These Churro Cupcakes will blow your mind! Delicious, moist vanilla cupcakes topped with rich cinnamon cream cheese frosting and sprinkled with cinnamon & sugar. Perfect for Taco Tuesday, Cinco de Mayo, or just because…. if you love churros, you’re sure to love these!
Churros!!! What’s not to love!? They’re thick and chewy and sweet and fried…and totally covered in a delicious cinnamon sugar mixture. But. A few things about them. Making them at home involves frying (not always my favorite) and finding them in stores is nearly impossible. Which is why churro-inspired desserts are totally the way to go!
And let me tell you… these cupcakes are our absolute favorite. Between the vanilla cake and the cinnamon frosting and the cinnamon sugar topping, they have all the flavors you expect out of a Mexican dessert. And they’re SO much easier than the real thing!
They start with my favorite cupcake recipe, complete with the cream cheese frosting my whole family loves. And let me tell you….there’s something about the addition of cream cheese that takes these (and any) cupcakes to the next level!
Whether you’re hosting a Mexican-themed party, looking for a fun Cinco de Mayo dessert, or just obsessed like me… you’re going to fall in love with this recipe.
what you’ll need for this recipe
Dry ingredients – all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
Wet ingredients – Eggs, granulated sugar, oil, vanilla extract and sour cream
Frosting ingredients – unsalted butter, cream cheese and powdered sugar
tips for success:
- For the best results, use a piping bag and tip. In a pinch, you can use a heavy ziploc bag with the corner snipped.
- Don’t skimp on the creaming process! Take 2-3 minutes to cream the eggs and sugar before adding other ingredients.
- Measure the flour by spooning it into a measuring cup and leveling it off with the edge of a knife. Don’t scoop it!
- Once you add the flour mixture, mix the batter just until it’s combined. Do not overmix.
- Fill cupcake tins 2/3 full. Do not overfill.
- Use room temperature butter and cream cheese for the frosting. Cold ingredients won’t mix properly, and warm ingredients won’t have the right consistency.
how to make cream cheese frosting:
- In a large bowl, beat butter, cream cheese, and vanilla on low speed until smooth.
- Add powdered sugar and cinnamon and mix until smooth.
- Scoop frosting into an icing bag and decorate cupcakes as desired.
Recipe Variations
- Add cinnamon to the cupcake batter for an extra boost of flavor
- Make chocolate cupcakes for a chocolate churro experience
- Scoop out the center of the cupcake and stuff it with more frosting
- Substitute buttercream frosting for the cream cheese frosting
- Decorate your cupcakes with cinnamon sticks
- Skip the frosting altogether and top with melted butter and plenty of cinnamon & sugar
More Cinco de Mayo Recipes to Try
Looking for more recipes to round out your Cinco de Mayo menu? Here are some ideas!
Churro Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup canola oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup sour cream OR plain Greek yogurt
Frosting
- 1 cup butter unsalted, room temperature
- 12 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- cinnamon & sugar mixture
Instructions
- Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until thickened and lightened to a cream color, about 2 min.
- Add the oil and vanilla and mix until blended.
- Mix in the sour cream, then the flour mixture. Mix until the batter is smooth.
- Pour into 24 regular size muffin tins lined with cupcake liners.
- Bake at 350 degrees 18-23 min.
- Cool completely.
- Prepare frosting by combining butter, cream cheese, and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat on low speed until smooth, about 1 min.
- Add the powdered sugar and cinnamon, mixing until smooth, about 1 min, then beat on medium speed for 1 min. to lighten frosting.
- Spoon into a piping bag and frost cupcakes as desired.
- Sprinkle generously with cinnamon and sugar.
Doesn’t get much better than churro flavored cupcakes! Sounds like my kind of treat; excited to make these!
Oh my that is super duper gorgeous, i m lost of words to describe the beauty. i m literally salivating as i read thru the description of these cute cupcakes!!! can;t wait to try them!
Wow I am drooling. This looks super yum, I dont think I can stop with one batch. Looks addictive I should try this
These are a dream! Need to make a batch now!
Oh my goodness! I am drooling over these cupcakes! I want some!
These are adorable and I know they must taste amazing too!
Hi Cathy,
Could you possibly make this with using cake flour instead of all purpose flour?
Sure, try it 🙂
In the beginning of your blog, you state, “…. Making them at home involves frying (not always my favorite)…” What’s up with that? These are baked cupcakes, without any hint of frying in the rest of the article and recipe. Sounds like you copied another blog and didn’t change it appropriately. A but confusing. Thanks for the recipe.
I definitely didn’t copy it from another blog… I was referring to making real churros at home.
YUM!! I followed the directions exactly and the cupcakes were delicious. This recipe is definitely a part of my “favorites cookbook” now.
Can these be me the night before for a potluck?
Yes, absolutely!
I just made this recipe,an I used king Arthur’s gluten free 1:1 flour. I also added a little cinnamon to the batter as well. I’m here came out amazing super moist and cooked very well!!! Just thought I post in case someone else was curious how this recipe would work using gluten free flour.
These cupcakes got rave reviews at my office luncheon but they looked like he77! They barely rose and despite me greasing the muffin tins, most of them were very difficult to get out of the pan. Thank goodness I was able to pile on the tasty icing to recreate the look of an actual cupcake. Maybe the recipe needs more baking powder/soda…?
Hmm… I’ve made them multiple times and never had this issue.
Is there a way to make this cupcake into a chocolate cupcake?
Yes, just add cocoa powder! I would start with 1/4 cup but you could go up to 1/2 cup.
i want to half this recipe. would you include 1 or 2 eggs?
For the half egg, whisk it well and measure out 2 Tablespoons which should be about half. Hope this helps!
These are easily the best cupcakes I’ve ever had in my life. Every single person in the room was amazed by them. One of my friends said he wants it every year for his birthday for the rest of his life. I topped them with little churro pieces from the freezer section and it was just amazing.
These are amazing and my most requested cupcake. Everyone loves them!