Straightforward Animal Cupcakes

Animal Cupcakes are simple and straightforward to make. Choose from a zebra, monkey, tiger, or panda design.

Animal Cupcakes: Zebra Version

Of course I had to start with a reliable animal into a cupcake! While I don’t know if these are the cutest or not (I’m kind of partial to the monkeys below), I do have to say that as far as jungle animals go, zebras are a reliable. Black + white stripes are the coolest.

In case you can’t find the ingredients in the store, or prefer the convenience of shopping online, here are links to the ingredients I used:

• Black Candy Melts
• Black Sparkle Gel
• White Sparkling Sugar

Monkey Cupcakes

When we lived in Australia, visiting Bali, Indonesia was only a 3-hour flight. It was one of the coolest places I’ve ever been! We got to go to a monkey forest there where you can interact with monkeys in the wild. (Equally terrifying as it was amazing.) So, of course, monkeys made the cut for jungle animals — my family loves them!

In case you can’t find the ingredients in the store, or prefer the convenience of shopping online for the animal cupcakes, here are links to the ingredients I used:

• Edible Candy Eyeballs
• Black Sparkle Gel
• Chocolate Jimmies Sprinkles

Animal Cupcakes: Tiger Version

And these were hands down the boys’ favorites! I guess you really can’t argue with that bright orange color.

In case you can’t find the ingredients in the store, or prefer the convenience of shopping online, here are links to the ingredients I used:

• Edible Candy Eyeballs
• Black Sparkle Gel
• Orange Sugar Sprinkles

Panda Cupcakes

The secret to making these cupcakes really cute are the chocolate chips. I tried a few different brands and flavors (milk, semi-sweet, dark). I found the very best chocolate chips (look-wise) on these cupcakes are Nestle dark chocolate chips. They are just the right color and size!

In case you can’t find the ingredients in the store, or prefer the convenience of shopping online, here are links to the ingredients I used:

• Edible Candy Eyeballs
• White Sparkling Sugar

Ingredients

• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup sour cream (full-fat, or full-fat vanilla Greek yogurt)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (or see note 1)
• 1 (15.25-ounce) package chocolate fudge cake mix (uncooked)
• 1 (3.4-ounce) package chocolate instant pudding and pie filling (uncooked)
• 1 (16-ounce) container cream cheese frosting (or your favorite from-scratch frosting)
• White sparkling sugar
• Black candy melts
• Brown M&M’s
• Black decorating gel
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup sour cream (full-fat, or full-fat vanilla Greek yogurt)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (or see note 1)
• 1 (15.25-ounce) package chocolate fudge cake mix (uncooked)
• 1 (3.4-ounce) package chocolate instant pudding and pie filling (uncooked)
• 1 (16-ounce) container cream cheese frosting (or your favorite from-scratch frosting)
• Chocolate jimmies sprinkles
• 1 box mini vanilla wafers
• Candy eyeballs
• Black decorating gel
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup sour cream (full-fat, or full-fat vanilla Greek yogurt)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (or see note 1)
• 1 (15.25-ounce) package chocolate fudge cake mix (uncooked)
• 1 (3.4-ounce) package chocolate instant pudding and pie filling (uncooked)
• 1 (16-ounce) container cream cheese frosting (or your favorite from-scratch frosting)
• Orange sparkling sugar
• Candy eyeballs
• orange M&M’s
• Black decorating gel
• 1 box mini vanilla wafers
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup sour cream (full-fat, or full-fat vanilla Greek yogurt)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (or see note 1)
• 1 (15.25-ounce) package chocolate fudge cake mix (uncooked)
• 1 (3.4-ounce) package chocolate instant pudding and pie filling (uncooked)
• 1 (16-ounce) container cream cheese frosting (or your favorite from-scratch frosting)
• White sparkling sugar
• Dark chocolate chips (I like Nestle)
• Candy eyeballs
• Black decorating gel

Method

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with liners and keep nearby.
2. In a large bowl, briskly whisk the eggs for 20 seconds. Add the vegetable oil, sour cream, vanilla, and buttermilk. (If you don’t have buttermilk, combine 1/2 cup milk with 1/2 tbsp white vinegar in a separate cup and let sit for 5 minutes, then add to mixture.) Mix.
3. Add in the cake mix and pudding mix (both not prepared) and stir to combine. (Do not over-stir or beat in too much air.)
4. Fill up the liners 3/4 the way full and bake for 17–20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
5. Remove and allow to cool completely.
6. Frost the cupcakes smoothly with a butterknife.
7. Pour the white sparkling sugar into a bowl and dip the frosted cupcakes into the sugar. Gently press to coat all the frosting in the sprinkles.
8. Frost the back of a black candy melt and adhere it to the bottom half of the cupcake. Add 2 M&M’s for ears.
9. Use the black sparkle gel to add hair to the zebra (between the M&M’s), stripes, eyes, and a smile face to the candy melt.
10. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with liners and keep nearby.
11. In a large bowl, briskly whisk the eggs for 20 seconds. Add the vegetable oil, sour cream, vanilla, and buttermilk. (If you don’t have buttermilk, combine 1/2 cup milk with 1/2 tbsp white vinegar in a separate cup and let sit for 5 minutes, then add to mixture.) Mix.
12. Add in cake mix and pudding mix (both not prepared) and stir to combine. (Do not over-stir or beat in too much air.)
13. Fill up the liners 3/4 the way full and bake for 17–20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
14. Remove and allow to cool completely.
15. Frost the cupcakes smoothly with a butterknife.
16. Pour the brown sprinkles into a bowl and dip the frosted cupcakes into the sprinkles. Gently press to coat all the frosting in the sprinkles.
17. Using an extremely sharp knife, make a quick cut into a mini vanilla wafer to make 2 ears. (You will have quite a few casualties!) Stick the ears into the sides of the cupcake to hold. Frost the back of 1 full wafer and press to make the mouth.
18. Attach the eyes using black sparkle gel. Draw the mouth and nostrils using black sparkle gel.
19. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with liners and keep nearby.
20. In a large bowl, briskly whisk the eggs for 20 seconds. Add the vegetable oil, sour cream, vanilla, and buttermilk. (If you don’t have buttermilk, combine 1/2 cup milk with 1/2 tbsp white vinegar in a separate cup and let sit for 5 minutes, then add to mixture.) Mix.
21. Add in cake mix and pudding mix (both not prepared) and stir to combine. (Do not over-stir or beat in too much air.)
22. Fill up the liners 3/4 the way full and bake for 17–20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
23. Remove and allow to cool completely.
24. Frost the cupcakes smoothly with a butterknife.
25. Pour the orange sparkling sugar into a bowl and dip the frosted cupcakes into the sugar. Gently press to coat all the frosting in the sprinkles.
26. Frost the back of a mini vanilla wafer and adhere it to the bottom half of the cupcake. Add 2 orange M&M’s for ears.
27. Use the black sparkle gel to adhere the edible eyes right above the wafer. Use the gel to pipe a mouth on the wafer and curvy stripes to either side of the wafer.
28. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with liners and keep nearby.
29. In a large bowl, briskly whisk the eggs for 20 seconds. Add the vegetable oil, sour cream, vanilla, and buttermilk. (If you don’t have buttermilk, combine 1/2 cup of milk with 1/2 tbsp white vinegar in a separate cup and let sit for 5 minutes, then add to mixture.) Mix.
30. Add in cake mix and pudding mix (both not prepared) and stir to combine. (Do not over-stir or beat in too much air.)
31. Fill up the liners 3/4 the way full and bake for 17–20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
32. Remove and allow to cool completely.
33. Frost the cupcakes smoothly with a butterknife.
34. Pour the white sparkling sugar into a bowl and dip the frosted cupcakes into the sugar. Gently press to coat all the frosting in the sprinkles.
35. Press 2 dark chocolate chips to make the panda some ears. Add 2 more chocolate chips for eye sockets and 1 below for a nose (the nose chocolate chip is pressed into the cupcake on its side).
36. Use the black sparkle gel to adhere the edible eyes to the chocolate chips and then to add a mouth below the chocolate chip ”nose.“