Description
Delightfully spooky and delicious Bloody Eyeball Cupcakes featuring moist red velvet cake filled with cherry pie filling and topped with creamy cheesecake frosting and eerie eyeball candies—perfect for Halloween or themed parties.
Ingredients
Scale
Cake:
- 1 box red velvet cake mix, plus ingredients on back of box
- 1 small box cheesecake instant pudding mix
Filling:
- About 1 cup cherry pie filling
Frosting:
- 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/2 stick butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1-2 Tbsp cream or milk
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
Decoration:
- Red sparkle food gel
- Eyeball gumballs (or another eyeball candy)
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare Pans: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 muffin tins with about 16 cupcake liners and set aside.
- Make Cake Batter: In a large bowl, prepare the red velvet cake mix according to package directions until smooth. Stir in the cheesecake instant pudding mix until fully incorporated.
- Bake Cupcakes: Evenly portion the batter into the lined muffin tins, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake for 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with light moist crumbs. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
- Core Cupcakes: Using a small paring knife, carefully cut out the center of each cooled cupcake to create a cavity. Discard the removed pieces.
- Fill Centers: Spoon about 1 tablespoon of cherry pie filling into each cupcake cavity, aiming to include at least two cherries per cupcake. Set aside.
- Prepare Frosting: In a stand mixer bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract, and cream using the paddle attachment for 1-2 minutes until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, about 1 cup at a time, until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Frost Cupcakes: Transfer frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large open-circle tip. Pipe the frosting high onto the filled cupcakes, covering the cherry filling completely.
- Decorate: Use red sparkle food gel to draw squiggly red lines vertically along the sides of each cupcake, starting from the peak of the frosting. Top each cupcake with an eyeball gumball to complete the spooky look.
- Serve: Serve immediately or store cupcakes refrigerated until ready to serve.
Notes
- Use cream or milk to adjust frosting consistency for easier piping.
- Cherry pie filling can be replaced with another red jam or jelly for a different flavor.
- Eyeball gumballs can be substituted with candy eyeballs or hand-decorated white chocolate discs.
- Make sure cupcakes are completely cool before coring and filling to avoid crumbling.
- Store cupcakes covered in the refrigerator up to 3 days for freshness.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 35 g
- Sodium: 270 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 42 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 45 mg
