These 4th of July Cupcakes take your box of white cake mix to a whole new level with this fun and easy to make patriotic dessert that everyone will love. What could be more fun than these adorable patriotic cupcakes?

4th of July Cupcakes

There is no better way to celebrate the 4th of July than with delicious desserts! Some of our favorite desserts that we always have on hand during our 4th of July celebrations are 4th of July Patriotic crack, 4th of July marshmallows, and our 4th of July cheesecake trifle. This year we have a lot of kids coming to the celebration so I decided that I wanted to add cupcakes into the mix so we are making these fun and easy 4th of July cupcakes.

You will love these cupcakes for so many reasons. They are:

Easy to make!
Take an ordinary box of white cake mix and elevate it to the next level with the addition of other ingredients!
Super moist!
Fun for the whole family!

Cupcake ingredients:

1 (15.25-ounce) box of white cake mix
¾ cup sour cream
½ cup vegetable oil
½ cup water
4 egg whites
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract (optional)
Red and blue food coloring (8-9 red drops, 6 blue drops)
Red and blue sanding sugar for decorating

Frosting ingredients:

½ cup butter softened
3 cups powdered sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons clear vanilla extract
3-4 tablespoons heavy cream or milk

How to make 4th of July Cupcakes

For the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350°F. Place 12 cupcake liners into cupcake tins.

In the bowl of a stand or hand mixer, combine cake mix, sour cream, oil, water, egg whites, and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds, then scrape the edges of the bowl. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes longer, scraping the edges when necessary, until well combined.

Divide the batter into 3 medium bowls (about 1 cup each). Add red food coloring to one bowl, mixing well after each drop or two, until the batter is a nice red color (about 8-9 drops total). Repeat with another bowl and the blue coloring (about 6 drops total). Do not put any food coloring into the third bowl of batter.

If you want cupcakes with blue on top, start by spooning 1 tablespoon of red batter into the bottom of the cupcake liners; spread evenly. Next, spoon 1 tablespoon of white batter on top of the red; spread evenly so that no red batter can be seen underneath. Lastly, spoon 1 tablespoon of blue batter; spread evenly so no white batter can be seen. The cupcake liners should be about ⅔ full. Do the opposite of this process if you want cupcakes with red on top.

Bake the cupcakes for 18-20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Before adding frosting, make sure that the cupcakes are completely cooled.

For the frosting, whip the butter using an electric mixer until it is lighter in color and the consistency is slightly fluffy (about 1-2 minutes).

Add the powdered sugar and salt. Beat for 1 minute until well combined and scrape the sides of the bowl halfway through mixing.

Add the vanilla and 3 tablespoons of the cream and beat for 1 minute. Slowly add more cream, if needed, to achieve the desired consistency. Whip for another minute or so until light and fluffy.

Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. Sprinkle tops with the sanding sugar and serve.

Tips Tricks and FAQs

When spreading the layers of your cupcakes, I highly recommend using a toothpick. This helps spread the layers evenly around the cupcake liners.
Be sure to not overbake the cupcakes. If you do, you may find your blue layer turning green rather than blue.
Be sure to divide your batter evenly and be consistent in filling the cupcake liners evenly among the colors.
Feel free to adjust the amount of food coloring you add to fit your needs.
If you prefer you can use store bought frosting if you are short on time.

Storage

You will want to store your cupcakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Are there other variations of these cupcakes that I can make?

While we created these cupcakes for the 4th of July, feel free to swap out the colors for other holidays or parties.

What are substitutions that I can make?

If you are short on time you can use store bought frosting.

Rather than use 4 egg whites, you can use 3 whole eggs instead. Just note if you do this, your cake won’t be as white.

4th of July Cupcakes

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

These 4th of July Cupcakes take your box of white cake mix to a whole new level with this fun and easy to make patriotic dessert that everyone will love.

Ingredients

Cupcake ingredients:
1 (15.25-ounce) box of white cake mix
¾ cup sour cream
½ cup vegetable oil
½ cup water
4 egg whites
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract (optional)
Red and blue food coloring (8-9 red drops, 6 blue drops)
Red and blue sanding sugar for decorating
Frosting ingredients:
½ cup butter softened
3 cups powdered sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons clear vanilla extract

Instructions

For the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350°F. Place 12 cupcake liners into cupcake tins.
In the bowl of a stand or hand mixer, combine cake mix, sour cream, oil, water, egg whites, and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds, then scrape the edges of the bowl. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes longer, scraping the edges when necessary, until well combined.
Divide the batter into 3 medium bowls (about 1 cup each). Add red food coloring to one bowl, mixing well after each drop or two, until the batter is a nice red color (about 8-9 drops total). Repeat with another bowl and the blue coloring (about 6 drops total). Do not put any food coloring into the third bowl of batter.
If you want cupcakes with blue on top, start by spooning 1 tablespoon of red batter into the bottom of the cupcake liners; spread evenly. Next, spoon 1 tablespoon of white batter on top of the red; spread evenly so that no red batter can be seen underneath. Lastly, spoon 1 tablespoon of blue batter; spread evenly so no white batter can be seen. The cupcake liners should be about ⅔ full. Do the opposite of this process if you want cupcakes with red on top.
Bake the cupcakes for 18-20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Before adding frosting, make sure that the cupcakes are completely cooled.
For the frosting, whip the butter using an electric mixer until it is lighter in color and the consistency is slightly fluffy (about 1-2 minutes).
Add the powdered sugar and salt. Beat for 1 minute until well combined and scrape the sides of the bowl halfway through mixing.
Add the vanilla and 3 tablespoons of the cream and beat for 1 minute. Slowly add more cream, if needed, to achieve the desired consistency. Whip for another minute or so until light and fluffy.
Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. Sprinkle tops with the sanding sugar and serve.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 353Total Fat: 22gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 30mgSodium: 154mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 0gSugar: 35gProtein: 2g