The subject must agree in number with its verb. I must have heard people use it incorrectly so much that the correct way sounds strange. To make for is an idiom with several different meanings.
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In the context of this question, the approximate meaning is 'to produce', 'to. This is the rule to be applied while deciding what to opt for. The formal and traditional answer is makes, because the subject is the singular noun phrase receiving homemade cupcakes.
I will use your suggested.
Thus, if a subject is.