If you’re hosting a Halloween party and are looking for a unique dessert that everyone will love, you’ve come to the right place. The broken glass Halloween cupcakes look awesome on a tray, and will definitely be a hit with your guests.
Cupcakes are one of my favorite desserts to serve at a party.
They’re so easy to serve (no messing around with cutting cake), are fun to decorate, and everyone loves them.
So it should come as no surprise that they are my go-to Halloween treat for my annual party.
Which means I’m always looking for new spooky recipes to try.
And these broken glass cupcakes definitely fit the bill!
They just look so cool!
Ingredients
Here’s your shopping list:
- cake mix – 1 package white box cake mix
- oil – ½ cup vegetable oil (or whatever the measurement is for your cake mix)
- baking supplies – 1 can strawberry pie filling, ⅔ cup light corn syrup
- sugar – 1 pound (or 3½ cups) powdered sugar, 2 cups white sugar
- seasoning – ½ teaspoon salt
- dairy – 1 cup unsalted butter, 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- eggs – 3 large (or whatever the number is for your cake mix)
- flavoring – 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Substitutions
- While I used a white cake mix, you could make your own cake from scratch if you prefer.
- Homemade buttercream frosting can be substituted with store-bought icing.
- Any red pie filling can be used instead of the strawberry.
How to make broken glass Halloween cupcakes
Prep work
Take the butter out of the refrigerator a couple of hours ahead of time to allow it to soften.
Pre-heat the oven to 350℉.
Prepare two 12-hole muffin tins with cupcake liners.
Cover a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. We’ll use this to make the broken glass.
Make the cupcakes
Mix the cake with vegetable oil, eggs and water according to the package directions.
Our cake mix required ½ cup vegetable oil, 3 eggs and 1 cup water. But yours may be different, so use what your package directions include.
Fill the cupcake liners two-thirds full with the cupcake mix. To make this easy, I like to use a small ice cream scoop.
Spoon one strawberry from the pie filling and about ½ teaspoon of the pie filling jelly into the middle of each cupcake. Swirl slightly with a toothpick or knife.
Bake the cupcakes for 18 to 22 minutes (again, following the package instructions), or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Place the muffin tins on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes prior to removing the cupcakes. Let them cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting
In a mixer on high speed, beat 1 cup of softened butter for 3 to 5 minutes, or until creamy and light in color.
Mix in 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract.
Add the powdered sugar, salt and heavy cream.
Beat on low speed until the sugar is incorporated.
Then switch to high speed and beat until the frosting is fluffy, scraping down the sides as needed, about 5 minutes.
Stir slightly to remove any air pockets. Set aside.
Make the candy glass
In a large saucepan, stir together ¾ cup water, ⅔ cup corn syrup, and 2 cups white sugar.
Cook over medium heat until the the mixture starts to boil, stirring constantly.
Then continue to cook it without stirring, until it reaches 300℉ on a candy thermometer. Remove it from the heat immediately.
You don’t want the candy to get above 310℉ or the glass will come out more of an amber color, rather than clear.
Everyone’s stove and cooking conditions are different so the amount of time this will take can vary drastically. But on my stove, it took about 30 minutes.
If you don’t have a candy thermometer, put a couple of ice cubes in a glass of water. Your candy is done if it hardens right away when you drizzle it into the glass.
Immediately pour the syrup onto the prepared baking sheet. Be careful if you need to move the baking sheet. It will be hot!
Allow the syrup to cool completely into a solid sheet.
Then, strike it with the back of a metal spoon or a can of veggies (wrapped in a plastic back) to crack into large shards.
Store in the freezer until ready to use. Do not refrigerate as the candy will get sticky.
If you are storing the individual shards, separate them with pieces of parchment paper since they may stick.
Put the cupcakes together
Add a large star tip to a piping bag.
Fill the piping bag about half full with icing.
Frost each cupcake, by piping in a circular motion starting on the outside and moving in to a peak in the center. Like you would if you were making a soft ice cream cone.
Press the shards of candy glass into the frosting.
Finally, drizzle a little of the gel from the strawberry pie filling around each glass shard.
These cupcakes are best served within 8 hours. Otherwise, the candy glass may begin to dissolve.
Everyone will be shocked by the surprise “blood” inside the cupcake.
Storage
If you are making these cupcakes ahead of time, store the frosted cupcakes and the candy glass separately. Otherwise, the candy glass may begin to dissolve.
The cupcakes should be refrigerated.
While the glass should be put in the freezer.
If you are storing the individual shards (rather than the whole baking sheet), separate them with layers of parchment paper to keep them from sticking.
Then, put the candy glass shards and the fake blood on the cupcakes an hour or two before serving time.
Other Halloween cupcakes you might like
- 15 of the best Halloween cupcake recipes
- Bat Halloween cupcakes
- Ghost Halloween cupcakes
- Devilish red velvet Halloween cupcakes
- Graveyard Halloween cupcakes
Broken Glass Halloween Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 1 package white cake box mix
- 1 cup water or whatever your cake mix directions include
- ½ cup vegetable oil or whatever your cake mix directions include
- 3 large eggs or whatever your cake mix directions include
- ½ cup strawberry pie filling
For the frosting:
- 1 pound powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 teaspoons teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 Tablespoons heavy cream
For the candy glass:
- 2 cups sugar
- ¾ cup water
- ⅔ cup light corn syrup
- 3 tablespoons gel from the strawberry pie filling
Equipment
- 2 12-hole muffin tins
- 24 cupcake liners
- 1 mixer with mixing bowl
- 1 large ice cream scoop or spoon
- toothpick or knife
- 1 small spoon
- 1 Baking sheet
- parchment paper
- 1 large saucepan
- 1 candy thermometer optional
Instructions
Make the cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Prepare two muffin tins with cupcake liners.
- Mix the cake according to the package directions. Ours used 1 cup water, ½ cup vegetable oil and 3 large eggs. But yours may be different. Follow what is on the box.
- Using a large scoop, fill the cupcake liners two-thirds full.
- Spoon one strawberry from the pie filling and about ½ teaspoon of the pie filling jelly into the middle of each cupcake. Swirl slightly with a toothpick or knife.
- Bake the cupcakes for 18 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick in the center returns clean.
- Place the muffin tins on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes prior to removing the cupcakes to cool completely.
Make the frosting:
- With a mixer, beat the butter on high for 3 to 5 minutes or until creamy and light in color.
- Mix in the vanilla.
- Add the powdered sugar, salt and whipping cream, beating on low until the sugar is incorporated. Then switch to high speed and beat the frosting until fluffy, scraping down the sides as needed, about 5 minutes.
- Stir slightly to remove air pockets.
Make the candy glass:
- Cover a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large saucepan, stir together the sugar, water and corn syrup.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Continue cooking the mixture without stirring, until it reaches 300 degrees on a candy thermometer, or hard ball stage.
- Immediately pour the syrup onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Allow the syrup to cool completely into a solid sheet.
- Then, strike the candy with the back of a metal spoon or a can of veggies (wrapped in a plastic bag) to crack into large shards.
Put the cupcakes together:
- Transfer the icing into a piping bag with a star tip and frost with a circular pattern around each cupcake.
- Press the shards of candy glass into the frosting.
- Then drizzle with strawberry pie filling gel.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
- Any other type of red pie filling can be used instead of strawberry.
- If you are making the cupcakes ahead of time, the frosted cupcakes and the candy glass should be stored separately. The cupcakes should go in the refrigerator, while the candy glass should be stored in the freezer. Put them together shortly before serving to prevent the glass from melting.
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.
Have comments or questions about our broken glass Halloween cupcakes? Tell us in the section below.
This post was originally published on October 9, 2022 but was updated with new content on March 19, 2024.