24 karat gold cupcakes are made with a moist gold cake topped with shimmering gold buttercream frosting. Decorate with a gold diamond ring in a Tiffany’s box for extra bling!
The incredibly elegant design makes for amazing gold wedding cupcakes or as the perfect carrier for an engagement ring surprise. These cupcakes are truly romantic.
I am so proud of how these cupcakes turned out. The cake and buttercream frosting aren’t just yellow, they have a wonderful golden glow.
At first, I was somewhat skeptical of the gold food coloring but now I am beyond convinced. I cannot wait to bake more deliciously golden goods. Bake these 24k gold cupcakes for your next special event and you’ll fall in love!
When to Serve 24k Gold Cupcakes?
Cupcakes can be chic and these 24 karat gold cupcakes prove it. They are glamorous but in the most classy way. If you are looking for the wow factor for a special event, these are the cupcakes you should serve.
Engagement Ring Cupcakes
I love original and elaborate proposals. I could watch those videos for hours on end. This was also the inspiration behind my 24k golden cupcakes for engagement.
Picture this: instead of the traditional Tiffany engagement ring box from the jeweler, use a taller Tiffany blue cupcake-size box. When you open it, you see a beautifully golden cupcake with a sparkling diamond ring at the center of the icing.
If you’re looking for marriage proposal ideas at home this is also great because the cupcakes are homemade. If that doesn’t make a girl say yes, I don’t know what will. My heart melts just envisioning it!
Bride-To-Be Cupcakes
After the proposal, we celebrate the engagement. The cupcakes look fantastic stacked tall on a crystal centerpiece at the engagement party or bridal shower.
You don’t even have to wait for the actual party to serve these. Take this as inspiration for DIY bridesmaid proposal ideas and surprise your dearest girlfriend to be with you on your special day.
Golden Wedding Cupcakes
I hope to see more weddings with a gold color palette. If you ask me, your wedding is the best reason to go all out.
Nicely package these 24k gold cupcakes as a wedding favor for your guests or create a golden cupcake tower as a more memorable alternative to the traditional tiered wedding cake.
Anniversary Cupcakes
If by some chance you’re actually looking for a 40th-anniversary cupcake (the year of ruby!), celebrate with my ruby slipper cupcakes.
50th Wedding Anniversary
What is the 50th anniversary called? The Golden Anniversary! So, why would you serve anything other than these 24 karat gold beauties?
Use a gold cupcake liner and you have the perfect 50th wedding anniversary cupcakes. My husband and I still have some years to go but I already know what we’ll be biting into.
60th & 75th Wedding Anniversary
The 60th and 75th wedding anniversaries are both known as the diamond anniversary. What better way to celebrate a wonderful lifelong commitment with your loved one than with diamond wedding anniversary cupcakes?
Golden Birthday Cupcakes
What’s a golden birthday, you might ask? It is not your 50th, it is the day that you turn the same age as your birth date. For example, someone born on May 7th has their golden birthday when they turn 7.
It is a once-in-a-lifetime occasion and one that deserves an extra special celebration. You can find many golden birthday ideas online but you already know my favorite…
Check out my cupcake baking guide that answers all of your questions about baking, ingredient substitutes, and decorating the perfect cupcakes!
24 Karat Gold Cupcake Ingredients
- Butter
- Sugar
- Large Eggs
- Pure Vanilla Extract
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Milk
- Sour Cream
- Gold Food Coloring or Icing Gel
Gold Frosting Ingredients
- Butter
- Confectioners’ Sugar
- Heavy Cream
- Pure Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt
- Gold Icing Gel
- Edible Gold Glitter/Flakes
How to Make Gold Cupcakes
With this recipe, we are not looking for that golden brown hue that bakers usually aim for or that yellowish tinge from butter. We are going for that shiny golden glow.
The not-so-secret secret is just a few drops of gold food coloring. It is a simple hack but I do want to give you a few tips before you start baking.
Another great idea is making cupcakes that are naturally golden in color, like caramel cupcakes with caramel frosting, pumpkin cupcakes, or carrot cake cupcakes which actually puts a spin on the whole 24 karat (carrot) gold.
How to Make Vanilla Cupcakes Golden
The base of this recipe is a vanilla cupcake with a few key swaps that ensures the gold really pops. It is quite difficult to get that golden tint so please stick to the given amounts in the recipe.
For these gold vanilla cupcakes, I use both milk and sour cream. Not only do these ingredients make the cake extra moist and fluffy, it also lightens the color of the batter.
With a lighter batter, the gold food coloring comes out better after baking. All I needed for 24 cupcakes was just 2-3 drops and the results speak for themselves.
Stick to just vanilla if you want the same results. Adding other flavors such as chocolate, berries or even lemon would alter the final coloring.
How to Make Gold Buttercream Frosting
To make golden buttercream frosting, you need to be extra careful when melting the butter. If you’ve melted butter before, for any kind of recipe, you may have noticed that the butter eventually browns.
Browned butter makes for excellent sauces but that is not what we want for a golden buttercream frosting. You want to maintain the golden butter color.
That is why I ask you to sieve the melted butter through a fine mesh. You really don’t want to skip this step.
Alternatively, you can melt the butter in the microwave because it is less likely to brown in there. However, if you want to start nitpicking, microwave melted butter doesn’t quite have the same rich taste as butter melted from the pan.
Gold Cupcake Toppings Ideas
What are the best cupcake toppings against this golden background? To keep it looking elegant, I kept it simple and sprinkled some edible golden dust over the buttercream frosting.
Of course, there are many more options. Here are some of my favorites.
- White or Gold Pearl-Shape Sprinkles
- Edible Gold Glitter
- Gold 50th Number Cupcake Toppers
- White Chocolate Curls
- Gold Leaf
- White, Gold, or Pink Roses
- Gold Stars
- Edible or Plastic Diamond Rings (The ones I used are actually plastic diamond ring party favors.)
- Gold Glitter Wedding Monogram Cupcake Topper
- Glitter Diamond Ring Cupcake Toppers
24 karat gold cupcakes are the showpiece for many bakeries. Search for bakeries on Instagram or Pinterest and I’m sure you’ll see several gold cupcake designs pop up within seconds.
Knowing how much they are appreciated by popular bakeries makes me even more delighted with my own gold cupcake recipe. I want you to achieve that same feeling.
You can do it! you can create your very own showstopper 24 karat cupcake that every single one of your guests will talk about afterward. I hope I have inspired you for your special day.
Recommended Cupcakes
- Berry Wine Cupcakes
- Caramel Cupcakes
- Champagne Cupcakes
- Ruby Slipper Cupcakes
- The Best Red Velvet Cupcakes
24 Karat Gold Cupcakes
Ingredients
Gold Cupcakes
- ½ cup Butter, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups White Granulated Sugar
- 3 Large Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
- 2 ¼ cup All-Purpose Flour
- 3 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 1 cup Milk
- ¼ cup Sour Cream
- 2-3 drops Gold Food Coloring or Icing Gel, both work in cupcake batter
Gold Frosting
- 12 tablespoons Butter, room temperature
- 1 pound Confectioners' Sugar
- ½ cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt
- 2-3 drops Icing Gel
- Edible Gold Glitter or Flakes
Instructions
Gold Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line muffin pans with 24 gold cupcake liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Add eggs and vanilla. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Slowly add flour, alternating with milk. Add sour cream and food coloring and blend well.
- Add 3 tablespoons of cupcake batter to each cupcake liner. Bake for 20-23 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
Gold Frosting
- In a saucepan, melt butter. Allow to simmer for approximately 8 minutes until it is golden brown. Pour through a wire mesh to remove any brown sediment from the butter. Allow to cool.
- In a mixing bowl, add heavy cream, melted butter, and vanilla. Slowly add confectioners' sugar until well blended. If too dry, add 1 tablespoon of heavy cream at a time until reaching desired consistency. Add 2-3 drops of gold coloring. Frost cupcakes once they are completely cooled.
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