Easy Pretzel Christmas Tree Cupcakes
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These Pretzel Christmas Tree Cupcakes bring a cheerful touch to any holiday table. Vanilla cupcakes are topped with snowy coconut frosting and finished with charming pretzel tree toppers made from green candy melts, mini M&M’s, and edible star sprinkles.
This is one of our easy Christmas dessert recipes you will want to book for later.
They’re a fun baking project that’s easy enough for kids to join in, and festive enough to impress guests during this special time of year.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Uses a simple boxed cake mix and frosting for a quick cupcake recipe that still looks homemade.
- The pretzel Christmas trees make beautiful cupcake toppers with their bright colors and candy star accents.
- Perfect for classroom parties, bake sales, or family gatherings during the holiday season.
- The green candy melts harden beautifully into a Christmas tree shape and hold up well when placed on top of the cupcake.
- Each bite combines the sweetness of frosting with the crunch of mini pretzel sticks and a snowy coconut finish.
Ingredients for Christmas tree pretzels
- Vanilla cake mix, plus ingredients listed on the box
- Vanilla frosting
- Green melting wafers
- Pretzel sticks or lollipop candy sticks – I like using candle sticks because they are longer and I can make the trees a little bigger, but you can use either.
- Shredded coconut
- Mini M&M’s
- Edible star sprinkles or similar
Equipment and kitchen tools
- Cupcake pan
- Cupcake liners
- Baking sheet lined with parchment paper
- Piping bag with tip
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How to make easy Christmas tree
Step by Step instructions
Step 1 – Prepare the cake batter according to package instructions.
Step 2 – Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners, divide the batter evenly, and bake as directed. Let cupcakes cool completely.
Step 3 – Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place pretzel sticks or candy sticks and pipe the melted candy in a zigzag triangle shape over each stick. Decorate with sprinkles and let set.
Step 4 – Frost cupcakes once cupcakes have cooled.
Step 5 – Once trees have set, pres stick into cupcake.
Step 6 – Repeat for all cupcakes.
Raquel’s Time Saving Tips
- Bake the vanilla cupcakes according to package directions and let them cool completely before decorating.
- Melt the green candy melts in a microwave-safe small bowl in second intervals, stirring between each round so the candy doesn’t overheat.
- Use a piping bag or ziplock bag fitted with a fine tip or with the corner of the bag snipped off to create neat tree shapes.
- Pipe your melted chocolate onto a sheet of parchment paper or wax paper placed on a baking sheet to keep the trees from sticking.
- Add the M&M’s, candy star, or star sprinkle to the top of the tree before the melted candy melts set.
- For a snowy look, spread frosting over the cupcakes and dip each one into shredded coconut before inserting the pretzel tree.
- Let the trees harden completely at room temperature before pressing them into the top of the cupcake so they don’t crack or bend.
Substitutions and Variations
- Try chocolate cupcakes or any boxed mix flavor from the grocery store instead of vanilla for a richer base.
- Swap the canned frosting for homemade buttercream if you prefer, mixing in a teaspoon vanilla extract or a teaspoon salt for flavor balance.
- Add a spoonful of sour cream or egg whites to your boxed mix batter for extra fluffiness.
- Use white chocolate chips tinted with green food coloring if you don’t have candy melts on hand.
- Create smaller versions with mini pretzel sticks or mini cupcakes for bite-size treats.
- Sprinkle crushed candy canes or Christmas sprinkles over the snowy coconut frosting for extra color.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container so the cupcakes stay soft.
FAQs About Pretzel Christmas Tree Cupcakes
Yes, store-bought cupcakes work great. Just add frosting and your pretzel tree toppers for a quick festive dessert.
You can melt white chocolate chips with a small amount of coconut oil and tint it with green food coloring.
A fine tip or small star tip gives a nice swirling pattern for the widest part of the tree. You can also use the corner of a sandwich bag if you don’t have piping tools.
Keep your winter cupcakes fresh by storing them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days. The pretzel trees hold their shape best when kept cool and dry.
Yes, you can make the chocolate trees a day or two before decorating. Place them on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper and keep them at room temperature until ready to use.
More great festive Christmas recipes
Christmas Tree Cupcakes
Equipment
- Large Bowl
- cupcake pan
Ingredients
For the frosting-
- we made buttercream, feel free to use your favorite recipe or store bought
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp. milk
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
For the trees-
- Plasticcandy sticks
- 6 oz. dark green candy melts
- 6 oz. pink candy melts
- Christmas sprinkles we used a traditional red and green & a pastel
Instructions
- Prepare the cupcakes, according to the box directions.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool.
- Meanwhile, prepare the trees.
- Place a piece of wax paper on a cutting board. (You will probably need two cutting boards, I did one for green and one for pink. I did 6 green trees and 6 pink trees.)
- Place the plastic sticks onto the wax paper.
- Add the green candy melts to a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 15 second increments, stirring between, until melted.
- Add the melted green candy to a piping bag and snip off just the tip.
- Drizzle the melted candy over the plastic sticks to create the tree shapes.
- Sprinkle some sprinkles over the trees.
- Move the trees to the refrigerator for 10-15 min. to set.
- Repeat this with the pink candy melts.
- Make your frosting. If you are doing buttercream, beat the butter for about 1 minute, then start adding the powdered sugar. Halfway through, add the vanilla and mix well. Keep adding powdered sugar until your frosting forms. If needed, add small amounts of the milk, but not too much, so your frosting will be firm.
- Frost the cooled cupcakes, and once the trees have set, place one into the center of each cupcake.
Notes
Nutrition
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