive batter, but don’t worry). Add milk, vanilla and almond extract then slowly add the dry mixture in batches. Be sure to scrape down the sides of your bowl and do not overmix.
2. Divide the batter into five cups, then add a one color into each cup, (*I used pink, yellow, green, blue and purple gel colors. Liquid tends to thin out batters or icing, and you’ll use less of the gel vs. liquid) until your desired shade is achieved.
3. Prep your muffin tin by adding white muffin papers (you can see the colors through the white) Using a small disher (size 60) or a tablespoon measure, add your colored batter to each muffin cup in your desired pattern.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 17-20 minutes or until done. Cool in the pan for about five minutes, then remove the cupcakes and place them on a wire rack to cool.

Vanilla Buttercream – adapted from Apron Days

  • 4 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
  • 2 cups butter, room temp
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 4 tablespoons whipping cream
  • a good pinch of salt
 Directions –
1. Cream butter and sugar on low-speed until combined, then beat on medium speed for several minutes (the time here is crucial in order to obtain a lighter frosting, so don’t skimp.)
2. Add vanilla, cream, and salt and beat on medium speed for another couple of minutes, adding more cream if you want an even lighter consistency (here’s where you would add food coloring, too, if you’d like).
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