Whimsical Pink Winter Wonderland Cupcakes

It’s finally December! And that means I have something tasty to share leading up until Christmas! I’ll be posting cakes, cookies, treats, and cupcakes EVERY SINGLE DAY until Christmas. Yep, so buckle up, folks. It’s about to get all holly jolly up in here. First up, we have my Whimsical Pink Winter Wonderland Cupcakes! They’re pretty dang cute, if I do say so myself :).

With whimsical pink buttercream (vanilla) and pink cupcakes (vanilla), these are simple to make and have a really lovely magical touch about them with the decorations on top.

Let’s dive right in. I have the recipe and directions below for every little detail.

Where to begin

Let’s start with the base of these darling whimsical pink winter wonderland cupcakes – the cake & buttercream. I went with my go-to vanilla/white cupcake base and my vanilla buttercream. They’re both very easy to make and customize to just about any color you’d like them to be.

HOW to make EASY vanilla cupcakes

The ingredients are pretty simple for my white cake recipe – most of them you’ll already have in your kitchen! All I did to change them for these cupcakes is adding in a drop or two of soft pink gel coloring.

INGREDIENTS TO MAKE VANILLA CUPCAKES:

• BUTTERMILK – If you don’t have buttermilk, you can always make your own by adding about a tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to your whole milk, letting it sit for a half hour to curdle, and then using it in your recipe.
• SOUR CREAM – Always go for the full-fat real stuff. It’s thick and creamy and works wonders for the texture of your cupcakes.
• EGG WHITES – Lots of recipes require so many egg whites. This one only needs 4! Make sure your ingredients from the fridge are all room temperature before using, and save those egg yolks for a yummy curd, custard, or right in your morning scrambled eggs.
• VANILLA – I use my inexpensive vanilla in my cupcakes, and then use my more expensive stuff in my buttercream. So if you use imitation stuff here, I won’t tell anyone.
• VEGETABLE OIL – the oil in these cupcakes make them super fluffy, so I recommend not subbing in melted butter for this one.
• WHITE CAKE MIX – I prefer the taste and texture of Duncan Hines, but if you use a similar brand, you’ll be fine.

The directions for my cupcakes are here with my white cake recipe. For the transition from cake to cupcake, all you’ll need to do is split the cake batter into 24 cupcakes, add in a little bit of soft pink coloring gel, and then bake the cupcakes for about 12-14 minutes.

HOW TO MAKE PINK BUTTERCREAM

For my whimsical pink winter wonderland cupcakes, I went with my vanilla buttercream recipe, and then once again tinted it with a little soft pink gel coloring.

INGREDIENTS FOR PINK VANILLA BUTTERCREAM:

• UNSALTED BUTTER – Left out at room temperature for 10 minutes to soften slightly before whipping them up in the stand mixer.
• SALT – I know, we went with unsalted butter and then added salt to it. Seems like madness, but it’s how we can better control the amount of salt in the buttercream. The salt balances out the sweet.
• VANILLA – I love using the good stuff. Use pure vanilla and maybe even a little half teaspoon of almond extract if you want a little extra something!
• HEAVY CREAM – I love the 40% Darigold brand, but anything similar should be good. This helps you control the consistency of your buttercream.
• POWDERED SUGAR – Add it half a cup at a time and use it to balance the consistency of the buttercream.

The DIRECTIONS for my easy vanilla buttercream are HERE.

What do I need to make these cupcakes?

• Cupcake Liners – I used white ones. The pink cake underneath shows through a little bit and I love that!
• Wilton 1M piping tip – I use this thing for everything!
• Pink Sprinkle Mix – I couldn’t find my exact mix that I used here, but I found something pretty similar here if you’d like to purchase them.
• Fondant – I buy my fondant in these little packets and use them as needed.
• Sprinkle punch/cutter – found mine here, and I use them all the time for my winter treats!

How to make fondant snowflake toppers:

The snowflakes are made from rolled out fondant, and are VERY easy! I know they look tricky, but their intricate nature is pretty easy to master with a SNOWFLAKE FONDANT CUTTER/PUNCH.

HOW TO: Roll out the fondant very thin on a sheet of parchment paper, then press the snowflake punches into the fondant. Remove the extra fondant from the trimmings, then roll it out again to make more snowflakes if needed. Let the fondant snowflakes dry for at least an hour so that the snowflakes are firm.

VIDEO:

Here’s a quick video of the decorating process:

I can’t wait to see your Baking with Blondie inspired winter creations! Make sure to tag me @bakingwithblondie or #bakingwithblondie on Instagram or Tiktok and I’ll make sure to reshare what I can!

Happy Baking!

xo,

Mandy