Unicorn Cupcakes

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My unicorn cupcakes have a moist vanilla cake with fluffy vanilla buttercream. I used fondant ears, rainbow frosting, and an edible horn to make them look just like your favorite mystical creature.

Just like my mermaid cupcakes and my cookie monster cupcakes these unicorn cupcakes are perfect for birthday parties. They start with a box of doctored up cake mix with a few simple upgrades. They always a showstopper at parties and loved by kids and adults alike.

What Makes Our Recipes Unique: A Sprinkle of Food Science

• Bakery Style Cupcakes From a Box Mix: Swapping the water called for on the cake mix box with milk and the oil with butter gives us a super moist cake with a rich flavor.
• Swirled Frosting: Gel food coloring and a special technique help us get vibrant swirls from one bag.
• Premade Fondant and Horns: Store bought fondant is the perfect consistency and holds its shape well.

Ingredient Notes and Shopping Tips

• Butter: Butter makes the cake richer. Be sure to soften it first by leaving at room temperature for 45-60 minutes. Speed this up by cutting it into smaller pieces.
• Milk: Milk's fat and protein makes the cakes moist and tender.
• Eggs: Use room temperature eggs to help everything come together smoothly? Forgot to leave them set out? Place in a glass of warm water for a few minutes.
• Gel Food Coloring: I like gel over liquid as it gives you a brighter color without any excess liquid.
• Fondant: You can get this at craft stores like Michaels, or even at Walmart. Amazon has it too!

How To Make Unicorn Cupcakes

1. Combine cake mix with butter, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Bake according to box directions.
2. Roll out white and pink fondant, cut out circles, and pinch into ear shapes.
3. Make buttercream by combining all ingredients and divide and dye each a different color.
4. Pipe swirled frosting. Then top each with a horn and ears.

Krystle's Tips: Steal My Culinary School Secrets

1. Don't Overfill Cupcake Papers: Fill only around two thirds of the way full. This prevents doming and gives you a flat surface for decorating.
2. Use Powdered Sugar: Avoid using raw flour, instead dust your work area and fondant with powdered sugar to prevent sticking.
3. Keep Covered: It dries out quickly which is great after decorations are made but not good when you're still trying to roll and shape it.
4. Chill Frosting: I stick mine in the fridge for around 10-15 minutes. Chilling firms up the fat and helps keep the different colors stay separate.
5. Practice Piping: Test a few stars on parchment paper to perfect your technique.

More Fun Cupcakes

Smores Cupcakes

Cannoli Cupcakes

Margarita Cupcakes

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📖 Recipe

Unicorn Cupcakes

Perfect vanilla cupcakes decorated with rainbow swirled frosting. Adorable, and easier than you may think!

5 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 18 minutes minutes

Total Time: 38 minutes minutes

Servings: 18

Calories: 405kcal

Author: Krystle Smith

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Ingredients

For the Unicorn Ears

• ▢ 1 Container White Fondant
• ▢ 1 Container Pink Fondant
• ▢ 1 Cup Powdered Sugar

For the Cupcakes

• ▢ 1 Box French Vanilla Cake Mix
• ▢ 3 Eggs
• ▢ ½ Cup Unsalted Butter Softened
• ▢ 1 Cup Whole Milk
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract

For the Frosting

• ▢ 1 Cup Unsalted Butter Softened
• ▢ 2 ½ Cups Powdered Sugar
• ▢ 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
• ▢ 3-5 Tablespoons Heavy Cream
• ▢ Pinch of Salt
• ▢ Sky Blue, Pink, and Purple Gel Food Coloring

To Decorate

• ▢ 1 Package Royal Icing Mini Flowers
• ▢ 1 Package Unicorn Horn Royal Icing Transfers

Don't lose this recipe. Pin for later!

Instructions

For the Unicorn Ears

• Sprinkle some powdered sugar onto your cutting board ,and rolling pin.
• Roll out half of both colors of fondant to be about ⅛ of an inch thick.
• Using a Wilton 2D icing tip, cut out 36 white round circles.
• Then use a #2 icing tip, cut out 36 pink round circles.
• After that, using the #2 tip again, to cut the pink circle a tad bit smaller.
• Using a paintbrush, brush a really small amount of water onto the white circles.
• Then, place the pink circles into the center of the white circles.
• Next, carefully pick up the white circle and pinch the bottom of the ears.
• Set aside and repeat with remaining 35 circles.
• Allow to dry for about 2 hours.

For the Cupcakes

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.
• In a medium bowl, add the cake mix, butter, milk, and vanilla extract.Stir until combined, do not over mix.
• Scoop cupcake batter into the liners, until they are about ¾ of the way full.
• Bake in the oven for about 18-20 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.
• Cool completely before frosting.

For the Frosting/Decorations

• In a large bowl, combine all frosting ingredients adding heavy cream as needed until you reach your desired consistency.
• Once the frosting is made, split it into 3 bowls.
• Add about 2-4 drops of each color:Sky Blue, Purple, and Pink.
• Place the piping bag into a large glass and fold the sides of the bag over.
• Scoop one spoonful of the Sky Blue frosting into one side of piping bag. Then, scoop one spoonful of the Pink frosting into another side of the piping bag. Finally, scoop one spoonful of the Purple frosting onto the other side of the piping bag.
• Repeat steps with a second piping bag.
• Using a star tip, pipe a medium size amount of frosting in the center of the cupcake.
• Using a #195 tip to pipe small dollops of frosting to give added dimension.
• Place the unicorn horn into the center of the frosting.
• Place an ear on both sides of the horn.
• Randomly place a royal icing flower on each cupcake.

Nutrition

Calories: 405kcal

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