Ice cream is a classic summer dessert. But, ice cream cones don’t make great party treats because they quickly melt in the summer heat.

Luckily, I have a pretty great cake mix hack that will solve this problem for you this summer. These adorable red, white, and blue ice cream cone cupcakes are so simple to make, yet they taste so good, no one will know you made them using a boxed cake mix! One of my favorite cupcake recipes.

The coolest part about these cupcakes isn’t the icing that looks like ice cream – it’s the fun patriotic surprise inside the ice cream cones! These cute cupcakes feature red, white, and blue cake inside the cones. And the best part is that they’re made using one box of a cake mix altered in two different ways.

Red White and Blue cupcakes made in ice cream cones

So, start by mixing up a box of white cake mix according to the package instructions.

Table of Contents

Recipe Tips and Instructions

Then, separate the mix equally between three bowls. Set one bowl aside – you’ll keep that cake mix white. Take another bowl and pour in half a box of red gelatin mix. In the other bowl, pour in half a box of blue gelatin mix.

The flavors you choose for the gelatin are up to you. For my red, white, and blue cupcakes, I used strawberry for the red mix and berry blue for the blue mix. Fold the gelatin mix into the cake mix, but be careful not to over mix your cake batter!

After the batters are prepared, set them aside for a few minutes to get your ice cream cones ready for baking.

photo of 6 complete ice cream cone cupcakes above photo of ice cream cone cupcake sliced in half. Sliced cupcake shows the red, white, and blue batter swirls.

How to Bake a Cupcake in an Ice Cream Cone?

The best way to bake these cones is in a cupcake pan. Set a cone in each cup of the cupcake pan, then cut strips of aluminum foil to secure the cones in place. Crinkle the aluminum foil and form a nest with it, wrapping the crinkled foil around the base of the ice cream cone. These nests will help keep your cones stable as you pour in the cake batter and while the cupcakes bake.

When you’re satisfied that your cones are secure, grab your red cake mix and start filling the cones. Place around one tablespoon of cake batter in the bottom of the cone. Then, use a small spoon to spread the mix out and create a smooth layer of batter.

Next, repeat the process with the white and blue cake mixes. Be careful not to fill the cones more than ¾ of the way full of batter or the cupcakes will rise too tall and start to overflow as they bake!

How long do I bake cupcakes inside of ice cream cones?

Bake the cupcakes according to the cake mix instructions for baking regular cupcakes.

When a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, your ice cream cone cupcakes are ready to be removed from the oven.

Allow them to cool completely before adding the icing.

3 images of ice cream cone cupcakes in a collage.

What is the best decorating icing?

The icing I used on these cupcakes is a shortening-based icing. I love this type of icing for these cupcakes because it hardens nicely, allowing you to get plenty of height on your “ice cream” without running the risk that the icing will droop or fall over after it sets.

To make the icing, beat the shortening and vanilla extract with the paddle attachment on your stand mixer. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and milk, alternating between the two until your desired consistency is reached. I would make the icing a little thicker than normal to ensure it stands up on top of the cones.

Using a large star tip, pipe a swirl of icing on top of each cone cupcake to make it look like soft serve ice cream. To add a patriotic finishing touch, sprinkle some red, white, and blue star sprinkles on top.

Specialty Ingredients:

The following ingredients are affiliate links on Amazon because they may be a bit hard to find in your normal store. I wanted you to be able to see exactly which things we are using.

Reminder, not all ingredients in the red, white, and blue ice cream cone cupcakes recipe are linked above, just the ones that may be a bit difficult to find or that you might be unsure of what to look for.

image of ice cream cone cupcakes and red and white striped hand towel

Must Have Resources:

When making these Patriotic cupcakes at home, you really need to have the following Amazon affiliate tools on hand.

Make it a Meal:

These yummy desserts make me think of picnics and barbecues. So, I think they would pair best with that type of meal.

Main Dish: As a born and raised Southern Woman, nothing screams summertime lawn party to me more than some BBQ Pork Ribs!

Vegetable Side: These Grilled Sweet Onions make an awesome and virtually zero calorie side dish that is perfect for counter-acting all the calories in your dessert!

Starch Side: You can make up some potato salad to round out your dinner, or try a lighter Pasta Salad.

Refreshing Drink: Down here, we want ice cold sweet tea – if that isn’t fancy enough for you, try out this delicious frozen watermelon mocktail.

Easy ice cream cone cupcakes recipe for 4th of July

Best Cupcake Recipes:

If your children (and husband) are anything like mine, they think they need to be able to put their hand onto a snack at any given moment!

Cupcakes make keeping treats fairly easy. I just put some on my multi-functional glass dish (best gift EVER) and place it in the center of my counter.

My point is, the number of cupcakes on my site are a bit plentiful! Check out some of our most popular ones:

I bet you (and your family) will also love this list of over 20 cupcake recipes!

faded image of cupcakes with text overlay that says red white and blue ice cream cone cupcakes

More Patriotic Recipes:

You don’t have to just have cupcake ice cream cones, you could keep pushing the boundaries and enjoy a Rice Krispie cone! Seriously! Check out these 4th of July Rice Krispie Treat Ice Cream Cones from my good friend, Crystal over at CrystalandComp.

According to this Etsy listing, no party is complete without their adorable, thematic party favor cookies! Each measures approximately 3″. These Patriotic party favor cookies are offered in sets of 12, and come individually bagged and bowed.

Red, White, and Blue Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

Yield: Makes 24 Cupcakes

These cute cupcakes feature red, white, and blue cake inside the cones. And the best part is that they’re made using one box of a cake mix altered in two different ways.

Ingredients

Ingredients for the Cupcakes:

24 ice cream cones
1 box white cake mix
1 box red gelatin mix
1 box blue gelatin mix

Ingredients for the Icing:

1 cup shortening
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
2 to 3 cups powdered sugar
4 to 6 tablespoons of milk
Star sprinkles

Instructions

Preheat oven and mix cake mix according to package instructions.
Evenly divide the cake mix into three separate bowls. Set one bowl aside. In one bowl, mix in half the red gelatin mix. Stir to combine. In the other bowl, mix one half of the blue gelatin mix. Stir to combine.
Prepare your ice cream cones by placing one cone in each cup of a muffin pan. Secure the cones in the pan by crinkling a strip of aluminum foil around the bottom of each cone to create a nest.
Pour one tablespoon full of blue cake mix in the bottom of the cone. Use a small spoon or toothpick to smooth the cake mix to create an even layer. Repeat this step with the white cake mix and red cake mix.
Make sure not to fill the cones more than ¾ of the way full of cake mix.
Bake the cupcakes according to the cake mix’s instructions for baking a batch of cupcakes.
Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before adding the icing.
To make the icing, whip together the shortening and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment. Slowly mix in the powdered sugar and milk, alternating between the two ingredients until a thick icing forms.
Using a large star tip, create an ice cream swirl on top of each cone. Top with red, white, and blue star sprinkles.