Dirt Cupcakes Recipe: Easy Gummy Worms Cupcakes for Kids

Dirt Cupcakes are one of my all-time favorite desserts, you guys — chocolate cupcakes dipped in Oreo crumbs and topped with a candy-coated strawberry that looks just like a carrot poking out of the dirt! These are such a fun dessert for springtime, and honestly kids of all ages go absolutely wild for them. Be still my heart. 🌱

Check out all of my springtime recipes right here.

Main Ingredients Needed for Dirt Cupcakes

Here’s the beauty of this easy recipe — the ingredient list is super short and simple! You’ll need moist chocolate cupcakes (a boxed cake mix works perfectly — no shame here!), chocolate frosting or whipped ganache, and Oreo cookies finely crushed into fine crumbs for that dreamy “dirt” effect. To make the cupcake batter, you’ll want large eggs, sour cream, vanilla extract, purpose flour, cup cocoa powder, and unsalted butter at room temperature. A chocolate cake mix shortcut is totally valid too! Grab your electric mixer, a large mixing bowl, your muffin tin lined with paper liners or cupcake liners, and a wire rack for cooling. That’s seriously it. Easy-breezy, I promise!

• chocolate cupcakes
• whipped ganache frosting (or any chocolate frosting)
• Oreo crumbs
• strawberries
• orange melting candy (like Wilton’s)

Calling all cupcake fans!
Bourbon Cupcakes with Bacon, Maple & Vanilla

How to Make Gummy Worm Dirt Cupcakes

Okay so here’s the fun thing — this chocolate cupcake recipe is incredibly versatile! Want to make gummy worm dirt cupcakes for a halloween party or birthday bash? Swap the candy strawberry carrot for sour gummy worms or wiggly gummy worms peeking out of the top of each cupcake instead. So creepy, so cute, SO good. 🐛 You can also do a dirt pudding version — pipe chocolate buttercream or chocolate cream cheese frosting (cream cheese softened to room temperature, powdered sugar, melted chocolate — dreamy!) into muffin cups, press cooled cupcakes’ tops into oreo cookie crumbs, and tuck in those worms. Use a piping bag fitted with an M tip for the most gorgeous spreadable consistency on top of the cupcakes. These also make ah-mazing halloween treats that blow up on social media every single time. For more creative cupcake inspo, check out these adorable Flower Patch Cupcakes — another crowd-pleaser I literally can’t stop making!

Recipe Tips & Notes

A few things I’ve learned making this delicious chocolate cupcake recipe over and over again! First, to crush cookies into fine crumbs, I use a food processor — way easier than beating them in a plastic bag or zip lock bag with a rolling pin, though that method totally works too! You want oreo crumbs that are super fine so they really look like dirt on top of each cupcake. Second, when you heat oven and prep your muffin tin, make sure your cupcake form is properly lined — those cupcake liners matter! Beat your chocolate buttercream in a large bowl on medium speed until you hit that perfect spreadable consistency. Want to switch it up? A chocolate cream cheese frosting with cream cheese – softened plus powdered sugar is absolutely dreamy. For another frosting idea, I love this Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting on spring cupcakes — so good! Store cooled cupcakes in an airtight container and keep the strawberries refrigerated separately until serving time.

• Use a food processor or rolling pin to crush Oreos — oreo crumbs should be fine crumbs that truly resemble dirt!
• Pipe lines on the candy strawberry “carrot” using melted chocolate or orange candy in a plastic bag with a snipped corner — that detail makes these look incredible.
• Store-bought chocolate frosting saves time and dishes — absolutely zero judgment from me!
• Keep warm cupcakes on a wire rack to cool completely before frosting for the best results next time.

More Ways to Serve Dirt Cupcakes

These aren’t just a spring thing, I promise! Dirt cups and cup of dirt cupcakes work for SO many occasions — a halloween party, a construction party, a garden birthday, or literally just a random Tuesday when you need something ridiculously fun on the table. You can even do a dirt pudding bar with spoonfuls of oreo dirt and pudding centers — pile chocolate pudding into cups, top with crushed oreo, and add your type of gummy worms. Kids of all ages go absolutely bananas. 🎉 For the approximate nutrition information: the usda food composition database and nutrition data will vary based on your specific brands — check your recipe card for details, and note that trans fat content depends on your butter and frosting choices. These are one of my favorite desserts to share — right up there with my Peanut Butter Banana Cupcakes! Share your email address to get the Cooking Mom newsletter for easy-breezy recipes, and check the recipe index for more ideas from Amy Hanten. Now go make these — it’s your next adventure! 🌿

Looking for REAL Carrot Desserts?

Check out these Carrot Cake Recipes!

Carrot Cake Roll

Carrot Cake Cookies

Caramel Carrot Cake Poke Cake

Dirt Cupcakes

Yield: 2 dozen

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

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Chocolate cupcakes with whipped chocolate ganache dipped in Oreo crumbs and topped with a candy coated strawberry (that looks like a carrot!). These dirt cupcakes are perfect for springtime!

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Ingredients

• 2 dozen chocolate cupcakes, baked and cooled
• 1 batch of whipped chocolate ganache
• 10-20 Oreo cookies (regular, not with extra filling)
• 2 dozen small strawberries
• 10-12 ounces orange melting candy (like Wilton's)

Instructions

1. Mound the chocolate frosting on top of each cupcake.
2. Crush the Oreos and press each cupcake in the crumbled Oreos.
3. Melt the orange candy according to the directions on the package. Dip each strawberry in the candy all the way up to the stem and shake off any excess. Allow to cool and harden on a nonstick surface (like parchment paper or a silicone baking mat).
4. Spoon some melted candy into a zippered bag, and snip off a tiny corner. Pipe horizontal lines across the strawberries.
5. Once the strawberries have hardened, push the tips of each one into a cupcake.

See notes in the post for storage.