Race Car Cupcake Ideas

Cupcakes are suitable for nearly any party, but sometimes it can be difficult to figure out how to decorate them for a party in celebration of a male, as cupcakes are so often decorated in pastels with candy flowers. Race car-themed cupcakes will be a hit with boys of any age. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Checkered Flag

The checkered flag in race car driving signifies the end of the race when the driver should begin to slow down and cool off his car. Since it's such a significant icon in racing, you can use this as a pattern for race car-themed cupcakes. Apply a layer of vanilla icing to each cupcake, and then cut up wide pieces of licorice into tiny squares. If you dot each frosted cupcake with squares of licorice in a checkerboard pattern, the tops of the cupcakes will begin to resemble the iconic flags. Alternatively, you could just ice the cupcakes with vanilla or chocolate frosting and stick a tiny checkered flag in each one.

Traffic Lights

Traffic light cupcakes are simple solution for someone who needs to prepare race car-themed cupcakes quickly. Simply take vanilla frosting and put it in three separate bowls. Mix yellow food coloring in one bowl, red food coloring in another and green food coloring in the third. Keep adding drops of food coloring until each bowl of frosting achieves a vivid shade, and then frost cupcakes in each of the three colors. Alternatively, if you don't want to rely on food coloring, you could cover the surface of each frosted cupcake with either red, yellow or green candies. Place your cupcakes on tray in columns of three cupcakes: red at the top, yellow in the middle and green on the bottom.

Tires

Even a baker who's not inclined to create intricate decorations can still come up with something striking. You can frost cupcakes with vanilla or chocolate frosting, spear a toothpick through a mini doughnut and push that speared doughnut into the top of the cupcake to look like tires. Alternatively, you can place a sandwich cookie on the top of each frosted cupcake, then use an icing dispenser to draw on simple or intricate hubcap designs to the dark chocolate cookie surface. This is another simple way to create a tire cupcake effect.