Easy Art Party Cupcakes with Edible Paint Palette Toppers

I am in love with these art party cupcakes! The edible paint palette toppers are easier to make than you think and sure to wow your guests with how creative you are. The cupcakes are perfect for an art themed party or social gathering including birthday parties. They are so colorful and fun-looking and double as an artsy decoration on the table.

How to make the Art Party Cupcakes

Cupcake Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all -purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter (room temp)
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs (room temp)
• 2 egg yolks (room temp)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp grated lemon zest
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup whole milk

Cupcake Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Whisk all dry ingredients together in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the butter on medium speed until light and fluffy .
4. Add the sugar to the butter and mix until smooth.
5. Add the eggs one at a time; mixed well.
6. Add the yolks one at a time; mixed well.
7. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest until fully mixed.
8. Begin slowly adding the lemon juice on low speed.
9. Add the dry ingredients and milk. Begin with the dry ingredients and alternate with the milk into the butter mixture then increase the speed to medium. Be sure to scrape the sides while you mix.
10. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. The paint splatter cupcake liners are a fun choice!
11. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
12. Cool in the cupcake pan for 15 minutes. Take out and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Frosting Ingredients:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup unsalted sweet cream butter
• 2 TBSP heavy whipping cream
• Red and yellow gel food coloring

Artsy Frosting Directions:

1. Mix the butter and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl until creamy.
2. If frosting doesn’t cream, add several drops of heavy whipping cream until it becomes creamier.
3. Take a spoonful of frosting, turn it upside down and see if the frosting holds to the spoon. If not, add 1/2 cup of powdered and mix. Test to see if the frosting holds to the spoon, if not add another 1/2 cup of powdered sugar until it holds.
4. Divide the frosting into 3 bowls. The first remains white. Add several drops of red gel food coloring to the second bowl and. Stir well. Add several drops of yellow gel food coloring to the third bowl and stir well.
5. Scoop each color, one at a time, into a pastry bag with a frosting tip on the end. Twist the open end of the pastry bag to push the frosting out. Test this before applying to the cupcakes. The frosting should come out as red, yellow and white frosting intermixed.
6. Frost the cupcakes.

Edible Paint Palette Cupcake Toppers Tutorial

Royal Icing Ingredients:

• 2 egg whites
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• tan, white, black, nude, yellow, red, blue, and orange gel food coloring.

Directions:

Combine all ingredients, except the food coloring, in a mixing bowl mixing on medium speed for 4 minutes. If it’s not white enough add 1/4 cup powdered sugar.

Instructions for the Edible Paint Palettes

1. Locate a picture of a paint palette on the Internet or anywhere else you can find one. Print multiples of the image in color. Cut and tape them to a cookie sheet.
2. Tape a sheet of wax paper over the paint palette images.
3. Take out about 16 tablespoons of icing and divide it into 8 bowls (2 TBSP in each bowl). Add 2 drops of gel food coloring in each bowl to create tan, black, nude, yellow, red, blue, orange, and leave one white. Stir well to mix the colors within their bowls.
4. If you are using the same tip it will need to be cleaned after each use (Or use zip lock bags by cutting the corner of the bag).
5. Fill a small pastry bag filled with the tan royal icing and a #2 tip. Start by outlining the palette first. Fill in the outline leaving the paint spots and the brush uncovered.
6. Use a  pastry bag with the nude icing and use it to fill in the handle of the paintbrush.
7. Use a pastry bag filled with black icing to fill in the brush tip of the paintbrush.
8. Fill a small pastry bag with blue icing and fill in the paint spot until you have one blue spot on each paint palette. Repeat these steps with the remaining icing colors: red, yellow, and white.
9. Allow to dry for 5-10 hours.
10. Cut the wax paper into squares around the completed edible paint palette toppers.
11. Ensure the paint palettes are dry by gently touching one of them. If it’s dry peel them off the wax paper.
12. Decorate the tops of the frosted cupcake with your little masterpieces…he, he!

On the day of the party, place the cupcakes on a paint splattered tablecloth – easy to make yourself and kids can even help create it. Add paintbrushes, paint, palettes, and so on around the cupcakes as decoration.

Your birthday guest are sure to ooh and ahh over your colorful art party cupcakes!

See more cupcake recipes here.

Amanda

Artsy Momma

Amanda is an ‘artsy momma’ to 2 kids who love making crafts just as much as she does. Follow their creative journey over on the blog titled Artsy Momma. Besides crafts, they share fun food ideas, hands-on learning activities, mommy DIY, + lots more! If you love handprint art, head over to their Fun Handprint Art blog where you will find hundreds of their projects all made with little hands and feet.