The Best Easy St Patricks Day Cupcakes for Busy Moms

If you’ve ever baked with kids, you already know this truth:
Not everything that comes out of your kitchen needs to look Pinterest-perfect.

Sometimes cooking with kids means stepping back… and letting them create their own little culinary masterpieces — without hovering, fixing, or “improving” their vision.

And honestly? Those are usually the memories that stick. 

Over the years, we’ve made birthday cakes shaped like teapots, Easter bunny cakes, and even a full Cat in the Hat cake for Dr. Seuss’ birthday. Some were adorable. Some were… creative. All of them were filled with laughter.

So when I asked the girls what they wanted to make for St. Patrick’s Day, I had big ideas — leprechauns, pots of gold, maybe rainbow piping techniques.

Their answer?

“Cupcakes.”

Not elaborate cupcakes.
Not bakery-style masterpieces.

Just green. Lucky. Sprinkle-covered cupcakes.

No fondant leprechauns required. 

And you know what? They were perfect.

Easy St. Patrick’s Day Cupcakes (Kid-Decorated & Mom-Approved)

If you’re looking for easy St. Patrick’s Day cupcakes for kids, this is the recipe. It’s simple, festive, and designed for little hands to help every step of the way.

These cupcakes are:

• Beginner-friendly
• Budget-friendly
• Perfect for classroom parties
• Great for baking with toddlers or elementary-aged kids
• Easy to customize

And best of all? They taste just as good as the cupcakes I’ve spent hours perfecting for events.

Ingredients for Super Simple Green Lucky Cupcakes

These are intentionally easy-to-find ingredients. You can absolutely swap in homemade cake batter if that’s your style — but boxed cake mix keeps this stress-free for little helpers.

You’ll Need:

• 1 chocolate cake mix (plus ingredients listed on the box for cupcakes--usually water, eggs, and cooking oil)
• Cupcake liners
• 1 cup Mint & Chocolate Baking Chips. (If unavailable: add ¼ tsp mint extract + 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips.)
• 1 container vanilla or cream cheese frosting
• Green food coloring (here are some tips for natural food coloring if interested!)
• Green sprinkles or sanding sugar
• Marshmallows from Lucky Charms cereal (rainbows and clovers are our favorite!)
• Gold decorating sugar (optional “pot of gold” touch)

How to Make Easy St. Patrick’s Day Cupcakes with Kids

1. Bake the Cupcakes

Preheat your oven and prepare cupcake liners according to the cake mix directions.

We usually grab seasonal liners — but this year we went with plain white ones. Simple works.

Fold the mint chocolate chips into the batter and bake as directed.

2. Cool Completely

Allow cupcakes to cool fully on wire racks before decorating.

Tip: Decorating warm cupcakes with kids is a frosting disaster waiting to happen.

3. Tint the Frosting

Add 4–5 drops of green food coloring (or about a ½-inch squeeze of gel color) to the frosting.

Mix until fully combined. Let your kids decide how bright “lucky green” should be.

4. Frost the Kid-Friendly Way

We skip piping bags when little hands are involved.

Instead:

• Pour frosting into a shallow bowl
• Let kids dip the cupcake tops
• Twist slightly
• Smooth bare spots with the back of a spoon

No perfection required.

5. Decorate Freely

Now comes the magic.

Sprinkles. Marshmallow rainbows and clovers. A dusting of green sugar. A little gold sugar.

Let them design their own lucky masterpiece.

Some will be simple. Some will be wildly sprinkled.

All will be eaten happily.

Tips for Baking with Kids (Without Losing Your Mind)

If you’re baking with younger children, here are a few sanity-saving tricks:

• Pre-measure ingredients if attention spans are short
• Put sprinkles in small bowls to avoid full-container spills
• Use gel food coloring (it’s less messy than liquid)
• Accept the mess as part of the memory

The goal isn’t magazine-worthy cupcakes.

The goal is connection. 

Disclaimer: I wrote this blog post in 2012--but, it has been updated for 2026!