Whether you are waving goodbye to summer, or just want an adorable celebration of all things camp, these adorable campfire cupcakes are sure to make everyone smile. Just a handful of ingredients: chocolate cupcakes that you make or buy at the store, Tootsie Rolls candies and some orange and yellow colored icing, and baby you’ve got a “real” fire goin’! Here are the steps and some tips for getting the fire just right.
This recipe makes 3 cupcakes. Easily double or triple what you need in the recipe card below so you have the right amount of candies and icing. Look for my easy tip below if you don’t want to bother with piping the flames.
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Ingredients you’ll need
- 3 chocolate cupcakes – use my homemade chocolate cupcake recipe
- 9 Tootsie Rolls – three per cupcake, for the campfire “logs”
- 2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips – the glowing “embers”
- 1 container chocolate frosting – or make your own, we have a couple different chocolate frosting recipes
- 1 container white frosting – you’ll dye for the flames
- 10 drops red food coloring
- 6 drops orange food gel
- 6 drops yellow food coloring
Tools & equipment
- Piping bag
- Star piping tip
- 3 small bowls (for tinting the frosting)
- Bowl scraper/spatula
How to make campfire cupcakes
Add a light layer of chocolate frosting (if you want to make the cupcakes and the frosting from scratch, try this recipe: chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting) so the toppings have something to help keep them in place.
Place three Tootsie Rolls on top of each cupcake, stacking them like a little pile of firewood. if you have regular size Tootsie rolls, cut them with a paring knife so you have three small logs and set them down on a cupcake in this “Y” configuration.
Tuck mini chocolate chips into the frosting around the logs to look like glowing embers. Set aside.
Divide the white frosting evenly into three bowls. Tint one red, one orange, and one yellow, stirring each until the color is smooth and even.
Add your star tip to a pastry bag. Spoon the red, orange, and yellow frosting side by side into the bag — the three colors squeeze out together and taper at the top like a real “Flame”. Pipe the frosting up from the center of the “logs”; pull upward gently so the flames rise and taper.
Tips
- Use gel food coloring for the brightest flames. They create bright colors without making the frosting too thin. We want a nice thick frosting for the flames.
- Don’t overmix the three colors in the bag. Load each color loosely side-by-side for the best fire effect.
- If your kitchen is warm and the frosting is a bit too soft, chill the frosted cupcakes for 30 mins in the fridge. You can even add the bowls of frosting to the fridge to help firm it up before adding to the pastry bag.
- This recipe makes 3 cupcakes, but you can make more — just keep the ratio of three Tootsie Roll logs per cupcake. Use our tool in the recipe card below to double or triple so you have the right amounts.
- If you don’t have pastry bag with a star tip (or just don’t want to bother), just use two spoons to swoop some frosting into a tapered edge. First: Add a thick spoonful of frosting to the center of each cupcakte. With the back of one spoon and the tip of another, make a gentle swooping action to coax the icing into three “flames”. Voilå: a general idea of a campfire.
The bottom line
Want more fun ideas for camp food? Try my Oven-baked S’mores, how to make s’mores in the microwave, learn about marshmallows with our FAQ, see our list of mountain pie ideas, or see a list of our camping desserts
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Campfire Cupcakes (No-Bake Option Included!)
Ingredients
- 3 chocolate cupcakes homemade or store-bought
- 9 Tootsie Rolls 3 per cupcake
- 2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips
- 1 container chocolate frosting
- 1 container white frosting
- 10 drops red food coloring
- 6 drops orange food gel
- 6 drops yellow food coloring
Instructions
- Lightly frost each chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting.
- Place three Tootsie Rolls on each cupcake to form the logs. Cut to fit if using longer candies.
- Fill in around them with mini chocolate chips for the embers. Set aside.
- Divide the white frosting into thirds. Mix one third with red gel, one third with orange gel, and one third with yellow until smooth. Gel dyes are the best choice because we want to keep a nice thick, frosting for this recipe and liquid tends to thin out the frosting a bit.
- Fit a piping bag with a star tip. Spoon the red, orange, and yellow frosting side by side into the bag so the colors squeeze out colored like "flames." Note: If you don't have a pastry bag and star piping tip, use two spoons: the back of one and the tip of another and swirl each flame into shape.
- Pipe the colored frosting up from the center of the logs to form the flames.
- The "flames" may fall if they get too warm. Eat immediately or plate and slide into the fridge for up to an hour before serving.
