The Cupcake Hack To Create Customized Mini Layer Cakes

Cupcakes are perfect for when you want, well, a cup-sized cake, but they can actually be used for other cake-related baking endeavors too. For example, did you know that you can make customized mini layer cakes using cupcakes? Yep, a layer cake doesn't have to be as big as a typical cake.

Here's what you do: Start by baking cupcakes as you normally would in a muffin tin using your preferred recipe. Then, cut off the top of the cupcake in order to make the layer more even (as cupcakes will sprout outward and become rounded at the top). Once you've done this with all of the cupcakes, all that's left to do is assemble — stack the cupcake pieces on top of one another, with a layer of frosting in between.

Finally, add an outer layer of frosting and smooth it over to finish. While no one is stopping you from making a mega-mini cake by using a ton of layers, we would recommend sticking to two or three layers so that your mini cake doesn't topple over.

One major perk of this method is that it's super easy to mix and match cake and frosting flavors. You could do this with a traditional cake as well, but it's a whole lot easier when you're working with the cupcake form. For example, if you're unable to choose between the two most popular flavors — vanilla and chocolate, of course — then you can make a two-layer mini cake complete with one layer of each. Then, if you can't decide between chocolate and vanilla frosting, you can choose one to use in between the cake layers and one to use on the exterior of the cake.

Another idea that utilizes classic flavors is to make a Neapolitan cake — one layer of vanilla, one of chocolate, and one of strawberry cake. Or, you could pair a classic flavor with a more complex flavor — perhaps pumpkin spice, lemon poppyseed, or even chocolate mocha. We also love the idea of pairing two different flavors of chocolate together, such as chocolate mocha and chocolate raspberry – complete with some type of chocolate frosting. Plus, since you're making several cupcakes at once, you have plenty of backups if your flavor experimentation doesn't work out the first time — although, it's hard to go wrong with cake.