Mini Cupcakes
There’s something undeniably fun and festive about mini cupcakes! They’re cute, easy to eat, and just the right size. Whether you’re baking for a party or just a sweet treat at home, these cupcakes are always a hit.
This simple recipe makes perfectly moist (sorry!) and fluffy mini cupcakes every time – with a rich vanilla cake and sweet cream cheese frosting, you might not want to stop at one!
What makes this the best mini cupcake recipe is the combination of butter and sour cream. Many cakes use oil instead of butter, but I found that the butter gives a rich and amazing flavor while still having a light and fluffy texture.
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
What You’ll Love About Mini Cupcakes
- Cute and adorable
- Customizable for holidays or celebrations
- Perfect bite-sized treats
- Sweet enough, but not cloyingly sweet
- Moist and rich vanilla cake
- Sweet and creamy frosting
- Made with simple ingredients
Ingredients
- Flour – We’re using all-purpose flour to keep these mini cupcakes light and fluffy.
- Sugar – You’ll need two types of sugar for these cupcakes. Granulated white sugar for the cupcakes and powdered sugar for the frosting.
- Baking powder, baking soda, sea salt
- Butter – Use high-quality butter, you’ll need it in both the cupcakes and the frosting. Butter isn’t always used in cake recipes, but I think it gives the cupcakes an incredibly rich flavor. If you prefer, you could also use vegetable oil in place of the butter for the cupcake batter.
- Milk – I’ve used whole milk, but you can really use whatever milk you have on hand. It’s just acting as a liquid, so it has room for flexibility.
- Sour cream – This helps give the muffins a moist texture. You could also use full-fat Greek yogurt, which is very similar to sour cream.
- Egg – Use a large, high-quality egg.
- Vanilla – Use high-quality vanilla for the best flavor. You could also use other extracts to add other flavors if desired.
- Cream cheese – Use full-fat cream cheese for the best flavor.
- Food coloring and rainbow sprinkles – These are optional, but colorful sprinkles definitely add some fun.
- Tools – Mini muffin pan, mini muffin liners, small cookie scoop
Emily’s Tip
To help these cupcakes have a nice and tall structure (no sinking middles!), we start off baking them at a high temperature. This helps the middle shoot up. Then the heat is lowered so they can finish baking through, without getting too brown or burning.
How to Make Mini Cupcakes
This is an overview, the detailed instructions can be found below in the recipe card.
- Mix dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt.
- Mix wet ingredients. Melt the butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Whisk in milk. Whisk in sour cream and vanilla. Whisk in egg until smooth. See notes below if the mixture is lumpy.
- Mix batter. Stir wet and dry ingredients together, just until combined.
- Fill mini cupcake liners. Divide the mixture into the prepared pan, filling about 3/4 full.
- Bake. This method uses a higher initial baking temperature to help give the cupcakes height and then a lower baking temperature to finish. Let cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.
- Frost cupcakes. Beat together butter, cream cheese, and vanilla. Sift in powdered sugar and beat until smooth and creamy. Add in food coloring, if using. Pipe frosting onto cupcakes and immediately sprinkle with sprinkles if using.
FAQs
Do not overbake the mini muffins! This is the best way to keep them from drying out. The sour cream and butter will also help keep them moist.
Overmixing or incorrect measuring techniques can lead to a dense cupcake. Scoop out the flour into the measuring cup so it isn’t packed down, there can be a lot of extra flour added when you scoop it. And when mixing, mix just until combined.
Storage
Store the little cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Because the frosting is made with cream cheese, they do need to be refrigerated. Let the cupcakes sit out for 20 minutes or so before serving so they can come to room temperature and the frosting can soften up.
How to Prep Ahead
You can make the cupcake portion up to a few weeks in advance. Freeze unfrosted in an airtight freezer container (remove as much air as possible!) and take out a few hours in advance to allow time to thaw before frosting.
Mini Cupcake Variations
These cupcakes are so easy to customize! Simply change up the color of frosting and add some sprinkles and you can turn these into so many different special treats. Here are a few ideas:
- Easter – Make green frosting and top with some egg-shaped jelly beans or chocolate.
- Fourth of July – You have a few options for this – stick with a basic white frosting and add festive sprinkles or create red, white, and blue frosting and arrange the cupcakes in a flag with the different colors.
- Halloween – Make an orange frosting and top with Halloween sprinkles.
- Christmas – Make a green or red frosting, or keep it white and top with Christmas sprinkles.
- Valentine’s Day – Keep the pink frosting and top with heart sprinkles.
More Sweet Treat Recipes
If you like these cute cupcakes, you might also like some of these other sweet treats and snacks. My obsession with mini muffins definitely inspired these little cupcakes so definitely give them a try! They are similarly delicious, but with a bit less sugar and a bit more nutrition added into them.
Want More?
Read more about my nutrition philosophy here and follow Emily on Instagram or TikTok for family dinner recipe videos and tips for feeding kids.
Mini Cupcakes Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 24 mini cupcakes 1x
- Category: Dessert
Description
These mini cupcakes are soft, cute, and totally irresistible! Quick to make and easy to decorate, they’re perfect for parties and treats.
Ingredients
Mini Cupcakes:
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/8 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp. vanilla
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1/4 cup softened butter
- 4 oz. cream cheese
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp. vanilla
- food coloring and sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
Mini Cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, stir together all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt.
- In a medium bowl, melt butter. Add milk and whisk in. Add sour cream and vanilla and whisk. Add egg and whisk until smooth. (If mixture is lumpy, gently heat in microwave for 15 seconds and whisk until smooth, but if you whisk ingredients in separately it should be ok.)
- Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir just until combined, being careful to not overmix.
- Divide mixture into mini muffin tin, filling about ¾ full and bake for 5 minutes. Lower heat to 350 degrees and bake for 8-10 more minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean. Let cool before frosting.
Frosting:
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter, cream cheese, and vanilla together until smooth.
- Sift in powdered sugar and slowly beat until smooth and creamy. Add in food coloring if using.
Equipment
Buy Now → Food styling and photography by Loren Runion.
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