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Nutter Butter Reindeer Cupcakes

These adorable Reindeer Cupcakes, topped with an adorable chocolate dipped Nutter Butter reindeer cookie, make the perfect sweet treat for all your holiday parties!
Course Dessert, Desserts & Sweets
Cuisine American
Keyword christmas cupcakes, Reindeer cupcakes, rudolph cupcakes
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 14 minutes
Resting Time 10 minutes
Servings 24
Calories 494kcal

Ingredients

Cupcakes

Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting:

Instructions

TO MAKE THE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

  • Preheat oven to 350 F or (or follow package instructions if different). Line each cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, water, vegetable oil and eggs (or whatever ingredients are listed on the back of the box). Mix with a whisk until combined.
    1 box Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge Cake mix, 1 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 3 eggs
  • Add the semisweet chocolate chips and fold in with a rubber spatula.
    1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • Spoon the batter into each cupcake liner, about ⅔ full.
  • Bake for 14-19 minutes (or according to package directions). Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

TO MAKE THE NUTTER BUTTER REINDEER TOPPERS

  • Prepare three baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  • In a microwave safe bowl, melt the black candy melts in 30 second increments, stirring frequently in between. Continue until chocolate is fully melted and smooth.
    1 cup black candy melts
  • Pour the melted candy into a piping bag fitted with a small round decorating tip.
  • Make the reindeer antlers by piping the black candy melts onto a lined baking sheet. Start by making a ‘Y’ and then making another ‘Y’ underneath it, slightly overlapping the first one. Make enough antlers, so each cookie has two each, then set aside to harden or refrigerate.
  • Using a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate candy melts on low heat, stirring frequently, until smooth. You can also microwave the wafers using the same method as above. You’ll just want to work in small batches as these chocolates do not always reheat well and may start to clump.
    20 ounces Ghirardelli dark chocolate melting wafers
  • Take a peanut butter cookie and fully submerge it into the melted chocolate, making sure that it’s evenly coated. Lift it out with a fork and lightly tap it on the edge of the pot a few times to remove the excess.
    24 Nutter Butter cookies
  • Transfer cookie to the lined baking sheet, then repeat with a couple more Nutter Butters, working in small batches.
  • Add two sugar pearls for the eyes and a red M&M for the red noses (or you can give them brown candy noses with a brown M&M). Then carefully remove two antlers from the parchment paper and place them onto the reindeer, slightly higher than the eyes.
    Black sugar pearl sprinkles, 24 Red and brown M&Ms
  • Repeat the steps with the remaining cookies, then place the baking sheets into the refrigerator for 10 minutes or until fully set.

TO MAKE THE PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE FROSTING

  • To prepare the chocolate fudge frosting, first place butter in a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat butter on medium speed until creamy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until all ingredients are incorporated.
    1 cup unsalted butter, 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • Next, add the cocoa powder a little at a time and mix again until fully incorporated. You should end up with a nice even brown color.
    1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • Add the peanut butter and beat until combined.
    1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
  • Add 1 tablespoon heavy cream and vanilla extract. Beat ingredients together on high speed until you get the desired consistency.
    1-2 tbsp heavy whipping cream, 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • Put the frosting into a piping bag fitted with a decorating tip, then swirl frosting onto each cupcake. You can also use an offset spatula to frost the cupcakes if you don’t have a piping bag.
  • Add your choice of festive sprinkles to the top of the cupcakes.
    holiday sprinkles
  • Finish by placing a Nutter Butter reindeer top each one. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • If you don’t have piping bags or a piping tip, you can use a Ziploc bag and cut off a very tiny piece of the corner.
  • When piping the chocolate for the antlers, keep them at least 1 ½ inches long. Don’t pipe them too thin or they may break easily when removing them. You may even want to make a few extras, just in case any break.
  • Add more powdered sugar to make your frosting thicker and sweeter or add another tablespoon of heavy whipping cream to whip more air into it and make it lighter. For a darker chocolate flavor, you can also add a little more cocoa powder.
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 494kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 242mg | Potassium: 318mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 289IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 59mg | Iron: 4mg