Brighten up your summer picnic with these July 4th Cupcakes! White cupcakes filled with red, white and blue sprinkles and topped with homemade frosting.

Nothing says a party like a cupcake, and these July 4th cupcakes are just what your summer party needs. Whether it is a family barbecue, reunion or an Independence Day picnic, these sprinkle filled cupcakes will bring smiles all around.

a cupcake with a firecracker toothpick on top

About these July 4th Cupcakes:

Flavor: This is a simple white cupcake with vanilla flavor. Swap out the vanilla extract for almond extract.
Texture: The cupcakes are rich and moist and the buttercream frosting is smooth and creamy. You’ll get texture when you bite in and find all the sprinkles and mini M&Ms inside.

Easy July 4th Cupcakes

This recipe starts with a cake mix, but we’re adding a few ingredients to make it deliciously rich and moist. This is very similar to the WASC cake recipe that has been popular for years.

Can I use the whole egg instead of just the egg whites? Egg whites are a must in this cake recipe. This is what really makes the cake light and fluffy. Save the egg yolk for your morning scrambled eggs.
Can you taste the sour cream in the cake mix? No, but this will help make your cake richer and creamier than your normal box cake. This really brings the cake to the next level and makes it taste better than a bakery.

How to Make Filled Cupcakes

The fun part of these cupcakes is when you bite inside and find a pocket of sprinkles and mini M&Ms inside. How do you do this? Here’s how:

Allow the cupcakes to cool completely. If they are warm at all, the sprinkles may bleed and the chocolate may melt.
Cut out the center of the cupcakes using a knife or even a small spoon. Set the cupcake cutouts aside so you can place it back on the cupcake to close it up.
Fill the center with 1-2 teaspoons of sprinkle mixture.

overhead view of july 4th cupcakes filled with mini m&ms and sprinkles

Then place the cupcake cutout back on top, pressing down slightly.

overhead view of cupcakes in a cupcake pan

Once you pipe the frosting on top, you’ll never see the cutout part. It’s fun to do this for just about any holiday.

Which piping tip works best for cupcakes?

Depending on what style you are wanting to achieve I recommend 2A, 1M, 6B, and 2D. These will give you those bakery-style swirls that everyone loves right from your own home. They are large tips that only require a piping bag and no coupler.

july 4th cupcakes filled with sprinkles on a plate

Storage Instructions

You can make these a day before you need to. These will be good for up to 3 days in an air-tight container.

You may also love our easy patriotic cake and our tie dye firecracker cake!

July 4th Cupcakes

5 from 2 votes

Brighten up your summer picnic with these July 4th Cupcakes! White cupcakes filled with red, white and blue sprinkles and topped with homemade frosting.

Servings 24

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 25

Cooling Time 1

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Review Recipe

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

1 box white cake mix (15.25 ounces)
1 cup all-purpose flour 130 grams
1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cup water
1 cup sour cream
4 large egg whites room temperature
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the candy filling:

1/4 cup red and blue mini-M&M’s
1/4 cup red sprinkles
1/4 cup blue sprinkles
1/4 cup holiday stars

For the buttercream whipped frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
1 cup shortening
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract
5-6 cups powdered sugar

Topping:

sprinkles optional sprinkles
candy holiday stars
fondant stars

Instructions

Make the cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Line cupcake pans with cupcake liners and set it aside.
In a large mixing bowl whisk together, cake mix, all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, and salt.
With an electric hand mixer or a kitchen aid mix dry ingredients on low.
Slowly, add in water, sour cream, egg whites, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until everything has been combined.
Pour or spoon batter into the lined cupcake pan. Make sure to only fill about 2/3 of the cupcake liner, since the batter will rise a bit.
Bake in preheated oven for 22 minutes or until the center is baked.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
In a small mixing bowl mix together sprinkles, candy stars, and mini-M&M’s.
Cut out the center of the cupcakes and fill with 1- 2 teaspoons of sprinkled candy mixture. Add top back to the cupcake to hold filling in.

Make the frosting:

With an electric hand mixer or a kitchen aid, cream together butter and shortening until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes.
Add in heavy cream and vanilla extract.
Slowly, add in confectioners sugar a little at a time. If frosting is too thick you can add 1 teaspoon of heavy cream until you have reached the texture, you are looking for. Mix frosting for another 3 minutes.
If you are wanting to dye the frosting red or blue, do so at this time.
Add frosting to a piping bag and pipe cupcakes.
Top with sprinkles, star fondant, or candy stars.

Notes

Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks.

The calories shown are based on the recipe making 24 cupcakes, with 1 serving being 1 cupcake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. The information in the nutrition box are calculated through a program and there is room for error. If you need an accurate count, I recommend running the ingredients through your favorite nutrition calculator.**