Mini Cupcakes on a Stick

Everything is better on a stick and mini cupcakes on a stick are no exception!

With February in full swing, Valentine’s Day is on the mind of many couples in love. But I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels that you don’t have to have a holiday to tell you to celebrate love…you can celebrate it everyday and any day! These Mini Cupcakes on a Stick are a perfect everyday surprise for those you love.

While I certainly make homemade cake batter and homemade frosting,  I’m not opposed to using a boxed cake mix and prepared frosting that I enjoy to save on time. For my Mini Cupcakes on a Stick, I picked out a strawberry flavored cake mix and prepared it according the instructions on the box. I used mini white cupcake liners with a 1.25″ diameter. The cups were fill only about 1/2 way, to keep the cupcakes on the small side (and not too heavy for the stick).

While the cupcakes are baking, cut gumdrops in half. Using 8″ lollipop sticks, insert the stick into the middle of one of the gumdrop pieces, with the cut side upwards. Slide the gumdrop down just a bit, so that the cut edge of the gumdrop is about 1 1/4″ from the end.

Note: After some trial and error, I realized that you really need something on the stick to help keep the cupcakes from sliding down. So, the gumdrop serves a “ledge”, which I was able to figure out after reading this post, which uses marshmallows or Dots candies.

After the cupcakes are completely cooled, use the tip of a sharp knife to cut a small slit in the bottom middle of the cupcake. Insert the gumdrop end of the stick into the bottom of the cupcake, until the gumdrop and the cupcake liner meet. The stick shouldn’t protrude out the top of the cupcake, so if feels like it will, you may wish to slide the gumdrop up a bit.

While this is completely optional, I wanted to dress up the sticks a bit. I found adhesive ribbon with a Valentine theme at Walmart in the scrapbooking craft section. I cut a 3-4″ piece of ribbon, removed the adhesive, and folded it right on the stick under the gumdrop. I used scissors to cut a triangle out of the end. If you wish, you can also tie a bow on the stick.

I created a temporary stand for my cupcakes by turning a shallow cardboard box (6″ tall or so) over and poking holes in it with a pair of scissors.

Now it’s time to frost our mini cupcakes!

I used the new Cool Whip Frosting, which can be found in the freezer section of Walmart (you can see all the photos from my shopping trip here). I first tried Cool Whip Frosting (cream cheese flavor) on a pumpkin cake and we really liked it, so I didn’t hesitate to use it on our cupcakes on a stick. This time around, I used both the vanilla flavor and the cream cheese flavor. I even bought a chocolate flavor, because I heard that it’s delicious, but I’m not sure yet what I’m going to use that on.

I filled up a pastry bag, which I fitted with a round size 12 tip, with the Cool Whip Frosting.

TIP: I have a printable Cool Whip Frosting coupon in the sidebar! Be sure to print before you go to the store.

Each mini cupcake was frosted and sprinkled with nonpareils and topped with a tiny candy heart.

I placed tissue paper in the bottom of a mason jar, which allowed the mini cupcakes on a stick to stand up better.

Because this was all about celebrating love everyday, as I gave each one of my family members their cupcake on a stick, I told them something that I’ve been loving about them lately.

For my youngest son, I told him that I love the way he’ll pick up items off of a grocery floor when they fall on the ground…even if he didn’t do it. Recently, a loaf of bread fell of the shelve while were on the aisle. An customer in a hurry, swerved their cart around it, but Mattie stopped and picked it up, without being asked. I love that he does kind things like this.

When I gave Courtney her mini cupcake on a stick, I told her that I love how she’s so willing to assist me in the kitchen — whether it’s with cooking dinner or helping me take food photos for my blog.

Of course, everyone LOVED the mini cupcakes on a stick, but my oldest daughter Instagramed a photo of them and said “My momma made cupcakes on sticks”. Reading that showed me how much they meant to her and, with that, the everyday love came right back to me. Feels good.

 Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community.  This content has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias® and Kraft Cool Whip. #CoolWhipFrosting #cbias #SocialFabric All opinions are 100% my own

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About the Author: brandie (401 Posts)

Brandie Valenzuela is a food blogger and writer at Home Cooking Memories. She lives in Las Vegas, NV where she enjoys cooking, baking, modern-day recipe keeping and making everyday memories with her family. She is known to have an extremely normal obsession with cupcake liners, ribbons and office supplies.