Crazy Cupcakes: One Easy Recipe with Endless Flavor Variations!
Save RecipeMy Crazy Cupcakes recipe is so easy! Make flavors like Birthday Cake & Red Velvet or create your own: it’s my best-ever cupcake recipe with endless possibilities.
Hi Bold Bakers!
Amazing, over-the-top cupcakes have been popular for years but my Crazy Cupcakes are a real game changer! Why bake a whole cake and slice it up when you can have little handheld cupcakes, piled high with frosting, filled with unique flavors?
I am 100% on the Crazy Cupcakes train and I am taking it all the way with this master recipe for Crazy Cupcakes! Just like my Crazy Cookie Dough and Crazy Dough Recipes, this recipe for Crazy Cupcakes is one easy recipe with endless possibilities.
Where To Start With My Crazy Cupcakes
My Crazy Cupcakes start with a classic sweet sponge. This recipe acts as your Master Cupcake recipe, your Best Cupcake recipe. No matter what flavor you are making you will never need another cupcake recipe again. This cake is fluffy moist and sweet, making it the perfect canvas for whatever flavors you and your family are craving.
After you prepare the sponge you simply add in your choice of mix-ins. From classics like Red Velvet and Carrot Cake, to fun flavors like Chocolate and Peanut Butter, I have you covered. My personal favorite is the Birthday Cake Cupcake!
[ Speaking of Birthday Cake, here’s a recipe for a big vanilla one! ]
All of these flavors are topped off with everyone’s favorite part, loads of frosting and extra toppings. These Crazy Cupcakes are a sight to behold, and perfect for any party or just to bring to a friend. This recipe is one of my favorites as it takes something as simple as a plain cupcake recipe and transforms it into the little personalized mini cakes of your dreams!
Below are just a few of my flavor ideas but you can make so many more. Let me know in the comments below what you make!
Red Velvet Cupcakes
Lemon & Blueberry Cupcakes
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Cookies & Cream Cupcakes
Birthday Cake Cupcakes
Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Check out these other cupcake recipes!
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My Crazy Cupcakes recipe is so easy! Make flavors like Birthday Cake & Red Velvet or create your own: it's my best-ever cupcake recipe with endless possibilities.
- 1 cup (8oz/225g) sugar
- 1 cup (8oz/225g) butter, softened
- 4 eggs
- 1 ⅔ cup (8oz/225g) all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons milk
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- 1/2 tablespoons grated carrot
- 1 teaspoon raisins , chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon walnuts , chopped
-
Cream cheese frosting for topping
- 1 -2 teaspoons cocoa powder , sifted (depending on taste)
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter
- Peanut butter frosting for topping
-
Reeses peanut butter cups for garnish
(optional)
- 1 Teaspoon of lemon zest percupcake
- 2 tablespoons fresh blueberries
- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Buttercream frosting for topping
-
Lemon zest for garnish
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon sprinkles
- Buttercream frosting for topping
-
Sprinkles for garnish
- 1/2 tablespoon cocoa powder , sifted
- Red food coloring
-
Cream cheese frosting for topping
- 2 Oreo cookies , crushed
- Extra Oreo cookie for garnish
- Buttercream frosting for topping
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Preheat your oven to 350oF (180oC) and line a cupcake tray with cupcake liners.
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In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment beat your butter until fluffy.
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Add your sugar and cream together the sugar and butter until light and pale in color..
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Add your eggs one at a time, being sure they are fully incorporated between each one. Then add in the milk.
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Add the dry ingredients and mix until a smooth batter is formed.Do not over mix.
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Scoop a 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) of crazy cupcake batter in a bowl.
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Next depending on which flavor you'd like to make mix in your add-ins.
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Bake for 16 to 18 minutes then remove from the oven and allow to cool fully before frosting.
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Enjoy!
Watch the Recipe Video!
For peanut butter frosting: One tablespoon of peanut butter should flavor 4ozs/125g of buttercream frosting, but this depends on your taste. I suggest you taste as you go.
This amount should frost 4 cupcakes depending on how you use it.
Get My Crazy Cookie Dough Recipe!
Meet Gemma
Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professional chef originally from Ireland, and I’m passionate about sharing my years of experience to show you how to make game-changing baking recipes with over-the-top results! Join more than 1 Million other Bold Bakers in the community for new video recipes every week!
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Hi Gemma,
I love this recipe so much and have made a lot of cupcakes.
I have a question, can I use this recipe to make a small cake?
Thank you 🙂
Yes Sonny, you absolutely can use this to make a cake :). Probably 2 (8 inch) tins.
Best,
Gemma.
I love your Crazy Cupcake recipe, have made a ton of different flavors but wondering if I could use this recipe to make pumpkin cupcakes and just add pumpkin and cinnamon.
I’m delighted to hear that!! Thanks for trying it 🙂
Best,
Gemma.
This has been so good…I just made a variety of mini cupcakes and started with my base batter and reviewed your recipes for a few of my variations.
Thank you
Hi there,
good to hear, thank you for letting us know, and for this kind review,
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma was just wondering if I make the lemon and blueberries but don’t include the blueberries as I’m allergic and just use the lemon base and add Gordon’s pink gin to the butter cream would this work to make a sorta gin inspired cocktail I’m worried about adding the booze will it split the butter cream Thankyou Gee x
Haha! Gee, you came up with a good idea! A bit crazy, even for crazy cupcakes, but fun.
I am not sure it will work for you though, I think it will be lost in the flavor. It may be better to incorporate it into a glaze, or a sugar syrup, to top the cakes. A sugar syrup is made with 1/3 water to 2/3 sugar, dissolved in a pan, and simmered until it thickens a little. You can add the gin to this!
You could warm it and mix with a little icing sugar, to make a glaze. You would apply this to the hot cupcakes, return to the oven for a few minutes to set it up. A little lemon zest in this would be divine! You can run the experiments, I will sit back and wait for the verdict!
Gemma 🙂
I made these yesterday and it turned out perfect! I just started in this whole baking thing, and very glad that I found your channel. Keep up the good work Gemma😉 I can’t wait to try your other recipes. Wish me luck!
Hi Fatimah,
Well I am delighted that you are baking! It is the start of a good thing, and you will never be hungry, or short of friends!
good to have you with the Bold Baking community. do feel free to add ideas/comments/suggestions or information from your place.
Thank you for being in touch,
Gemma 🙂
I made the cupcakes with applesauce but center sunk
Hi there,
You may have slightly under-baked them! Try giving them a little more time. Applesauce should work really well with this recipe,
Gemma 🙂
Hi gemma ,
I am so glad you reply to me
I making vanilla cupcakes made with 4 ingredients, butter/sugar/flour/eggs and a touch of milk.
But i substitute the egg with your buttermilk recipe . All things are measured accurate. But my cupcake too dence in centre after baking and taste like dough .
I am make too many times cake and cupcakes from other recipe but all are taste like flour so i think recipe not good but after i am making cupcakes with your recipe . Because you are best baker .
But i don’t know why my cake and cupcakes taste like flour. so, please tell me why ??
Hi there,
Change the egg substitute.
Use a fruit puree, applesauce will give you a better result. Flax egg too is important to know, and try.
I cannot think why your cakes are tasting of flour though, it does not sound right. They should not be dense either when you mix them properly.
So, cream the butter and sugar, beat in the applesauce, and fold in the flour, gently. That should do it for you,
Gemma 🙂
HI Gemma!
I love your teaching videos, I’m learning so much from you! Thx!!
I followed your cupcake recipe, and the batter tasted GREAT!! But I’m not sure where I went wrong after I baked them. Cupcakes seemed really dense. I baked for 18 minutes and most were done. I think maybe two baked less than fully because I could see the batter in the middle top part when I broke one in half. I used four ounces of butter at room temperature and then realized I needed an additional four ounces and added that cold, right out of the fridge. This caused a lot of mixing. I waited about 20 minutes to try and let the additional butter thaw out some. Finally, I kept whipping until I arrived at a creamy consistency. Then I moved on to the next step and added the sugar. Please help because I want to try it out again 🙂
Best,
Maria
Hi Maria,
I think I hear two issues here.
First of all I am not sure your oven temperature is ok. these should bake in about 15 mins at 180c/350f.
Some ovens take a bit of getting to know, and this applies in particular to an OTG. Reading the instructions for your oven will be a BIG help.
Then you over mixed the batter, this will develop the gluten and give you a tough result.
So, this is an easy recipe, it is proportional. when you use 4ozs butter, it will be 4 ozs sugar, 4oz flour, 2 eggs and a little milk. I have no idea what you did with the remainder of the ingredients, so try again. Make a small mix to practice. As above, 4,4,4,2.
Let me know how you get on with this,
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma
I love your all recipes. I am making vanilla cupcakes with buttermilk . All measurements are correct but my cupcake too dence in centre and taste like flour and why my cake and cupcakes taste like flour.
Please help me
Hi there,
I think you need to tell me about the recipe you are using!
This is an easy, traditional recipe, made with 4 ingredients, butter/sugar/flour/eggs and a touch of milk.
If you are substituting the egg I think it is best to use a fruit puree, like applesauce.
There is no way this should taste like flour if you follow the recipe carefully. I am confused!
Gemma 🙂
Just put my first batch in the oven. I’ll see what happens in a few minutes! One question on the printed recipe and the video. Lemon/Blueberry, my favorite all time flavors!, you have vanilla listed in the written ingredients, but don’t mention it in the video. Did you use it in that version?
Hi Dee,
oh funny. I’ll have to look into that. Vanilla is up to you. I used it but if you don’t have it you can leave it out considering you are adding lots of lovely lemon and blueberries.
Best,
Gemma.
Hi Gemma,
I’m new to baking and kind of confused on multiplying to make a full batch of each flavor. What do you mean by multiply by 8-10? Also, I wanted to know how to make a dozen cupcakes in lemon/blueberry, strawberry, and banana? what will my measurements be?
Thanks!
Hi Nikki,
I give the measurements for making 1 muffin. So if you want to make the whole batch just 1 flavor then multiply the ingredients by 10 of so.
Awesome! Thank you so much for a fool proof recipe. This one’s a winner! Cant wait to try out your crazy cookie dough recipe😊
Thank you Gulmina, I am happy to have this kind review,
Gemma 🙂
I feel that it is to grease … to much butter ! the botom of my cupcakes where super grease and i use the 240 gr
Hi Amanda,
This may have been to do with how you mixed this recipe.
This is a creaming method, and the recipe is traditional. You do not allow the butter to melt before creaming. I think there is something I do not know here, it should not give a greasy result.
Tell me about the butter!
Gemma 🙂
How could I make this a full batch of strawberry and how many full cakes can this make?
Hi Lexi,
The recipe here (https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/make-brown-sugar/) is the same basic batter. It will make 3x6inch cakes, or 2x8inch cakes.You did not tell me the size of your pans!
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma,
I love how simple and awesome your recipes are. They taste amazing. I just got one doubt my first batch of cupcake turned out so well. But I am not sure why the next batch turned hard . They tasted awesome though. Can u tell me what went wrong with it?
Hi Sana,
What you did not tell me was how you baked them!
If you over bake they will be hard, and the type of oven, temperature etc matters too.
Other than that following the recipe carefully, not over mixing etc should produce consistent results. I really do not know why these should be hard, I think I do not have enough information!
Gemma 🙂
I just made these for my daughter and 3 grandchildren and they were a hit! I only had the ingredients to make the vanilla birthday cupcakes but they loved them. My daughter normally doesn’t like cake as she finds it too sweet. These were light, moist, and not too sweet making them the perfect for your buttercream frosting recipe. I’ll try to get my son-in-law to try one. He’s currently on a diet. Oops, if there are any left. I’m seeing people go past me for a second one.
Hi Anne,
That is great, and children love to bake, and to eat what they see being baked too, so it is a win win.
I am happy you like this recipe, good luck to the son in law, he is in trouble now 😉
Gemma 🙂
Hello if I want to make a dozen of each cupcakes how much of the ingredients do I use?
Hi,
you would just multiply the mixing by around 8-10.
Best,
Gemma.
Hey
Since i am using condensed milk as an egg replacement , should i reduce the amount of sugar?
Else wouldnt it be too sweet??
This is a great question. Condensed milk however is a sub for cookies and not cakes. You will want to use buttermilk, apple sauce or mashed banana.
Check my chart
Best,
Gemma.
Hi Gemma,
I have not made the cupcakes yet, but do I have to add butter and baking powder?
Hi Bella,
Baking powder is the raising agent in this bake, so you either use self raising flour, or baking powder.
If you cannot get this you may have bicarbonate of soda, which used with an acid ingredient like buttermilk or natural yogurt will give you some leavening, but baking powder/self raising flour will be best.
Butter is more than a fat, it enriches the bake and gives a lovely flavor. If you use oil you use about 1/3 less of flavorless oil/light vegetable oil. This will not be the same recipe though, so try 1/2 batch to see how it works for you,
Gemma 🙂
It s.a.cup cake recipe that i appreciate a lot ,i have made lot of time without frosting,cup cake is fantastic, moist not dry yiamyyyy .i have made carotted cup cake flavour yiamyyy with cinamòn n carottes … I am in Seychelles and all your recipes are well explained and simple.thanks so much…
Hi Paulette,
I am delighted you like the recipes, I do try to keep them simple, and easy to follow.
Good to have you with us in your beautiful country,
Gemma 🙂
Hey, I amust say this is the best Cup cake recipe I have ever used. I love the flavor but the cake was dry, can I try using buttermilk? Thanks
Hi Joy,
I wonder if there was a change in the ingredients. This is a traditional recipe, essentially based on a Victoria sponge, generally a moist sponge cake.
How it is mixed matters, and the ingredients matter too. You can use buttermilk, as the milk element here if this is what you mean. It will soften the crumb a little, and may make this more moist. Try it, it will not do any harm,
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma, I’ve made this recipe three times and each time, the cupcakes have been dry. The flavors were good though! I have followed the recipe exactly, except for the baking time. I think I haven’t used the right method for checking for doneness. Each time at 18 minutes, the cupcakes are not done using the toothpick method. So, I let them go two minutes more (even checking after one minute) and they end up dry and dense. Is there a different way to tell if they’re done? I’m really torn whether I’ll try these again but if I do, I will definitely have to remove them at 18 minutes and hope that does the trick. Any other thoughts?
Hi Jennie,
uGHH This is a funny one. It’s hard for me to advise you cause I can’t see them. Are you sure at 18 they are not done?
If they are dense it sounds like not over baking but over mixing to be honest.
Sorry I couldn’t be more help,
Gemma.
Hi gemma i want to make all the cupcakes red velvet how many tablespoons of cocoa powder i would need ?
Hi, you will need around 2/3 cup (or 10-12 tablespoons)
Hope this helps,
Gemma.
Hi Gemma! I’ve been following you on Facebook and YouTube for sometime now and I have to say that this recipe is now my go to cupcake recipe. Thank you so much for sharing It! I’ve used it thrice and it’s yet to fail me, I love, love, LOVE your recipes and continue to look forward to more tips, tricks and recipes from you 😊😊
Hi Kristal,
Thank you for this very kind review of this recipe. I agree, it is a good one, and an easy one to remember too. Good job you, glad you are baking with us,
Gemma 🙂