Poke Cake Gluten Free Halloween Cupcakes
Celebrating Halloween means you get to find tons of great Halloween party ideas to use for your celebration! And if you’re looking for a fun dessert, it doesn’t get much better than orange poke cupcakes. These festive gluten free Halloween cupcakes are a great dessert to serve your guests at your spooky party.
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Finding quick and easy food for a Halloween party is the best way to stay sane as you’re planning a celebration. And it doesn’t get much easier than these gluten free poke cake cupcakes! Just bake the cupcakes, drizzle the Jello mixture on top, decorate and enjoy!
You can even make these poke cake cupcakes using premade gluten free cupcakes for even faster prep time! That means you’ll have plenty of time to come up with other fun party elements for the big day!
Planning on spending Halloween at home this year? Check out all these fun Halloween at home ideas to have an amazing at-home Halloween with your kids!
How to Make Gluten Free Jello Poke Cupcakes
When you’re searching for gluten free Halloween cupcake ideas, poke cake cupcakes are the way to go! They’re quick and easy to make, and so much simpler to decorate than a full cake. To make this easy gluten free Halloween dessert, you’ll need:
- Cupcakes. I used a Kinnikinnick gluten free white cake mix to make the cupcakes, but you could also use store-bought gluten free cupcakes for this quick party idea.
- Orange Jello: To give the cupcakes a spooky Halloween effect, you’ll need to use orangee Jello. I also used the Jello in my orange frosting for added flavor.
- Icing. You can use a premade orange frosting or follow the instructions for my quick and easy Jello buttercream to decorate the top of your cupcakes
- Halloween sprinkles. You can’t have a celebration without some sprinkles! Decorate the top of each cupcake with Halloween sprinkles and candy eyes to give them a spoooky look.
Gluten Free Halloween Cupcakes
The key to making these easy Halloween treats is a little patience! Unlike traditional poke cake, you can’t just pour the hot Jello over the top of the cupcakes or you’ll have a big mess! Follow these simple instructions to see how to make these orange cupcakes quickly and easily.
Start by preparing your cupcakes. You can use your favorite gluten free white cake recipe, grab a white boxed gluten free cake mix, or simply use store-bought gluten free cupcakes. If you purchase the cupcakes from the store, you’ll need to remove the icing on top to add the Jello. Then, you can redecorate your cupcakes after the Jello has set.
Bake your gluten free cupcakes according to the recipe or box instructions, then allow them to cool completely. After that, use a straw or wooden skewer to poke several holes in the cupcakes. You only need to add a few holes to each cupcake. If you poke too many holes, the cake will fall apart when you remove it from the wrapper.
Next, prepare the Jello mixture. But don’t read the instructions on the box, because we’ll be make it slightly differently than you would if you were making regular Jello. If you’ll be making my Jello buttercream recipe, set aside 2 tablespoons of orange gelatin.
Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the remainiing gelatin. Keep stirring until the gelatin has completely dissovled, then allow the mixture to sit and cool for a few minutes.
Use a spoon to scoop the gelatin over the holes in the cupcakes. I used a teaspoon to pour the mixture into each hole to ensure that the gelatin went down into each spot.
After all the cupcakes are filled with Jello, place the pan in the refrigerator to chill for at least one hour to give the Jello time to cool and set.
Jello Buttercream Icing
While your cupcakes are chilling, you can get started on the buttercream icing. To add even more orange flavor to your gluten free cupcakes, try this simple Jello buttercream recipe.
Start by beating together your butter and Jello until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Add the powdered sugar and milk and beat until smooth. When your Jello buttercream is finished, it will be light orange in color. I wanted a more vibrant orange for the top of my cupcakes, so I added a couple drops of gel food coloring to the bowl.
When you’re satisified with the color of your icing, add the buttercream to a piping bag with a 1M piping tip. If you don’t have the right tip, just add the icing to a bag and snip off the end. Pipe a swirl of icing on top of each cupcake.
Decorate the top of the icing with some Halloween sprinkles. Then add a few candy eyes to the top of each of the cupcakes to finish the spooky decorations.
Are candy eyes gluten free?
Before you start decorating your gluten free Halloween cupcakes with candy eyes, take a look at the packaging for your sprinkles. While candy eyes are not made with gluten-containing ingredients, Wilton candy eyes are made in a facility that also processes wheat.
Luckily, there is another option for your Halloween desserts. Great Value brand candy eyes (from Wal-Mart) are gluten free! You can find these eyes in the baking aisle with the sprinkles and premade icing.
Gluten Free Halloween Cupcake Ideas
This gluten free Halloween cupcakes recipe is a fun way to celebrate the holiday! And they’re much more unique than traditional cupcakes. Try these cupcake ideas to make the most of this simple recipe.
These simple serving ideas and suggetions are a great way to adapt this spooky recipe to suit your party’s theme or your guest’s preferences. Try these ideas the next time you make your own Jello poke cupcakes:
- Make gluten free witch cupcakes. You can turn these cute Halloween cupcakes into witch cupcakes with one simple adjustment — purple Jello. Use grape gelatin in place of orange gelatin to create a fun witch themed dessert for your party.
- Top with Cool Whip. A traditional topping for Jello poke cake is Cool Whip. Instead of topping your cupcakes with icing, try piping whipped topping on top. You can tint the whipped topping orange with a little bit of gel food coloring. Just make sure to keep them chilled until you’re ready to serve them to keep the whipped topping from melting.
Gluten Free Halloween Poke Cake Cupcakes
Add some color and flavor to your gluten free Halloween cupcakes with the help of Jello and Jello buttercream icing.
Ingredients
- 1 box white cake mix, prepared
- 1 6-ounce package orange gelatin
- 2 cups water
For the Jello frosting:
- 2 cups butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons orange gelatin powder
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk
- Orange food coloring, optional
For decorating:
- Halloween sprinkles
- Candy eyes
Instructions
- Prepare the cake mix according to package instructions and bake as 24 cupcakes.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool completely, then use a straw or skewer to poke holes in each cake.
- Heat 2 cups of water in a saucepan until boiling. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the gelatin mixture for the icing. Remove the pan from heat and pour the remaining gelatin into the water. Stir until the gelatin has dissolved, then allow to cool for five to 10 minutes.
- Use a spoon to pour the orange gelatin into the holes in the cupcakes. When all the cupcakes are filled, place them in the refrigerator to chill for at least one hour.
- Prepare the icing by beating together the butter and gelatin powder until combined. Add the powdered sugar and one tablespoon of milk and beat until smooth. Add more milk, as needed, to thin the icing. For a brighter orange icing, add food coloring and blend until the desired color is reached.
- Use a 1M piping tip to pipe the icing on top of the cupcakes. Decorate with sprinkles and candy eyes before serving.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 229Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 41mgSodium: 135mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 0gSugar: 20gProtein: 1g
More Easy Party Ideas:
20 Spooky Gluten Free Halloween Treats
Gluten Free Halloween Candy Cookies
Halloween Witch Hat Cookies Made with Oreos
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Emily is a midwestern mom of two boys. She loves all things DIY — from home renovations to kids birthday party planning. Whether she’s making a new farmhouse craft for her home or helping her kids with a cool activity, you can bet she’s in the middle of some kind of DIY project (or three) right now!
