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These adorable Mickey Mouse cupcakes use my vanilla cupcake recipe, which is loved by thousands of families! A moist vanilla cake that delivers on both taste and presentation, perfect for birthday parties or special occasions.
The Cutest Mickey Mouse Cupcakes — And the Easiest Too!
Getting decorated cupcakes for a birthday party can cost a pretty penny, but unless you’re a professional baker, you might not have the confidence to decorate your own. These Mickey Mouse cupcakes prove you don’t have to have a lot of cake decorating experience to make perfect cupcakes for a party!
Once you bake the cupcakes and whip up the frosting, you’ll use regular Oreos and mini Oreos to make Mickey’s head and those iconic mouse ears. It’s as simple as that, and the results are cute as can be.
Consider this recipe more of a template than anything else. I use a moist vanilla cupcake base, but you can use any cake flavor you want. The same goes for the frosting; I like to use a vanilla buttercream, but cream cheese frosting will work, too. Just use a flavor that will work with the flavor of Oreos and avoid chocolate because the Oreos will blend in too much. A light or bright shade of frosting helps those ears really “pop”!
These cupcakes make a sweet treat for a kids birthday party, but they’re easy enough to make just because. If you have a Mickey Mouse fan in your life, they will absolutely love these cupcakes, and so will you! If you’re looking for another mickey mouse idea, make mickey mouse hot chocolate bombs!
Mickey Mouse Cupcake Ingredients
Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
For the vanilla cupcakes:
- Unsalted butter – Let this come to room temperature.
- Granulated sugar
- Egg whites
- Sour cream
- Milk – Use skim, 1%, or 2%.
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
For the vanilla frosting:
- Unsalted butter – This butter will need to be room temperature, too. It’s much easier to whip into a creamy frosting that way!
- Vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar – Also known as confectioners’ sugar.
- Milk or heavy cream – You only need this if the frosting is thicker than you’d like.
- Regular Oreos
- Mini Oreos
- Red, yellow, white and black jimmie sprinkles – You can find individual bags of various colored jimmie sprinkles at Michael’s or Walmart.
- Red and yellow food coloring – I used red and yellow gel food coloring from AmeriColor.
Does Sour Cream Affect the Taste of Cake?
The sour cream in this recipe adds moisture, but it’s not enough to affect the flavor of the cupcakes. Using sour cream in cupcakes gives them a fine, tender crumb because it allows you to add more moisture to the batter without thinning it out with water or milk.
How to Make Mickey Mouse Cupcakes
If you don’t have a solid block of time to bake these in one go, you can easily break it into a few different steps and make the cupcakes over the course of a day or two.
1. Make the Cupcakes:
Prepare. Preheat your oven to 350ºF and line a muffin pan with muffin liners.
Mix the wet ingredients. Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl; beat with an electric mixer for a minute or two, or until the mixture is fluffy. Beat in the egg whites, sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract.
Finish the batter. In another mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients a few spoonfuls at a time, mixing until just incorporated.
Bake. Fill the muffin liners halfway full and bake for 17 to 19 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake only has a few moist crumbs clinging to it.
2. Make the Vanilla Frosting:
Beat the butter and vanilla. Beat the butter and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the sugar. Slowly add the powdered sugar, beating on low to incorporate it into the butter mixture. Taste and add more sugar as needed; if the frosting becomes too thick, add a dash of milk or heavy cream. Whip for 3 to 4 minutes.
Color the frosting. To color the frosting more than one color, divide the frosting evenly into separate bowls. Add food coloring to each and beat until the color is uniformly distributed in the frosting.
3. Assemble:
Prep the cookies. Twist a regular Oreo apart and scrape out the filling. Use a sharp knife to cut the cookies in half, forming semi-circles. Twist a mini Oreo apart and scrape that filling out, too. You’ll need 12 of the half-circles and 24 mini Oreo ears if you’re making 12 cupcakes.
Frost the cupcakes. Place a dollop of frosting on each cupcake and use an offset spatula to spread it into a dome. Combine the sprinkles in a dish and rotate the edge of each cupcake in the sprinkles.
Add Mickey. Place a half Oreo piece in the center of each cupcake. Then, using a small amount of frosting, stick the mini Oreos onto the backs of the large Oreos. Position the ears as needed to create your Mickey Mouse.
How to make Mickey Mouse Cupcakes Ahead
If you want to get a head start on this recipe for a party, I recommend making the cupcakes, frosting them, and assembling the Oreo Mickeys without putting them on the cupcakes. If the Oreos sit in the buttercream for an extended period of time, they’ll begin to soften up. Simply store them separately, then pop them into the frosting before serving.
You can also make the cupcakes and freeze them for up to 3 months without the frosting. Let them thaw at room temperature, then make the frosting and assemble.
Tips for Success
Here are some hints and tips to make sure your Mickey Mouse cupcakes turn out perfect!
- Measure the dry ingredients properly. Use the spoon-and-sweep method to make sure you’re not using too much flour. Then, sift the dry ingredients together for extra fluffy cupcakes.
- Don’t over-fill the cupcake liners. To keep them from baking over the edges, don’t fill them any higher than halfway.
- Adjusting the frosting. If you want your frosting lighter and fluffier, you can add 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream when adding the last portion of powdered sugar.
- Let the cupcakes cool completely. If they’re even slightly warm when you decorate them, the buttercream will soften and your Mickey Mouse is likely to slide down or fall over.
Mickey Mouse Cupcake Variations
- Christmas Mickey Mouse Cupcakes
Start with a chocolate or vanilla cupcake as the base. Pipe red and white swirled buttercream on top to resemble a candy cane or Santa hat. Place a large Oreo vertically on the front of the cupcake for Mickey’s head, and add two mini Oreos for the ears. To enhance the festive look, sprinkle edible Christmas glitter or add a small fondant Santa hat to one of Mickey’s ears. - Halloween Mickey Mouse Cupcakes
For a spooky treat, use a chocolate or pumpkin spice cupcake. Swirl orange and black frosting on top for a Halloween vibe. Attach a large Oreo to the front of the cupcake for Mickey’s face, and position two mini Oreos on top as his ears. To give it a spooky twist, draw small jack-o’-lantern faces on the large Oreo with edible markers, or drizzle black icing to create a haunted effect. - Mickey Celebration Cupcakes
Use a funfetti cupcake to match the celebratory theme. Pipe bright red or yellow frosting on top. For decoration, place a large Oreo on the front as Mickey’s face and add two mini Oreos for the ears. To enhance the festive look, sprinkle edible glitter or star-shaped sprinkles. - Mickey New Year’s Eve Cupcakes
Start with a chocolate cupcake for a rich, dark base. Pipe black and gold swirled frosting on top for a sophisticated New Year’s Eve feel. Set a large Oreo in place for Mickey’s head, with two mini Oreos for his ears, and finish with edible gold stars or a small edible clock to symbolize midnight.
Minnie Mouse Cupcakes
Easily turn these Mickey Mouse cupcakes into Minnie Mouse cupcakes! You can change the colors and sprinkles to incorporate pinks & purples. You can also reserve a small amount of frosting and pipe a bow onto the oreos.
How to Store
These cupcakes are best eaten the day they’re made, but if you do have leftovers, they can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. If you want to freeze leftovers, I recommend removing the Oreos for easier storage.
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Mickey Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature (1/2 cup)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large egg whites
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup milk, skim, 1% or 2%
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
Vanilla Frosting (makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes)
- 3 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature (1 & 1/2 cups)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2-3 cups powdered sugar
- Dash milk or heavy cream if frosting becomes too thick
- Regular oreos
- Mini oreos
- Red, yellow, white and black jimmie sprinkles
- Red and yellow food coloring
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line a muffin pan with muffin liners.
- In a mixing bowl combine the butter and sugar, beat using an electric mixer, 1-2 minutes until fluffy. Add in the egg whites, sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract. Beat lightly with the electric mixer. In a separate mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Sift the dry ingredients together, this will help produce extra fluffy cupcakes. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients a few spoonfuls at a time. Mix until just incorporated. Fill the muffin liners 1/2 full.
- Bake for 17-19 minutes at 350º F or until a few moist crumbs remain on a toothpick when inserted into the center. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before adding the frosting.
Vanilla Frosting
- In a mixing bowl, combine the butter and vanilla extract, beat using an electric mixer until fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing on low until combined. Taste as needed to determine if you want more powdered sugar. If the frosting becomes too thick, add a dash of milk or heavy cream. If you want an extra fluffy frosting, add in 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream when adding the last bit of powdered sugar. Whip for 3-4 minutes.
- If you want to color the frosting 2 separate colors, divide the frosting, add in the food coloring and beat until each color until combined.
Assemble the cupcakes
- Twist a regular oreo apart so you have 2 cookies. Scrape the filling out. Use a sharp knife to cut the oreo in half so you have 2 semi-circles. Set aside.
- Twist a mini oreo apart so you have 2 cookies. Scrape the filling out.
- Add a dollop of frosting to each cupcake and spread into a dome shape using an offset spatula. Place the sprinkles in a dish and rotate the edge of the cupcake in the sprinkles to get the sprinkles to stick to the frosting. Place a large half oreo piece in the center of the cupcake. Then, using a bit of frosting, stick the mini oreos onto the back of the large oreo. Fix the placement of the ears as needed so it looks like Mickey Mouse.
Notes
- Fill the cupcake liners only 1/2 full.
- Properly measure the all purpose flour using the spoon and sweep method.
- I used red and yellow gel food coloring from AmeriColor.
- You can find individual bags of various colored jimmie sprinkles at Michaels or Walmart.
- How to store: These cupcakes are best eaten the day they’re made, but if you do have leftovers, they can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. If you want to freeze leftovers, I recommend removing the Oreos for easier storage.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
