Halloween Spider Cupcakes (chocolate pumpkin)

Spider cupcakes are the perfect sweet treat for Halloween. The chocolate pumpkin cupcakes are deliciously moist and topped with vanilla buttercream frosting with a spiderweb design.

If you’re looking for spooky Halloween cupcake ideas, these spider cupcakes are what you need. They’re made with our incredibly moist chocolate pumpkin cupcakes, which have a mild pumpkin flavor and are delicious all on their own.

But when topped with orange buttercream icing, they start to look like Halloween. To finish them, we draw a spider web design on the top (it’s easy!) and put a little spider on top. They are the perfect way to celebrate Halloween.

Storage instructions

• How long will these cupcakes last? They will keep fresh for 3-4 days in a covered container on your counter.
• Can I freeze these cupcakes? Yes! If possible, freeze the cupcakes without icing, as the spider-web design can get smudged during freezing and thawing. While they might look a little messy, they still taste great!

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Halloween Spider Cupcakes (chocolate pumpkin)

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 20 minutes mins

Total: 30 minutes mins

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Spider cupcakes are the perfect sweet treat for Halloween. The chocolate pumpkin cupcakes are deliciously moist and topped with vanilla buttercream frosting with a spider web design.

12

Ingredients

Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes

• ▢ 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ▢ 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ▢ ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix, which is spiced)
• ▢ ½ cup brown sugar
• ▢ ½ cup neutral-flavored oil (like avocado, canola, or grapeseed)
• ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ Optional: 1 cup chocolate chips

Buttercream Icing

• ▢ ½ cup salted butter (at room temperature)
• ▢ 2 cups icing sugar
• ▢ 2 tablespoons milk
• ▢ 1 teaspoons vanilla
• ▢ 3 drops orange food dye (see notes)

Decorating

• ▢ 12 plastic spider rings (OR Edible spider cupcake toppers)
• ▢ A toothpick

Instructions 

Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with liners. 
• In a medium-sized bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt.
  1 cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, vanilla, and eggs.
  1 cup canned pumpkin puree, ½ cup brown sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla, 2 large eggs, ½ cup neutral-flavored oil
• Add the flour mixture to the bowl with the pumpkin and whisk to combine. If using, stir in the chocolate chips. 
  Optional: 1 cup chocolate chips
• Divide the batter between the cupcake liners. Note: the batter will be quite thick. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of one of the cupcakes comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting them. 

Buttercream Frosting

• In a large bowl, use electric beaters (or a stand mixer) to whip the butter for 1 minute. Add the icing sugar, milk, and vanilla and beat until combined. (See notes)
  ½ cup salted butter, 2 cups icing sugar, 2 tablespoons milk, 1 teaspoons vanilla
• Remove a scoop (about ¼ cup) of the frosting and set it aside. You’ll need it for the white spider web design. 
• Mix the orange food dye into the remaining frosting. 
  3 drops orange food dye

Decorate the sider cupcakes

• Frost the tops of the cupcakes with the orange frosting and smooth the top as much as possible. 
• Place the white frosting into a piping bag with a small, round decorating tip. You can also use a plastic bag and cut one of the bottom edges to make a piping bag. 
• Draw a small circle in the center of the cupcake. Then draw 2 more circles so that you have three circles inside each other. (See the pictures in the post.)
• Immediately after drawing the circles, take a toothpick and draw a line from the smallest circle out past the largest circle. Do this 5 times around the circles to create the effect of a spiderweb. 
• Top each web with a store-bought edible spider or a plastic spider ring.

Video

Notes

Orange color: Food dye varies widely in quality and strength. You may need more to achieve the color you want. 

Frosting: If you would like your frosting thinner, add a little extra milk. If you would like it thicker, add a little extra icing sugar. 

Decorating: If you use plastic spider rings to decorate the cupcakes, let people know to remove them before they eat the cupcake. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1 cupcake, Calories: 314kcal (16%), Carbohydrates: 38g (13%), Protein: 3g (6%), Fat: 18g (28%), Saturated Fat: 13g (81%), Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 48mg (16%), Sodium: 277mg (12%), Potassium: 126mg (4%), Fiber: 2g (8%), Sugar: 25g (28%), Vitamin A: 3458IU (69%), Vitamin C: 1mg (1%), Calcium: 23mg (2%), Iron: 1mg (6%)

© Author Kristen Stevens

We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.