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As Valentine’s Day approaches, there’s no sweeter gesture than treating your loved ones (or yourself!) to delightful, homemade cupcakes. Whether you’re planning a romantic evening in, a festive gathering with friends, or simply craving a dose of sugary goodness, these Valentine’s cupcakes are sure to steal hearts and satisfy cravings.
Join us on a culinary journey filled with luscious flavours, whimsical decorations, and irresistible charm as we explore a selection of mouthwatering cupcake recipes tailor-made for the season of love. From classic red velvet to innovative twists on traditional favourites, these treats are bound to add an extra dash of sweetness to your Valentine’s Day festivities.
21 Valentine’s Cupcakes
It’s time to preheat your oven, dust off your apron, and get ready to bake up a storm of affection with our irresistible Valentine’s cupcakes creations. Whether you’re a baking novice or a seasoned pro, there’s something here for everyone to enjoy. Chocolate, no chocolate, fruity, sweet, simple, complicated, quick, long, and many more – I hope you find something that ticks your boxes.
Let’s get to it.
1: Hidden Heart Valentine’s Cupcakes
These delicious hidden heart cupcakes are perfect for Valentine’s Day. They look like a regular (but still delicious) cupcake on the outside, but when you bite into the heart of it (pun intended,) you’re met with a beautiful red heart. This recipe creates 18 of them, with approximately 451 calories in each tasty little one.
You’ll need to set aside around 45 minutes of preparation work plus almost 30 minutes of cooking time. They’re well worth the time, and relatively easy to make considering how complex they actually are. And let’s be honest about this, they look so cool!
The cupcakes themselves are vanilla flavoured, but easily be customised and tweaked. Make them chocolate or orange-flavoured, or any other flavour you like.
2: Simple, Pink-Topped Valentine’s Day Cupcakes
By Simon Rimmer / Something for the Weekend / BBC
In case you’re interested, Valentine’s Day is NOT the most popular time of year to propose. I know, I know, I was super shocked, too. The most popular time of year to get engaged, according to a poll by Chilli Sauce, is over the festive period – between December 24th and January 1st. 15% of all proposals throughout the year are popped at this time.
Flip things around, the same poll showed that 36% of Brits believe Valentine’s Day to be the most romantic day to pop the question. It’s interesting, though, that only 8% of proposals actually take place. Did the other 28% lose their nerve?! I’m dying to know. Almost as much as I’m dying to enjoy these delicious Valentine’s cupcakes.
3: Vegan Strawberry and Chocolate Valentine’s Cupcakes
Here’s a delicious Valentine’s Day cupcake idea for my vegan friends. And being vegan-friendly, it’s also dairy-free, so you can tick that box, too. Combining a pink sponge with a hidden, strawberry flavoured jam in the centre, and a wonderful chocolate flavoured buttercream frosting to top things off. You can add sprinkles, hearts, or other Valentine’s Day-themed decorations. Just make sure they’re edible.
These cupcakes are classed as easy/medium difficulty, and will require only 20 minutes of baking time, but around an hour of preparation and perfecting. The recipe will give you 8 average-sized cupcakes, but you could always do them slightly bigger or smaller. You may need to tweak the cooking time, though. Just keep your eyes on them; you know the drill.
4: Valentine’s Red Velvet Cupcakes
By Baking Mad
You’ll need just 45 minutes in total to make these delicious Valentine’s cupcakes – 20 minutes of preparation time plus 25 minutes of cooking time. The recipe is super easy to follow, and you’ll get around 12 cupcakes, depending on how big or small you make them.
The creator recommends serving them up with “buttercream and your last Rolo,” and I think that’s the best idea! If you don’t know the pun, there was once a Rolo advert that said something along the lines of, you only give your last Rolo to someone you really love.
If you get all of the ingredients from Sainsbury’s, the cupcakes work out at just over £1 each to make. And, just in case you’re not sure whether or not they’re good, the recipe has 13 reviews (at the time of writing,) and the treats have been rated with five out of five stars.
5: Valentine’s Day Rice Krispie Treat Cupcakes
If you want to get the kids involved with the Valentine’s Day fun, these rice krispie treat cupcakes are the perfect thing. With around 50 minutes of preparation time plus 22 (exactly) minutes of cooking time, you can rally everyone together and get these made before mum or dad gets out of bed. The best way to keep kids out of trouble is to give them something to do, right?
While I’m in the mood for giving tips, here’s one for when your cupcakes keep sinking in the middle. It’s a common issue, and it’s easily fixed with the help of a toothpick and a little patience. Sinking cupcakes usually happens because the centre isn’t fully cooked when they’re taken out of the oven. If you poke a toothpick into the centre of one cupcake in the middle, and it comes out sticky or covered with cake stuff, they’re not cooked yet. The toothpick needs to slide in and come out clean, with no cake stickiness.
6: Almond and Raspberry Curd Cupcakes
If you’re not in the mood for chocolate this Valentine’s Day, there are plenty of other options to you. Just take a look at these delightfully fruity almond and raspberry curd cupcakes – not a pinch of chocolate in sight. In fact, if no-chocolate recipes tick the right boxes for you, you’ll find a few more right here: 21 Valentine’s Day Treats without Chocolate.
Sticking with the theme of cupcake baking and the issues you might face, let’s discover why your little treats stick to the inside of the cake liner. It happens to me all the time, and it’s super infuriating. There are two main causes: super moist cupcakes, or super cheap-quality cupcake liners. To prevent sticking, use high-quality liners and allow the cupcakes to cool completely before removing them from the pan.
7: Raspberry and Chocolate Valentine’s Cupcakes
Raspberry and chocolate go together perfectly, and especially around Valentine’s Day. For that reason, you most definitely need to take a peek at these delicious romance-themed cupcakes. They’re gluten-free and nut-free, with a wonderful raspberry flavoured sponge hiding away a raspberry jam centre. It’s all nicely topped off with a chocolate buttercream frosting.
You’ll need to set aside one hour and five minutes to create these Valentine’s cupcakes – 45 minutes of preparation time plus 20 minutes of baking time. They’re super customisable, just like the others, and you can decorate them in any way that you like. Depending on how big or small you choose to make them, you should get around 12 cupcakes out of the recipe.
8: White Chocolate and Strawberry Cupcakes
Yes, strawberries and milk chocolate are a Valentine’s Day/romance staple, but white chocolate is just as exquisite with the sweet berry. White chocolate doesn’t have as much caffeine as milk or dark, so it’s a great recipe for kids and/or adults who are trying to cut their caffeine consumption.
If your Valentine’s cupcakes don’t bake evenly, your oven might not be quite the temperature you think it is. Inconsistent temperatures in your oven could be the cause of your wonky, uneven cupcakes – but it’s not the only cause. Trying to stuff as many cupcakes as you can into the oven or on the tray will also be detrimental. Overcrowding causes some cupcakes to cook properly while others don’t cook at all. Use an oven-safe thermometer to ensure accurate temperature and bake cupcakes in batches rather than all at once to allow for proper air circulation.
9: Valentine’s Strawberry Cheesecake Cupcakes
I’m a big fan of individually sized desserts, especially when cooking for a group. Smaller portion sizes also help me to eat fewer pieces. If I’m cutting the slices, they’re going to be big slices!
Celebrity chef and French pâtissier Eric Lanland suggests using foil cupcake wrappers instead of their paper counterparts, explaining that they keep the cupcakes moist and delicious for longer. Essentially, the foil helps to lock in the flavour and freshness. That’s not the only top he offered up for Sainsbury’s Magazine, either. He also suggests using a wire rack to cool the cupcakes as soon as they’re finished baking. If you don’t do this, the cakes will continue to bake and, in turn, will end up overdone, dry, and not quite what you were going for.
10: Mini Tiramisu Cakes
By Lorraine Pascale / Baking Made Easy / BBC
Okay, so, I know that these mini tiramisu cakes aren’t technically cupcakes, but they work in much the same way. That’s my opinion, and I’m sticking to it. A little bit sweet, a little bit boozy, and a little bit decadent… Isn’t that just the thing you’re looking for, for Valentine’s Day?
You’ll need around 30 minutes of cooking time, plus between 30 minutes to one hour of preparation and decoration time. You’ll get 12 vegetarian-safe, boozy mini cakes that could be eaten as dessert, presented as a gift, or enjoyed in bed. It’s not the easiest of recipes, but it has great reviews. You could add pink or red food colouring or Valentine’s Day-themed decorations to make it more on-theme.
11: Valentine’s Melting Heart Cupcakes
Have you ever wondered where the phrase “wear your heart on your sleeve” comes from? It’s actually a pretty interesting-slash-weird story that began in the Middle Ages. Young men and women would reach into a bowl and grab a piece of paper, on which would be a name. The named person would be the picker’s Valentine, and the piece of paper with the name would be attached or kept on the sleeve. Hence, wearing your heart (Valentine) on your sleeve!
Before baking your Valentine’s cupcakes, make sure that you bring all the ingredients to room temperature first. That goes for chocolate, butter, eggs, water, and anything else that’s listed in the recipe. Baking cakes, cupcakes, and other types of sweet treats always turn out better when you do this. Very cold temperatures can cause things to mix weirdly, not mix at all, or react in other ways that you don’t want. So, do yourself a favour and give yourself ten minutes (approx.) of room-temp time before working with the ingredients.
12: Chocolate Heart Mallow Cupcakes
By Dr Oetker IE
When do you think the first ever box of chocolates for Valentine’s Day was made? 1700s? 1800s? 1900s? Well, if you guessed the 1800s, you’d be correct; the late 1800s. It was the creator of Cadbury chocolate, Richard Cadbury, that came up with the bright idea… and we’re still giving boxes of chocolates for the romantic day now, more than 100 years later. Some might call him a marketing guru, and I’d be inclined to agree, wouldn’t you? Especially when you consider that approximately 36-million boxes of chocolate are bought and given for Valentine’s Day every single year!
The best place to cook cupcakes and other cakes in the oven is to pop them right in the middle. That means on the middle shelf, and right in the middle of that middle shelf. In fact, this is the best place to cook anything. It’s where the temperature is most steady and stable, and where food cooks evenly and thoroughly. That’s a freebie tip, but I promise you that it’s the best tip you’ll ever read. (If you didn’t know that already, of course.)
13: Simple Heart-Shaped Valentine’s Cupcakes
First and foremost, the name of this blog is utterly brilliant, and I love it. Secondly, this recipe shows you how to make a great heart-shaped cupcake for Valentine’s Day, in a very simple way. Honestly, you’ll be surprised that you didn’t think of it first. And thirdly, just as with many of the other Valentine’s cupcakes on this list, these ones are super customisable.
This recipe will create 12 Valentine’s cupcakes, and each one only contains 166 calories, which is remarkably low in my opinion. You can substitute all of the ingredients for plant-based alternatives, and you can even get really creative with the decorations. There are almost too many edible Valentine’s Day decorations to choose from these days, too.
14: Raspberry Rose-Topped Zingy Lemon Valentine’s Day Cupcakes
You’ll need a maximum of 45 minutes to make these cute, Valentine’s Day-themed cupcakes – just over 30 minutes of preparation and decoration time, plus 15 minutes of baking time. The end result is 18 cupcakes (if you follow John Kanell’s sizing instructions,) each of which contains 293 calories (approximately, depending on ingredients, etc.,) and are a fantastic blend of zingy lemon with Swiss meringue buttercream and raspberry reduction.
The piped roses on the top of these cupcakes are delicate and, honestly, quite beautiful. I’d be more than happy if someone gave me a box of four or six of these for Valentine’s Day. They probably wouldn’t last the rest of the day. But that’s the thing about all of these delicious treats: they ALL make for great homemade gifts that mean so much more than a bunch of flowers picked up at the local garage.
15: Valentine’s Raspberry Cupcakes
If you regularly beat the crap out of the batter in the bowl, you need to stop doing that. You’re essentially beating all the air out of the batter, so it won’t rise and be as fluffy and airy as you hope. Be gentle with the cupcake mix. Fold it gently, and whisk/stir it a little less maniacally. Everything will get mixed together eventually; you just need to have a little patience.
Fun tip aside, what better way to show your loved one how much you love them by making them something delicious and tasty, just like these Valentine’s cupcakes? If someone made me a batch of cupcakes, I’d be deliriously happy. And I’d probably eat them all in one go. In that case, perhaps it’s for the best that nobody will make me cupcakes this year.
16: Vintage Rose and Quilt-Iced Cupcakes
By Red Online
If you need to cool your cupcakes in a flash, there is something you can do – but you definitely shouldn’t use this cooling approach every time. Placing the cupcakes on a wire rack for even cooling, store them into the freezer for around 10 minutes, checking them occasionally to ensure they’re not starting to freeze or get freezer burn. You should leave them in the freezer for no more than 20 minutes.
This isn’t the best way to cool cupcakes quickly, so I recommend only using this method sparingly and rarely. Hot food in a freezer alters the internal temperature of the appliance, which can cause it to over-freeze and/or malfunction. You have a higher risk of malfunctions when you regularly do it.
17: Little Rose and Almond Cupcakes
How many times do you open the oven door while your cupcakes (or cakes) are cooking? Once again, that’s something you really do need to stop doing! Every time you open the oven, you’re letting some of the hot air out. The oven then needs to work a bit harder to bring the temperature back to what it should be, so you’ll use more energy (and pay more for your energy bill,) too. It also disrupts the cake-baking process, stopping them from rising to full capacity.
While we’re talking about cupcake baking tips, let’s talk about storing them for a moment. Ideally, leftover cupcakes or cupcakes waiting to be decorated should be stored in an airtight container. This helps to keep them fresh, moist, and delicious for as long as possible. If you were to store them in a container that wasn’t airtight, they’d soon go hard and turn stale.
18: Raspberry Caramel Cupcakes
If you’re going to decorate your Valentine’s cupcakes like some of the ones you’ve seen on this list today, be sure to let them cook down completely first. Warm cupcakes will make frosting and icing runny, and any buttercream will melt. It’s made of butter, right? What happens when butter gets warm? That’s right: it melts and goes everywhere but where you actually want it to go.
On average, cupcakes take around 30 to 60 minutes to completely cool, depending on ambient temperatures, how big the individual cakes are, and a few other factors. If you’re in a serious rush, leave them for 30 to 45 minutes to cool. If you have time on your side, you should leave them to cool for at least one hour. Some experts suggest, two hours. Once they’re cool, you can do pretty much whatever you like with them with far fewer risks of things going wrong.
19: Bouquet of Cupcakes
What’s better than flowers and cupcakes for Valentine’s Day? A bouquet of cupcakes, of course! Specifically, 12 cupcakes all wrapped up in the cutest way, making the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. (Whether it’s for yourself or someone else.)
According to experts, the best way to make perfect cupcakes is to use the best quality ingredients that your budget allows. There’s no need to get yourself in debt for the ingredients, of course, but buying the best that you can afford is a smart idea.
Now, it’s important to remember that high-quality doesn’t always mean high price. I’m a big fan of the cheapest tin of baked beans in my local supermarket, so I’m not going to spend a quid more on the brand-named beans that I’ve not eaten for almost a decade.
So, secondary to the advice about using high-quality ingredients, use ingredients that you feel comfortable with and/or have used before. If you like the cheap flour, use the cheap flour. In the end, I bet nobody even notices.
20: Chocolate Cupcakes with Heart Centres
These delightful chocolate flavoured Valentine’s cupcakes have a hidden centre that boasts of white chocolate chips and pink buttercream, containing 380 calories per serving (if you make 12 of them, as the recipe suggests.) They’re only 40p per cupcake, too, if you buy the ingredients from Tesco.
They take 25 minutes to bake, but you will also need to allow for 30 to 40 minutes of preparation and decoration time. And as Tesco says, if you don’t have self-raising flour, simply use “2 tsp baking powder for every 150g plain flour.” I do love it when the recipe gives you actually useful tips and tricks, don’t you?
If you want to save on any of the ingredients in a cake or cupcake recipe, experts suggest choosing high-quality everything with the exception of butter. Cheap butter, expensive butter, it doesn’t seem to matter when it comes to the end result. So, save your pennies on the butter and spend a little more on flour, cocoa powder, and/or other ingredients to make those tasty cupcakes.
21: Love Bug Valentine’s Cupcakes
By Morrisons
If you’re on the hunt for cute little cupcakes that the kids will enjoy too, these love bug Valentine’s cupcakes are definitely worth of a peek. They’re messy in a cute kind of way, and it won’t matter too much if they get a little messed up along the way. That’s the point of them, right? They’re little bugs.
You could customise the colour of these cute cupcakes, too. If you’re not into pink and red, go for blue and purple instead. It’s your Valentine’s Day, so why not do things your way? Create a bunch of delicious treats in the colours that you favour, and the flavours that you love. Just because everyone else does them pink and red, doesn’t mean that you must also do things that way.
21 Valentine’s Cupcakes: Conclusion
As you embark on your Valentine’s cupcakes adventure, remember that the most important ingredient is love. Whether you’re baking for a significant other, family member, friend, or yourself, these sweet treats are a heartfelt expression of affection that transcends words.
So, gather your ingredients, unleash your creativity, and let the magic of baking bring joy to those you cherish. From all of us here, we wish you a Valentine’s Day filled with love, laughter, and, of course, delicious cupcakes!
Happy baking!
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