Experience love at first bite with these bloody Vampire Bite Cupcakes! They’re stuffed with oozing cherry filling for a chilling Halloween surprise. Use the cupcakes of your choice and simple decorations to make this bloody good cupcake.
🧛🏼♂️ Scary Halloween Cupcakes
When it’s time to have a haunted Halloween you’re going to need more than cutesy treats like Candy Corn Cupcakes and Slice and Bake Halloween Cookies. Nope, when it’s a scary Halloween you’re after, you need to go all-out with spooky sweets decked in edible gore.
In my professional opinion, there’s nothing creepier than an oozing “blood-filled” cupcake to get the Halloween chills and thrills started off right.
We’ve already made Vampire Cupcakes, but what about cupcakes that look like they’ve been bitten by Dracula himself? These “Vampire Bite” cupcakes have blood-tinged gummy fangs on top, and are filled with cherry pie filling for the illusion of blood as you sink your teeth in. It’s a fun and creepy surprise that will have you going back for seconds!
More Gory goodies
Make the most haunted dessert table this October with creepy-cool Halloween treats!
Check out some of our most popular recipes for the holiday: Donut Hole Eyeballs, Bloody Halloween Cake Balls, Melting Chocolate Skulls, and Red Velvet Hot Chocolate.
Table of Contents
🧾What You’ll Need
Ingredients
Review these helpful ingredient tips so you can find everything you’ll need. Full ingredient amounts can be found in the recipe card. (Links are affiliate links and I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.)
For the Cupcakes and Frosting
- Cupcakes: You’ll need 24 baked and cooled cupcakes. Either make them from scratch or from your favorite boxed mix.
- Unsalted butter and salt: For smooth, lump-free frosting allow your butter to come to cool room temperature. It’s ok to use salted butter in place of unsalted butter, but omit the extra salt.
- Milk: Helps to thin the frosting to the right consistency. You can substitute water if desired.
- Vanilla extract: My favorite flavorful vanilla extract is made by Nielsen Massey!
- Powdered sugar: This frosting recipe is an American Buttercream, which is powdered sugar-based. You’ll want to measure the sugar with a scale if possible and then sift it into the mixture.
For the decorations
- Cherry pie filling: One standard can of cherry pie filling will be plenty, and you’ll have extra left over for another use. Alternately, you could use a red fruit jam instead.
- Red decorating gel: To give the appearance of a vampire bite, you’ll need some red decorating gel.
- Fang candy: I used gummy vampire teeth, but you could use another fang candy or vampire decoration.
Equipment
- Immersion blender: I found it helpful (and slightly more gory) to roughly chop the cherry pie filling with an immersion stick blender.
- Mixer: You can use a stand mixer or hand mixer to make the buttercream.
- Piping bags and coupler: To easily swirl frosting onto the cupcakes, have a piping bag and coupler handy.
- Piping tip: I recommend using a large closed star piping tip, like Ateco #849, to make the buttercream swirls.
- Cupcake liners: If you are looking to give your cupcakes some extra Halloween oomph, try baking them in blood-splattered cupcake liners.
🩸 Bloody Good Desserts
Leave a Review!
If you make this recipe, let us know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating on the recipe below, and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram @elabau, or use #sugarhero on IG!
Vampire Bite Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 24 baked and cooled cupcakes, from scratch or your favorite mix, I used white cupcakes
For the frosting:
- 1 lb unsalted butter, (4 sticks), sat cool room temperature
- 2 TBSP milk, can substitute water
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 TBSP vanilla extract
- 28 oz powdered sugar, (7 cups), sifted after measuring
To decorate:
- Red decorating gel
- Gummy fangs, or other fang candy/decoration
- 1 can cherry pie filling, about 20 oz
Instructions
To Make the Frosting:
- Beat butter: Place the butter in the bowl of a large stand mixer. Beat on medium speed with a paddle attachment until very white and pale, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add milk, salt, and vanilla: Turn the speed lower, and add 1 tablespoon of milk, the salt, and the vanilla extract. Mix until everything is well incorporated with the butter.
- Slowly add powdered sugar: With the mixer running on low, slowly add the powdered sugar. Once all of it is added, stop and scrape down the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl, then mix the buttercream on medium speed for 30 seconds.
- Adjust the consistency: If the buttercream is too stiff for your needs, add the remaining tablespoon of milk and mix it in well.
- You can use the frosting right away, or store it for up to a week – see the Notes below.
To Decorate:
- Blend cherry filling: Pour the cherry filling into a small bowl and use an immersion blender to roughly chop the cherries into smaller pieces.
- Fill cupcakes: Cut a cone-shaped hole in the top of each cupcake, and fill the hole with cherry filling, leaving a small gap at the top. Cut the bottom of the cone pieces off, so you're left with just the tops. Add the cupcake tops
- Pipe on frosting: Place the prepared frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip, such as Ateco #849. Pipe a swirl of white frosting on top of a cupcake. Repeat with remaining cupcakes.
- Finish cupcakes: Dab two dots of red gel on the cupcake to look like pokes from two pointy teeth. Top each cupcake with gummy vampire teeth. Enjoy!
- Storage: Store extras in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week. If they have been chilled, allow them to come to room temperature before serving for the best taste and texture.
Recipe Notes
Measuring Tips
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Want to learn more about baking measurements and conversion?
Nutrition
📸 Photo Tutorial: How to Make Vampire Bite Cupcakes
Once your cupcakes and frosting are ready, it’s time to decorate. Use this step-by-step tutorial to help you make creepy Vampire Bite Cupcakes. Full instructions are included in the recipe card above.
- Chop cherry filling: Use a stick blender to coarsely chop the cherries into smaller pieces. You can use a knife instead if you prefer.
- Cut cupcake tops: Use a small knife to make a small cone-shaped hole on the top of each cupcake. Cut the bottom of the cone pieces off, so you’re left with just a thin top.
- Add filling: Fill each cupcake hole with cherry filling. Place the cupcake top back on the filling.
- Top with frosting: Fill a piping bag fitted with a large closed star tip with the prepared frosting. Pipe a large swirl on top of each cupcake.
- Dab with gel: Squeeze two dots of red decorating gel on each cupcake to look like pokes from vampire fangs.
- Finish: Place gummy vampire teeth on top of the cupcakes and enjoy!
💡Tips and FAQs for Success
- Frosting consistency: So many factors can impact frosting texture, including the brand and temperature of the butter, and the temperature of your kitchen — don’t be afraid to play around at the end to get a texture you’re happy with.
If you don’t have piping bags and tips on hand, you can use a Ziplock bag, and cut a small hole in one of the corners to pipe frosting through. You won’t get the same ridged effect as from a star tip, but you can still pipe a swirl on top of the cupcakes.
Both components of these cupcakes can be made in advance and used later.
Frosting: The frosting can be made up to a week in advance. Place the frosting in an airtight container and press a layer of cling wrap directly on top of the frosting to prevent a crust from forming. Store the frosting in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to use it, let it come to room temperature on the counter, then whip it on medium speed until it regains its light, creamy texture.
Cupcakes: Baked and cooled cupcakes can be frozen in airtight containers. Let them defrosting in their container on the countertop before decorating.
Store extra cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week. If they have been chilled, allow them to come to room temperature before serving for the best taste and texture.
