Adapted from my vanilla cupcakes, these magical Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes are lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg and filled with fruity jam. Top with vanilla almond buttercream and an array of candies for a perfectly festive Nutcracker treat!
Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes are the epitome of festive. In the modern Nutcracker story, the sugar plum fairy is the ruler of the Land of Sweets. We saw the Nutcracker performed by the Pennsylvania ballet every Christmas when I was younger– my sister was a ballerina and danced in it! I used the Nutcracker ballet as inspiration for these candy-topped cupcakes, complete with purple swirled buttercream, gum drops, snowflake sugar cookies, peppermint swirls, and plenty of sprinkles.
What Flavor are Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes?
Traditional sugar plums aren’t plums at all– they’re small hard candies. The term “plum” refers to their shape and size. So where do we go from here? Flavors that came to mind when creating these sugar plum fairy cupcakes were almond, spice, vanilla, fruity, and definitely sweet.
I asked some readers and many agreed!
Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes:
- Very light spice flavor: a dash of cinnamon & nutmeg
- Sweet vanilla & almond: use both vanilla & almond extracts
- Fruity: the cupcakes are filled with peach jam
I have PLENTY of flavor suggestions in the recipe notes below, just in case “Sugar Plum Fairy” inspires you differently. Peppermint, coconut, orange, you name it!
As usual, we’re starting with my perfect vanilla cupcakes. This cupcake batter yields the softest, fluffiest, and lightest cupcakes. The power ingredients are egg whites, cake flour, and sour cream. These three additions are the difference between dense cupcakes and light cupcakes. Here’s a run-down of the vanilla cupcakes recipe if you’re curious.
- Remember the differences in baking powder vs baking soda? It’s important to use both in some recipes, like these sugar plum fairy cupcakes.
Tip: Fill the cupcake liners only about 2/3 full to avoid overflowing.
Video: How to Fill & Decorate Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes
I had so much fun creating these and decided a video tutorial would be helpful for you. Filling cupcakes is so easy using this little cut-out trick (watch below). I use the same filling method for these cream-filled chocolate cupcakes, too.
For the frosting decoration, I use Wilton #8B piping tip. I LOVE this piping tip and using it is really easy, as you can see in this video.
I used my vanilla buttercream and flavored it with a little almond extract. If desired, tint it with some color. I colored half of the buttercream with mauve gel food coloring from this gel food coloring set. I strongly recommend gel food coloring when tinting buttercream. The color is very concentrated, so you only need a small amount. And as a result, it won’t ruin the consistency of the buttercream. The video above shows you how I “swirled” the white and mauve frostings together. Couldn’t be easier!
Now let’s discuss the toppings:
- gum drops
- peppermint swirls
- sprinkles (I love using Sweetapolita sprinkles!)
- snowflake cookies
Use whatever candies inspire you. And, obviously, eat any hard candies separately because you don’t want to head to the dentist with a broken tooth!
The snowflakes are my sugar cookies dipped lightly in this cookie icing. I used these snowflake cookie stamps and they came out beautifully. This sugar cookie dough holds its shape like no other! I topped them with coarse sugar sprinkles for a little sparkle.
Magical, aren’t they? Let me know if you try them!
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Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 35 minutes
- Yield: 15 cupcakes
- Category: Cupcakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These magical Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes are lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, flavored with vanilla and almond, and are filled with fruity jam. Make sure you read the recipe notes before beginning. Have fun decorating!
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (207g) cake flour* (spoon & leveled)
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 3 large egg whites, at room temperature*
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract*
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) whole milk, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (100g) peach jam or preserves (or your favorite flavor)
Vanilla Almond Buttercream
- 1 cup (230g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 – 5 cups (480-600g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream or milk
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- salt, to taste
- optional for garnish: snowflake sugar cookies (see blog post above), gum drops, peppermint candies, sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Line a second pan with 2-3 liners – this recipe makes 14-15 cupcakes. Set aside.
- Make the cupcakes: Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt together. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamed, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the egg whites on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, slowly pour and mix in the milk *just* until combined. Do not overmix.
- Pour/spoon the batter into the liners. Fill only 2/3 full to avoid baking over the sides. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. For around 35 mini cupcakes, bake for about 11-13 minutes, same oven temperature. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before filling and frosting.
- Fill the cupcakes: Watch video above for a visual of this step. Using a sharp knife, cut a circle/hole into the center of the cooled cupcakes to create a little pocket about 1 inch deep. The piece you removed will be the shape of a cone. Spoon jam inside each carved out cupcake. Use as much jam that will fit. Slice off the pointy end of the “cone” piece you removed so that it can fit on top of the filling. Place on top of the filling.
- Make the buttercream: With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add 4 and 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 3 full minutes. Add up to 1/2 cup more confectioners’ sugar if frosting is too thin or another Tablespoon of cream if frosting is too thick. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. (I add 1/8 teaspoon salt.) If desired, tint the buttercream with gel food coloring. I colored half of it with mauve gel food coloring from this gel food coloring set and swirled it with the white buttercream. Watch video in the blog post for a quick tutorial.
- Frost cooled cupcakes. I used Wilton 8B piping tip, as shown in the video. Decorate with garnishes and candies.
- Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Cupcakes can be made ahead 1 day in advance, covered, and stored at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Frosting can also be made 1 day in advance, covered, and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use. Frosted or unfrosted cupcakes can be frozen up to 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Special Tools: KitchenAid Stand Mixer | Cupcake Pan | Cooling Rack | Pastel Gel Food Coloring Kit | Piping Bags (Reusable or Disposable) | Wilton#8B Piping Tip | Snowflake Cookie Stampers
- Cake Flour: If you can’t get your hands on cake flour, you can use this homemade cake flour substitute. I suggest doing this twice, mixing it all up in 1 bowl then removing 1/4 cup since you need 1 and 3/4 cups in this recipe.
- What to Do with Leftover Egg Yolks? I have some recipe ideas for you!
- Almond Extract: If you’re not a fan of almond extract, you can leave it out of the cupcakes and buttercream. Replace with equal amounts of vanilla extract or, for something different, orange extract or coconut extract. Craving peppermint? Leave out the cinnamon and nutmeg in the cupcake batter and replace the almond extract with peppermint extract.
- Why is Everything at Room Temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read more about why room temperature ingredients are important.
- Be sure to check out my 10 tips for baking the BEST cupcakes before you begin.
- Cake Instead of Cupcakes: I suggest following my white cake recipe as the base, which is almost double this cupcake recipe. Add 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons almond extract to the cake batter. Use the vanilla frosting recipe listed in the white cake recipe and add 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Keywords: Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes
Omg these cupcakes!!!! The amount of flavour from the spices and almond is just perfect! The cake turned out so soft and fluffy and paired so well with the buttercream. I only wish I’d made a bigger batch! Thanks for another amazing recipe Sally!
★★★★★
These look divine! I was thinking of a molten chocolate filling…suggestions?
Hi Aubrey, that sounds delicious. Chocolate ganache would be my suggestion!
These are so tasty and so pretty! A favorite!!!!
★★★★★
I absolutely love the sound of this recipe. Do you think raspberry preserves would go with these cupcakes?? I prefer more tart flavors. I bought some edible pastel pink butterflies, gumdrops, and gold glitter to satisfy my childhood nostalgia. So excited to make these!! 🙂
★★★★★
Hi Hebe, definitely! Enjoy!
Hi! In our Nutcracker ballet performance last year, I had the role of Sugar Plum Fairy. So I made these sweet cupcakes to take to the after-performance party and they were a big hit. Thank you so much!
★★★★★
Great recipe! I tend to favor cupcakes with big and bold flavors, but the gentle flavors here play well together, and the cupcakes themselves look super cute and Christmas-y. For my filling, I used a spiced cherry compote from American Spoon that my mom had lying around. Perfect choice! If you’re looking for a unique holiday cupcake that’s elegant and a break from tried and true holiday flavors, this is a good recipe. Love your work,
Sally!
★★★★★
Interested in doing a jam swirl rather than filling the cupcakes. Would switching to all purpose flour work better in that case?
Hi Chandler, we haven’t tested swirling jam into these cupcakes so can’t say for sure – let us know what you try!
If I make the cake version do you think it would be good with some plum jam?
Sounds like a lovely idea!
I just made this recipe, and they turned out gorgeous. I used a dark purple icing, and added some sprinkles, gumdrops, and snowflake candy decorations. I love all of Sally’s recipes, but this was one of my favorites. 10/10 recommend!
★★★★★
Love ALL of your recipes! If making this in cake form, where would you suggest adding the preserves?
Hi Hannah, between the layers (along with the frosting) would be delicious. Happy baking!
Hi Sally,
The cupcakes looks great and I bet they taste good too. I would like to make some for Christmas but my niece is allergic to dairy so is it possible to replace the milk/heavy cream with almond milk?
Thanks.
Hi Karen, Almond milk should work. Enjoy!
This recipe looks amazing and delicious I cannot wait to try it
Hi! I’m so excited to try your cupcake filling technique with your strawberry Nutella cupcakes. I followed the video link to this recipe. I see the header above in bold for the “Video: How to Fill & Decorate Sugar Plum Fairy Cupcakes” but I cannot find the video. Suggestions? Thank you!
Hi Kristy, Give the video a few seconds to load right below that text. It’s a faded horizontal image of cupcakes. Click on the play button (triangle) in the center. Make sure any ad blockers are temporarily paused on your browser.
Yes, thank you! I was able to watch the video. I’m so excited to do this, and my 7-year-old son will love helping.
I made these and they were absolutely divine! I used your cream cheese frosting recipe and added a hint of cinnamon and almond. Not only are they delicious they are gorgeous as well. I added some edible glimmer dust and it really made everything pop. I want to make these again for Christmas and was wondering if the recipe can be doubled? Also just want to say all your stuff is absolutely amazing and you are my go to for any time i need to bake something. Your Salted Caramel is a staple in many of my recipes and people rave about it!
Hi Maurissa, I’m thrilled that you enjoy this recipe so much! Your cupcakes sound amazing with that frosting and the glitter dust! You can double these for Christmas. Enjoy!
I made these last night for my friend’s birthday. She’s not a fan of chocolate so I had to veer from my usual cupcakes. Decided to give these a spin and they were a HUGE hit!! I altered the frosting to a half shortening half butter buttercream and filled half with peach and half with strawberry. Everyone loved them and said the cake had just the right amount of spice to it!
★★★★★
I can’t wait to make these! For the yogurt, could I use a vanilla yogurt instead of plain? I’m sure the taste will change a bit, but will it mess up the chemistry part of the ingredients?
Hi Darlene! You can use vanilla yogurt instead of the sour cream, yes.
These look absolutely delish! Thoughts on how adding a pudding or similar center instead of the jam would go and ideas on flavors?
Pudding would be great! I recommend vanilla.
These are delicious! The cake is so moist and fluffy and the frosting is amazing (I was eating it off the spoon ). It was a bit sweet at first so I added a pinch of salt which definitely balanced it out. However i had a momentary lapse in concentration and added extra milk for some reason (oops) so the frosting melted all over my cupcakes oh well, they’re still delicious!! Definitely make these (but don’t fall half asleep and mess up the frosting lol)
★★★★★
Hey Sally! Could I make the cupcakes themselves and then top with a cinnamon white chocolate frosting? What are your thoughts? Love the look of these, so pretty and fairy-like! You’re decorating skills are amazing! I love the decorating/display part of any dessert, and you beautiful decorations are a continuous source of inspiration! I look forward to every new cake/cupcake recipe you post!
You are so kind, thank you! Cinnamon white chocolate frosting sounds absolutely delicious. If you’re looking for a recipe like that, use my white chocolate frosting and add 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
These were AWESOME! Not only did they look amazing but I loved the cake flavor (almost like a light spice cake) I omitted the jam in the middle only because I wasn’t sure if others would appreciate it but will definitely add that next time I make it for my family as I know we will love it. These were a HUGE hit & I had a few people tell me they thought I bought them from a bakery. Thank you, these were fun to make & walking into the party & seeing the awe in everyone’s eyes made me feel like a decorating pro!
AMAZING! This is so lovely to read. Thank you so much for sharing!
My daughter made this for her class holiday party. She used apricot preserves for the filling. We were out of whole milk but had egg nog so she did 1/4 egg nog and 1/4 2percent milk. The cake is amazing. The frosting plus preserves are incredibly sweet so I am sure her classmates will love them!
I am wondering if this will be equalling good without the jam. I am not really a fan of that within a cupcake. They look divine though.
Yes, you can absolutely leave the jam out. Enjoy!
I totally agree that a year can for sure make a big difference. So glad you have found your working yet still a mom groove because your recipes are ALWAYS fool proof. I definitely appreciate it so much. I also cannot say how much I LOVE LOVE LOVE these cupcakes. SO festive and one of the cutest and most creative ideas I have seen in a while! Love your blog!
Thank you so much Sarah! I really appreciate that!
These look so cute!! Do you think they would work make as mini cupcakes ? I would like to make them for my coworkers.
Absolutely! See my recipe instructions for mini cupcake baking time.
I love all of your recipes! This one looks adorable. I’m not a fan of peach jam. Is there another flavor you recommend as a substitute or should I just leave out a filling?
Hi Diane! You can leave out the peach jam or use your favorite flavor. 🙂
These are sooo pretty! I can’t wait to try them! Do you think they’d be good with cream cheese frosting? I personally love cream cheese frosting, not a big fan of buttercream.
YES!!! So so so good. I recommend following this cream cheese frosting recipe, which would be the perfect amount for the batch.
This is the happiest cupcake I’ve seen in a long time! So fun! I especially love the addition of the sugar cookie on top. I’m so tempted to make them rightthissecond but I’m in the midst of my great Christmas cookie baking blitz week & must stay the course! Focus. Lol. Last night I made the dough for your Cinnamon Roll Cookies, Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies, (both new to me this year), and a double batch of my husband’s favorite Dark Chocolate cookies (I’m doing one batch as the salted caramel kind with the Rolo and the other with the PB cup like in your cookbook). I’ll be mixing and rolling and baking and boxing through Saturday. But maybe next week a Sugar Plum Fairy will dance through my kitchen! Thanks for another great recipe! And congrats on your work-life progress this past year!
Wow! You are certainly busy in the kitchen this week- love it!! I hope you’ll have time to try these- let me know what you think if you do bake them 🙂 Enjoy!