Rainbow Swirl Cupcakes

Show. Stopper.

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Yields: 12
Prep Time: 0 hours 30 mins
Total Time: 1 hour 0 mins
For the cupcakes

box vanilla cake mix, plus ingredients called for on box

food coloring (red, yellow, green, blue)

For the frosting
1 c.

butter, softened

4 c.

powdered sugar

1 tsp.

pure vanilla extract

3 tbsp.

heavy cream

1/8 tsp.

kosher salt

  1. Make the cupcakes: Prepare cake batter according to box instructions. Divide batter into five bowls. Add a few drops of red into one bowl, yellow in the second, green in the third, blue in the fourth, and two drops blue plus two drops red into the fifth. Stir each bowl, adjusting the amount of food coloring you want until you have five colors of cake batter.
  2. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray or line with cupcake liners. Spoon a little of each color batter into each cup of the tin, until they’re filled two-thirds of the way up. Bake according to box instructions. Set aside to cool.
  3. Make the frosting: In a large bowl using a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, beat butter until fluffy. Add sugar, beating on low until combined, then whip in vanilla, heavy cream and salt. (Add more heavy cream, 1 tablespoon at a time, if you’d like a thinner consistency.) Divide frosting into five bowls, adding food coloring to each and stirring, like you did with the cake batter. Place each color in a resealable sandwich bag and snip off one corner.
  4. Lay out a piece of plastic wrap. Use each bag to pipe out a line of frosting in each color, side by side. Roll up the plastic wrap, creating a tube of frosting. Twist the ends closed, then slip a star tip on one end. Trim the plastic wrap that sticks through the star tip. Pipe onto cooled cupcakes.
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