For the most magically delicious St. Patrick’s Day dessert, these high altitude shamrock shake cupcakes are a cute and colorful holiday treat that everyone will love. Vanilla mint cupcakes are tinted mint green, frosted with a swirl of vanilla buttercream, then decorated with maraschino cherries, Lucky Charms marshmallows and sprinkles.
You might also love these high altitude tested St. Patrick’s Day recipes for chocolate Guinness cake with Baileys buttercream, Irish soda bread, and poppy seed Irish tea cake.
This site contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that I may make a small commission if you purchase a product using those links. This in no way affects my opinion of those products and services. All opinions expressed on this site are my own.
What is a Shamrock Shake?
A shamrock shake is a seasonal milkshake served at some McDonald’s locations during the month of March to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. It’s mint green, with vanilla and mint flavored ice cream, topped with whipped cream and a cherry. Today’s shamrock shake cupcakes have all the flavors of a shamrock shake milkshake, and the rainbow marshmallows are just the cutest finish.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Simple to Make. You’ll be using my high altitude vanilla cupcake recipe to make shamrock shake cupcakes, which come together in about an hour.
Perfect for St. Patrick’s Day. Whether you’re Irish or not, these St. Patrick’s Day cupcakes make such a fun treat to serve at a holiday party.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Vanilla Cupcakes. Today’s recipe is a simple variation of my popular high altitude recipe for vanilla cupcakes. With a little food coloring and peppermint extract, these turn into the cutest vanilla mint shamrock shake cupcakes that are so festive for the holiday.
- Peppermint Extract. Be sure to buy peppermint, not mint, extract, for the best flavor.
- Food Coloring. I used “mint green” gel food coloring, and you only need a few drops for a bright green color.
- Maraschino Cherries. These are cutest if you buy the ones with the stems. Be sure to drain them and pat them dry on paper towels, or the red syrup will stain the white buttercream.
- Lucky Charms Marshmallows and Sprinkles.
Instructions
- Prepare and bake the vanilla cupcakes as instructed, adding the peppermint extract and the mint green food coloring with the liquid ingredients.
- Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.
- Prepare the vanilla buttercream as instructed. Fit a 16-inch disposable piping bag with tip 1M, and fill half full with buttercream. Pipe swirls of buttercream onto the cooled cupcakes.
- Decorate the cupcakes with the maraschino cherries, Lucky Charms marshmallows, and sprinkles. Instead of the birthday candles, you can also stick a paper stripey straw into the cupcakes for decoration.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common questions with cake making, so that you can be successful in your own baking! I also suggest reading these comprehensive posts on making Perfect American Buttercream, How to Stack, Fill, Crumb Coat and Frost Layer Cakes and How to Use Piping Bags.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftover cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can bake and frost the cupcakes up to 1 day in advance, but I don’t recommend adding the Lucky Charms marshmallows until a few hours before serving, since these will soften and darken as they sit on the cupcakes.
I usually use Americolor gel food coloring.
I buy pretty birthday candles whenever I see some I like, usually at local stores like Michael’s, Joanne’s, Walmart, Target and Hobby Lobby. I have found many lovely candles on Amazon, too, though. You can find some of the ones I like in my Amazon Shop.
You Might Also Like
Please check out my Amazon Shop for a curated collection of some of my favorite cake pans from trusted brands, baking tools, ingredients, pretty things and fashion finds. I recommend products that I buy and use every day!
Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!
High Altitude Shamrock Shake Cupcakes
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 recipe High Altitude Vanilla Cupcakes
- ¾ tsp peppermint (not mint) extract
- 2-3 drops "mint green" gel food coloring
Buttercream
- 1 recipe Vanilla Buttercream
- maraschino cherries with stems, drained and patted dry with paper towels
- Lucky Charms marshmallows
- sprinkles
Instructions
- Prepare and bake the vanilla cupcakes as instructed, adding the peppermint extract and the mint green food coloring with the liquid ingredients.
- Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.
- Prepare the vanilla buttercream as instructed. Fit a 16-inch disposable piping bag with tip 1M, and fill half full with buttercream. Pipe swirls of buttercream onto the cooled cupcakes.
- Decorate the cupcakes with the maraschino cherries, Lucky Charms marshmallows, and sprinkles. Instead of the birthday candles, you can also stick a paper stripey straw into the cupcakes for decoration.
Ali
Awesome! A super successful cupcake recipe that was easier enough to make with the kids. Some orange and white frosting =happy St. Paddy’s ☘️ 🇮🇪