Colorful Rainbow Cupcakes Recipe Is Easier Than It Looks

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There's nothing more fun than eating foods that are colors that they aren't supposed to be. Anyone remember the blue ketchup craze? Kids went crazy for that stuff! While the colored butter might have been a step too far for me (I still can't wrap my mind around that one), I can't say no to rainbow cupcakes.

These delicious and, most importantly, colorful cupcakes are SO easy to make (you only need some cupcake mix and food dye), you'll be wondering why you've never tried them out before. The key is adding just the right amount of drops of food coloring to separate bowls of batter and then adding the batter into cupcake liners in even layers.

If you're looking to make a cupcake that tastes a little lighter than usual, try a simple dollop or swirl of whipped cream on top instead of traditional frosting. The fluffy topping is the perfect touch for these crazy cupcakes. Drop on a few of your favorite sprinkles, and you're good to go!

Rainbow Cupcake Recipe,  adapted from Spoonful

White cake mix
Food coloring (red, blue, green, and yellow)
Cupcake liners
Whipped cream or frosting of your choice
Sprinkles (optional)

Prepare your white cake mix, then divide the batter evenly among six small bowls. Following the food coloring formulas below, dye each bowl of batter a rainbow color.

Line a muffin or cupcake pan with 16 baking cups. Evenly distribute the purple batter among the cups. Then evenly distribute the blue, green, yellow, orange, and red (in that order). As you go, gently spread each layer of better with the back of a spoon so as to cover the color underneath.

Bake the cupcakes according to your recipe directions on the box.

Add your favorite frosting and toppings.

Food coloring formulas:

Purple --  9 red and 6 blue drops

Blue -- 12 drops

Green -- 12 drops

Yellow -- 12 drops

Orange -- 12 yellow and 4 red drops

Red -- 18 drops

Image via Trebz/Flickr