Your friends won't believe it when you make them a batch of grilled cupcakes. They're just as easy as baking them in the oven, but so much more fun for the summer.
4.63 from 8 votes

By Christie Vanover | Published July 6, 2022 | Last Updated February 16, 2023

Grilling cupcakes is just as easy as baking them in the oven, but they’re so much more fun for the summer.

When the grill party is outside, there’s no need for you to be stuck inside watching the oven. Oh no! You’re the life of the party, especially when you show your friends you know how to bake on a grill.

red white and blue cupcake on a grill grate

Below are the recipes I have used to make cake batter and icing for decades. I’ve used them for birthdays and even weddings, and they always gets rave reviews.

The recipe calls for boxed cake mix that I doctor up to make sure the cake is super moist. Completely ignore the recipe and ingredients on the back of the box. Instead, you’ll add eggs, water, oil and and a box of instant pudding mix.

Go with the sugar-free pudding pix. It creates a better cake density than the full sugar kind. Also, make sure it’s instant pudding mix, not the cook and serve type.

Start by selecting your cake flavor and then choose a pudding flavor that complements it. White and vanilla cake go great with vanilla pudding.

Whereas, lemon pudding goes great with lemon cake, and chocolate pudding goes great with chocolate cake. Butterscotch pudding is a rich addition to spice cake.

muffin tin of red cupcakes on a grill

Follow the Grill Smoke U How to Bake on a Grill lesson to learn how to to make grilled cupcakes on a gas, charcoal or pellet grill.

Frosting Grilled Cupcakes

Once the cupcakes are cooked through and cooled, you can ice them. I use a piping bag with a large star tip.

When I bake/grill red velvet or spice cake, I usually use cream cheese frosting. Buttercream is my favorite for everything else. Sometimes, I add a splash of lemon extract or almond extract instead of vanilla.

red white and blue cupcake on a grill grate

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red white and blue cupcake on a grill grate

Grilled Cupcakes

Your friends won’t believe it when you make them a batch of grilled cupcakes. They’re just as easy as baking them in the oven, but so much more fun for the summer.
4.63 from 8 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 20

Ingredients
 

Cupcakes

  • 1 box cake mix
  • 1 oz box sugar-free instant vanilla pudding
  • 4 eggs
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/4 cups cold water

Buttercream Icing

  • 1 stick Crisco shortening
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 3 tbsp milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Cream Cheese Icing

  • 8 ozs cream cheese
  • 1 stick butter softened
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 3 tbsp milk

Instructions
 

  • Heat the grill to 400F degrees with an area of indirect heat. For my gas grill, I turn 2 the two outside burners to medium and leave the two inner burners off.
  • Mix the cake batter ingredients in a large bowl. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Add cake batter to the liners, filling 3/4 of the way full.
  • Place a pie tin on the grill over the indirect heat. Place the cupcake pan on top of the pie tin, so it’s elevated.
  • Close the lid, and grill for 15 minutes. Rotate the pan 180 degrees and grill for another 15 minutes.
  • Remove from the grill and let cool.
  • Mix together the icing ingredients, and pipe the icing onto the cupcakes.

Nutrition

Calories: 270kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 2gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 236mgPotassium: 29mgSugar: 33gVitamin A: 50IUCalcium: 59mgIron: 0.6mg

This estimate was created using an online nutrition calculator

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