Name: Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes Recipe
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 15.25 ounces chocolate cake mix (prepared according to directions for 24 cupcakes); 16 ounces chocolate frosting ((or your favorite homemade chocolate frosting)); 1½ cups chocolate sprinkles; 2 cups candy corn; 48 Wilton candy eyeballs ((found at major grocery stores or HERE)); red frosting

Turkey cupcakes are such a fun Thanksgiving dessert recipe to make. They are super festive and not to mention delicious! A fun DIY to do with your kids.

People always decorate the table for Thanksgiving, but I love to decorate the cupcakes, like these turkey cupcakes. All of the kids (and parents) will enjoy this non-traditional dessert for Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes lined up on a counter.

They are a moist chocolate cupcake topped off with even more chocolate frosting and designed to resemble a turkey with edible items. These are also perfect for a little kid’s birthday who happens to share their magical day with turkey day.

The nice thing about this recipe is you can make it as easy or as hard as you want. We choose to stick with the easy way and focus more on the decoration aspect of the cupcake.

If you want to make some more desserts that are perfect for Thanksgiving, I would suggest trying our Pumpkin Pie Truffles, Pumpkin Spice Oreo Cookie, and of course The Best Dutch Apple Pie Recipe are all great choices!

Ingredients for Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes

Ingredients You’ll Need For Our Turkey Cupcake Recipe:

Box of chocolate cake mix (and any oil and eggs you need according to the packaging)
Container of chocolate frosting
Chocolate sprinkles
Candy corn
Candy eyeballs (Like THESE ones)
Red frosting (THIS works great!)

How To Make Our Turkey Cupcake Recipe:

When you are ready to make the turkey cupcakes, prepare the chocolate cupcakes according to the directions on the box. The box mix generally makes about 24 cupcakes.

Bake the cupcakes and let them cool down completely.

Once the cupcakes have cooled down, you will want to spread about 2 tablespoons or so onto each cupcake until the top of the cupcake is fully covered.

Chocolate cupcake with frosting dipped into a bowl of chocolate sprinkles

In a wide bowl, pour in the chocolate sprinkles. Then after the cupcakes have been frosted, turn the cupcake upside down, and slightly push the cupcake into the sprinkles trying to get them to cover the cupcake.

Chocolate cupcake with sprinkles and 5 candycorn pressed into it.

Then, take 5 pieces of candy corn and push them into one side of the cupcake upside down and next to eachother to create the feathered tail of the turkey.

Two candy eye balls added to the chocolate cupcake

Now on the opposite side of the cupcake place two candy eyeballs with little space inbetween.

Press another candy corn in the middle for the nose

Then place one more piece of candy corn with the bigger side in the cupcake to make the beak.

Once you have that in place take the red frosting to make a little line next to the candy corn to make the snood (yes that is actually the name!).

Thanksgiving Turkey Cupcakes on a cake platter and on the counter

Then they are ready to serve or eat!

To Make This Easy Recipe for Kids You Will Need:

Cupcake pan
Large mixing bowl
Hand mixer
Small bowl
Spatula

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Homemade Chocolate Frosting

To make this recipe quick and easy we have the original recipe using a container of frosting from the grocery store, but you can make your own if you have the time!

Make Your Own Brown Sugar!

You can also make your own chocolate cake mix if you are up to it! Simply scratch has an easy chocolate cake mix recipe that you can use in place of the box of cake mix.

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