New Years Cupcakes

If you’re celebrating New Year’s, then you might as well have as much fun as you possibly can! These New Years Cupcakes are not only delicious but they are super festive! Ring in the New Year with this fun and festive dessert.

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Every time New Year’s Eve rolls around, I spend a ton of time wondering WHAT I’m going to make. Well, this year was easy because these Sparkling Cider Cupcakes are perfect! This year, don’t fret! Make these a simple dessert and then sit back and enjoy them.

four new years cupcakes on a marble countertop

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Easy to Make – You don’t need to be a great baker and these because they are super easy!
Festive – The cupcakes look like they’re straight out of a bakery and they taste delicious. You can use any really sparkling cider in these, so you can even do another flavor if you want.
Budget-friendly – You probably already have everything you need at home, which will save you even more money. If not though, all of the ingredients needed for this easy dessert is cost-effective.
Tasty – The cupcakes taste great and the cider bubbles as they bake, making them super fun!
Great For Kids to Make – These are great for kids to help with or just to have fun decorating! Top them off with some sprinkles and you’re all set.

Ingredients

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vanilla cake mix
eggs
oil
champagne or sparkling apple cider
Gold, silver, and party-themed sprinkles
Black decorating gel
Sugar cones, for party hats

Frosting:

butter, soft
milk
powdered sugar

See the recipe card below for quantities.

How to Make New Years Cupcakes

Bake cakes per box recipe replacing water with champagne or sparkling apple cider.

baked cupcakes unfrosted on a cooling rack

Allow them to cool completely.

frosting on a spoon with a glass mixing bowl

To prepare the frosting beat the butter until smooth then add in milk and powdered sugar one cup at a time.

Place frosting in a piping bag and frost each cupcake.

cupcake topped with a swirl of buttercream frosting

Decorate with sprinkles of choice.

To make the sugar cone party hats frost each cone and decorate with sprinkles.

Place on top of the cupcake.

Use decorating gel around the base of the party hat and add a pom on the tip.

Serve and enjoy!

Substitutions

Don’t have everything you need on hand to make this recipe? I have a few substitution ideas for you.

Store bought cupcakes – if you don’t have the time to make these cupcakes, that’s okay! Grab some store bought cupcakes and have fun decorating them.
Sprinkles – use the sprinkles you’d like for these tasty treats. If you only have Christmas sprinkles, use those!
Sparkling Wine – if you want to make these cupcakes adult friendly, then you can always use sparkling wine instead of sparkling apple cider. You can also use champagne in this recipe instead of water.

There are a few things you can change up with these New Year’s Cupcakes! If you don’t have everything on hand, then use what you do have.

Variations

Do you want to change up this recipe and make it your own? These variation ideas will help you out.

Regular cones – if you don’t have sugar cones on hand, you can use whatever cones you’d like!
Black decorating gel– use the colors you have on hand for the decorating gel. You can use black, pink, blue or whatever other colors you have on hand.
Kid friendly – while these cupcakes do have a decorating purpose to them, you can let the kids decorate them however they’d like!

Check out this Instant Pot New York Fudge Super Chunk Cake to serve beside these delicious homemade treats.

close up of a new years cupcake with several different colored sprinkles

Equipment

mixing bowls
cupcake pan
cupcake liners
mixer
piping bag

Storage

Store them in a container big enough and place the counter. Consume these cupcakes within 1-2 days because they are bound to go bad quickly because of the way they are decorated.

Tips

Make sure that your butter is at room temperature before making your frosting. If your butter is not softened you will not have a smooth and creamy frosting.
Change up the sprinkles to match your party theme.
Be careful to not overmix your batter. Overmixing can cause your baked cakes to be tough.
You can tell these are done when they are firm to the touch.
If you are using a homemade cake batter, use apple cider or champagne in place of milk.

Vertical image of 7 new years cupcakes on a marble countertop

FAQ

Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions.

Can I use these cupcakes for other occasions?

The answer is YES! You can make these cupcakes for any occasion. Change up the sprinkles and frosting however you’d like.

Can I leave out the cones?

You don’t have to add cones to the cupcakes, this is optional. It does make the cupcakes look like party hats though.

Can I freeze these cupcakes?

You can make the cupcakes and then freeze the actual cupcake. However, you’ll want to decorate until AFTER the cupcakes are unthawed and ready to be served.

Are these cupcakes made with sparkling cider?

Yes, these Sparkling Cider Cupcakes call for sparkling apple cider.

More Cupcake Recipes

Do you enjoy cupcakes? Try these delicious recipes:

Sparkling Cider Cupcakes

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