How to Do a Mini Cupcake Tiered Cake

Want a fun alternative to a tiered cake?

Sometimes I have a hard time knowing how to break down a baby shower. Do I do one super long post or do I break it down? This time, I decided to break it down a bit. I wanted to make sure to give clear instructions on each process in case you want to try and replicate what I've done. I have shared with you a lot of recipes for the shower. This is how I decided to present the salted caramel cupcakes. I found the concept for the cake on Bride.ca. I fell in love with the concept when I found it.

The first thing I did was make a plan. I laid out how I wanted my tiers to look and tried to figure out both the size of cake pans I would use as well as figure out how many mini-cupcakes I would need too fill the display. I used pans that were 5", 9" and 14". I determined I needed 33 mini-cupcakes, but I was certainly glad I made extra because the 33 count was off a bit, and I had some to re-fill the tier as they disappeared.

To make the paper tiers, I first chose my stock paper. I cut them to height. I chose the height by measuring to the height of the pan and then adding on an inch. I taped paper together (end to end) to create the length I needed to cover the circumference of the pan. I made the scallop look by measuring down an inch on the paper (to the height of the pan) and drawing a pencil line all the way across. I took a soup can and determined the height of my arch. Once I decided it, I marked the can so that I could mimic a consistent arch all the way across the paper. I traced the edge of the soup, moving it along the paper after each arch until I had completed the length. I used a stencil to decorate the top tier. I used decorative paper for the middle tier. I used a Sharpie to draw two thin lines on the bottom tier.

This is really a fun way to give an impression of a tiered cake without needing to make one.