Posted in: Disney, Movies, Nerd Food | Tagged: baking, cupcakes, disney, Disney food, HRL, Mickey Mouse food, nerd food

Nerd Food: DIY Mickey Mouse Snowman Cupcakes (Full Recipe!)

Published Wed, 10 Jan 2018 19:15:13 -0600

Disney Family is an excellent source for things to entertain yourself — and your family — with on days that are less than ideal to go out in. Here in Maryland it's been around 14 degrees every day, and yes, we've had snow here and there. Disney obviously understands the plight of snowed-in parents and has been sharing some excellent recipes to beat the boredom of a snow day!

Have Snow Much Fun Building These Mickey Snowman Cupcakes: https://t.co/I5U7vITNjj 🍰❄️ pic.twitter.com/yQLjRiyNOG

— Disney (@Disney) January 6, 2018

These snowman cupcakes are seriously adorable. You will need the following to get started:

VANILLA CUPCAKES:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2/3 cup whole milk
Standard size muffin tin
12 cupcake liners
VANILLA BUTTERCREAM ICING:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons whole milk
Pinch of salt
DECORATIONS:
1/4 cup white candy melts
1/4 cup dark cocoa candy melts
Vegetable oil, to smooth melts
8 oz. white sparkling sugar
3 red dried fruit strip
Kitchen scissors
Toothpicks
Wax paper

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Set aside.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder.
Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer, and beat on medium for 2-3 minutes until the butter becomes lighter in color and fluffy.
Lower the speed, and add the eggs and vanilla. Mix until all ingredients are completely incorporated.
Alternate between adding the flour mixture and the milk, a little at a time, until all ingredients are combined. Do not over mix.
Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Allow the cupcakes to cool for 5 minutes in the tin before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
While the cupcakes are cooling, you can prepare your snowman decorations. Melt the white candy melts, in a microwave safe bowl, in 30-second intervals at 50% power (stirring between each set) until the melts are smooth and completely melted. You can add vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon at a time, if they are lumpy.
Use a toothpick to draw the ears with the melts onto wax paper (you want the ears to be about 1 inch each, with one side flat). After making each set of ears, sprinkle them with white sparkling sugar to get the sugar to stick.
Melt the cocoa melts the same way as the white, and use a toothpick to draw 2 small ovals for the eyes, a medium oval for the nose, and 2 large ovals for the buttons for each snowman. Allow all of the melts to set while making the frosting.
To make the frosting, place the butter and powdered sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 3 minutes on low speed. Add the vanilla, salt, and milk and mix on medium for 1-2 minutes more, or until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Use a butter knife or offset spatula to frost each cooled cupcake.
Transfer the sparkling sugar to a shallow bowl, and carefully dip the frosted part of each cupcake into the sugar making sure to cover the edges as well. Press down on half the cupcakes (those that will become the bodies) to flatten the tops.
Add an ear to each side of the face cupcakes, and then the nose and eyes. Then add 2 buttons to each body cupcake. You can use extra frosting to get the pieces to stick if needed.
Use kitchen scissors to cut out a strip of the red fruit candy, and stretch it gently to lengthen (be careful not to over stretch or it will rip).
Place the candy between the head and body cupcakes, cut the ends to give a frayed look, and wrap one end at a time over the body cupcake with the 2 ends overlapping. Enjoy!