Pull Apart Graveyard Cupcakes (Printable Version)

Chocolate cupcakes with frosting and cookie graveyard decorations

# What You'll Need:

→ Cupcakes

01 - 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 cup granulated sugar
03 - ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
04 - ½ cup whole milk
05 - 2 large eggs
06 - 2 teaspoons baking powder
07 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
08 - ¼ teaspoon salt

→ Chocolate Frosting

09 - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
10 - 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
11 - ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
12 - 2-3 tablespoons milk
13 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
14 - Pinch of salt

→ Decoration

15 - 6-8 chocolate sandwich cookies, crushed
16 - 6-8 rectangular cookies or biscuits
17 - Black, white, and green gel icing pens
18 - Gummy worms, candy pumpkins, or Halloween themed candies

# Preparation Steps:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners.
02 - In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, then vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. Add half of the dry mixture to the wet, then add milk, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients until just combined.
03 - Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cupcakes completely on a wire rack.
04 - Beat butter until creamy. Add powdered sugar and cocoa powder, mixing slowly. Add vanilla and milk, beating until smooth and spreadable.
05 - Arrange cooled cupcakes close together on a serving tray in a rectangle or mound. Generously spread chocolate frosting over all cupcakes, creating a smooth surface.
06 - Crush chocolate sandwich cookies and sprinkle over the frosting for dirt. Write RIP and spooky messages on rectangular cookies with gel icing pens to make tombstones. Press into the cupcakes. Decorate with gummy worms, candy pumpkins, or any spooky candy. Chill briefly before serving.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The contrast between rich chocolate cake and that satisfying cookie crunch is genuinely addictive
  • Kids go absolutely wild for the graveyard concept and adults secretly love it just as much
02 -
  • Cupcakes must be completely cool before frosting or you'll end up with a melty mess that slides right off the cake
  • The frosting consistency needs to be thick enough to hold those heavy cookie tombstones in place
03 -
  • Use a small offset spatula to spread frosting between cupcakes so they truly merge into one surface
  • The gel icing pens work best when the cookies are at room temperature

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