One of my favorite details at my Alice in Wonderland UnBirthday Party was the tray of Painting the Roses Red Cupcakes poised and ready to greet our guests when they sat down at the table. The recipe for them comes from Katie Rose Watson at The Rose Table, who hosted her own Alice in Wonderland event as part of her Disney Dinners series.

Her recipe makes 24 cupcakes, but I halved it and just made 12 since there were only 4 of us at the party. The proportions worked out perfectly. I doubled down on almond extract for the buttercream frosting because I loved the flavor it added, and I used a few extra strawberries for the batter. Here’s how you can make two dozen of your own Painting the Roses Red Cupcakes.

Supplies:

Electric Mixer

Mixing Bowl

Measuring Cups

Wilton 2D Rose Icing Tip

Pastry Bags

2 Muffin Tins

Cupcake Liners

Red Food Spray Paint

Cupcake Ingredients:

2 Cups Sugar

3 1/4 Cups Flour

2 1/2 Tsp Baking Powder

1 Teaspoon Salt

3/4 Cup Unsalted Butter

1 1/2 Cups Milk

1 Tbsp Almond Extract

4 Eggs

2 Cups Fresh Strawberries (Washed, Dried, and Chopped)

Frosting Ingredients:

6 Cups Powdered Sugar

1 Cup (2 Sticks) Unsalted Butter

1 1/2 Tsp Almond Extract

4 Tbsp Milk

To Bake Painting the Roses Red Cupcakes

Step 1 – Assemble all of your ingredients and supplies. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line your muffin tins with cupcake liners.

Step 2 – Mix together the sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt.

Step 3 – Add the butter and beat the mixture thoroughly. 

Step 4 – Pour milk into a measuring cup, and add the almond extract on top. Pour that into your mixture and combine on the lowest speed setting.

Step 5 – Crack your eggs in a separate bowl and combine them into your mixture.

Step 6 – Finally, add your chopped strawberries to the mixture.

Step 7 – Pour your batter into the cupcake liners in your muffin tins.

Step 8 – Bake for  23-25 minutes. To be sure the cupcakes are finished, test them by inserting a toothpick and checking to see if it comes out clean.

Step 9 – Let your cupcakes cool completely before frosting them. I made mine the day before the party and left them to cool overnight. Then I frosted them before our guests arrived so they would be perfectly fresh!

To Frost Painting the Roses Red Cupcakes

Step 1 – Cream together powdered sugar and softened butter. 

Step 2 – Add milk and almond extract. Beat until smooth. 

Step 3 – Spoon half of your frosting into a pastry bag with a Wilton 2D Rose icing tip.

Step 4 – To make a perfect rose shape, start frosting in the center of the cupcake. Move your arm in a steady counter-clockwise motion two or three times without twisting your wrist. 

Step 5 – Once you have finished frosting your cupcakes, you can spray them with the edible red food spray to create a painted effect. I sprayed some completely red, sprayed half of some, and left a couple of them pure white. 

Alice in Wonderland Party Food

Now that you have mastered your Painting the Roses Red Cupcakes, check out this post for more Alice in Wonderland food ideas!

If you need any advice about baking and decorating these treats to perfection, feel free to DM me on Instagram at @livelovelocalblog.