Pencil Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

Planning for back to school? These super cute and EASY pencil cupcakes will be ready in under 30 minutes!

Back to School Celebration

Back to school season is officially in full swing, and it brings all the images of pencils, crayons, and scribbled notepads to life. This is hands down one of my favorite seasons as I get to watch how excited the kids are to go back to school. Who’s with me?!

Easy Pencil Cupcake Recipe

To celebrate this milestone to the fullest, I threw a little party for Charlie and Claire and included these adorable pencil cupcakes along with apple pretzels in the mix. I’m SO excited to show you how to make them for your own kids to enjoy!

Ingredients for Pencil Cupcakes

To make these fun and easy pencil cupcakes, you’ll need your favorite vanilla cake mix and the amount of water, eggs, and oil as directed on the cake mix box. You’ll also need 12 flat-bottomed ice cream cones, 2 containers of store-bought yellow frosting, and Hershey’s chocolate kisses. For the rest of the design, you’ll need pink and yellow scrapbook paper, scotch tape, and a marker.

Step by Step Instructions

Step 1: For this recipe, we baked cupcakes in ice cream cones to serve as the base of the pencil. Then, we dressed them up! The first step to making the cupcake cones is to make your vanilla cake mix. Preheat the oven to 350 F to allow it to warm up.

Step 2: Prep the batter according to the directions on the package, and place the ice cream cones in the cupcake pan. Divide the batter amongst the cones, filling each just above halfway full. Bake for 18 minutes and then remove the cupcake cones to cool fully.

How to Decorate Pencil Cupcakes

Step 3: While the cupcakes are cooling, it’s the perfect time to prepare the pencil decorations. Use pink and yellow scrapbook paper to cut strips of paper to wrap around the base of the cone.

Step 4: Make the pink strips thinner than the yellow strips to resemble the eraser of a pencil.

Step 5: Once the cupcake cones are cooled, wrap the yellow strip around the base of the cone and add a small piece of tape on the back to hold it together.

Step 6: Next, repeat this step with the pink strip over top. Write a “2” on the cone to resemble a #2 pencil to finish off the base!

How to Frost Pencil Cupcakes

Pro Tip: Freeze your store-bought frosting for 30 minutes prior to piping it

Step 7: With the base complete, it’s time for frosting! Use store-bought yellow frosting, or make your own. Pipe the frosting using a round tip to create a tall swirl.

Step 8: To finish off the pencil cupcakes, place a Hershey’s chocolate kiss on top of each.

Expert Tip: Add the Hershey’s Kisses on top of each Pencil Cupcake immediately after you pipe the frosting so it’s sure to stick.

Back to School Plans

Once the cupcakes are ready, it’s time to celebrate! Serve these cute little pencils for a back-to-school celebration, whether you’re having a special dinner or throwing a party. Or, surprise the kids with a fun after school snack during their first week! 

Expert Tip: Freeze frosted ice cream cones to stabilize the frosting prior to serving.

What are your plans for celebrating the back to school season? I’d love to hear all about it in the comments below!