Disney Dish: Celebrate Mardi Gras with Universal Orlando-Inspired King Cupcakes

It’s Mardi Gras, laissez les bon temps rouler! Out at Universal Studios Orlando, they take Mardi Gras pretty seriously. And this year they’re taking the celebration up a notch with an out of this world “Planet Mardi Gras” theme. Let’s join in by taking the signature King Cake and making them into delicious cupcakes you can make at home! Grab your beads and put on some Jazz, because we’re having a party!

Universal Studios Orlando Mardi Gras

Not many theme parks go all-out for Mardi Gras quite like Universal Studios Orlando. Between the extravagant floats, delectable food, and a party atmosphere, it’s hard not to get into the Mardi Gras mood.  

MiceChat’s Chloé Ferreira was out at USO earlier this season to check out the Mardi Gras happenings, and it definitely inspired me to celebrate at home! If you want to see how USO is taking guests to Planet Mardi Gras, be sure to take a look at the article below!

Universal Orlando’s Planet Mardi Gras Blasts Off to New Heights

One of my favorite Mardi Gras traditions is making a King Cake. Traditionally, it is a brioche-style bread in a shape of a ring that is covered in icing and colored sugars. Each color is representative of an attribute: the color purple means justice, green is symbolic of faith, and gold represents power. These colors are also typically used in most Mardi Gras celebrations, and they’re also so eye-catching! 

Since Mardi Gras is a big deal at Universal, you’re likely to find King Cake in multiple locations. For today’s recipe, I was inspired by the Mardi Gras Vanilla Cake with Cinnamon Swirl that is offered at the TODAY Cafe at Universal Studios Orlando, but I added my own little twist to it…

Universal Orlando-Inspired Mardi Gras King Cake Cupcakes

For my variation of the USO-inspired King Cake, I turned it into cupcakes! It’s a vanilla tri-colored cake with cinnamon buttercream frosting and topped with a vanilla macaron with a cream cheese center. If this doesn’t get your sweet tooth going, I don’t know what will!

Mardi Gras King Cupcakes

• Yield: 18 Mardi Gras Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 (15.5 ounce) package yellow cake mix
• 7 Tablespoons butter, room temperature
• ¾ cup half and half
• 3 large eggs
• Purple, green, and yellow gel food coloring
• Plastic tiny baby found at cake decorating stores

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350° F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners. Set aside.
• Add all cupcake ingredients to a large bowl. Beat on low for 30 seconds to combine. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 4 additional minutes.
  
  
• Divide batter into thirds. Color each with 5 drops of gel food coloring, ending up with purple batter, green batter, and yellow batter. 
  
  
• Add individual colored batter to a piping bag. Snip off ¼-inch from tip. Pipe into cupcake liners with yellow batter in approximately one-third of the liner, green batter in another third, and purple batter in the remaining spot. Overlapping batter colors is ok! If you are going to hide the tiny, plastic baby, now is the time to insert before baking. Note: When serving the cupcakes, it is important to let your guests know that there is a plastic baby hidden in one of the cupcakes.
  

• Bake at 350° F for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool completely on wire rack.

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

• ½ cup (1 stick, 4 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I like to use Ceylon cinnamon since it is a sweeter cinnamon compared to other versions)
• 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 to 4 Tablespoons milk

Instructions:

• Beat butter in a large bowl on high until light and fluffy. Add cinnamon, beat to combine. Add 2 cups confectioners’ sugar; beat until the mixture comes together.
  
  
• Add vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon milk. Beat to combine. Add another cup of confectioners’ sugar. Beat until light and fluffy.
• Add 2 tablespoons milk and remaining sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add more sugar or milk to achieve proper piping consistency. 
• Transfer frosting to a piping bag with a 1M star tip. Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes. Decorate with purple, green, and yellow sprinkles. (See Tip 5)
  

Vanilla Macarons

Macaron Shells

Ingredients:

• 3 large egg whites
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup almond flour
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Sprinkles and/or Gel Food Coloring, optional

Instructions:

• Measure the egg whites, granulated sugar, powdered sugar, and almond flour into separate small bowls.
• Line two large sheet pans with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Fit a piping bag with a small, round tip (I like a Wilton #10 or 12).
  
• Heat water in the bottom of a double boiler, in the top pot, add the egg whites and granulated sugar. Whisk them together continuously until the sugar has fully dissolved– about 4-5 minutes.
• Transfer the egg whites and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until they form stiff peaks. 
  
  
• Sift the powdered sugar and almond flour three times through a fine mesh sieve or sifter. If there are any large bits, remove them.

• Fold the powdered sugar and almond flour gently into the egg whites mixture, making sure not to deflate the egg whites. Make sure to scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl while you fold.
• When halfway folded, add vanilla extract.
• Once all of the ingredients have been incorporated,  add gel food coloring. 
• Smush the batter against the sides of the bowl and fold it back together until the meringue flows smoothly. When the meringue is ready to pipe, you should be able to draw a figure 8 with your spatula without the stream breaking.
• If the batter falls off in clumps or breaks during your figure 8, continue smushing and folding a few more times before testing again.
• Transfer the meringue to the piping bag fitted with the round tip. Pipe 1” macarons about 2” apart on the prepared baking sheets. I set the piping bag in a tall glass and fold over the sides to help me fill the pastry bag.
  

• Immediately when you’ve finished piping a tray, tap it on the counter to release any air bubbles. Repeat 5-6 times, or until it appears that any large air bubbles have popped.
• Allow the macarons to sit at room temperature until they have formed a skin– about 30 minutes. If it’s a humid day, it may take up to one hour. While the macarons rest, preheat your oven to 325°F.
• Bake the macarons one tray at a time for 14 minutes.
• Allow the macarons to cool fully before removing them from the tray. 

Macaron Filling

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
• ¾ teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or the caviar from half a vanilla bean)*

Instructions:

• Whisk together the cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla beans. Whisk vigorously until no lumps of powdered sugar remain. Transfer the icing to a piping bag.

Macaron Assembly

• Place the macarons in similar-sized pairs on a workspace.
  
• Pipe a small dollop of icing onto the flat size of one of the macarons. Gently press another macaron on top, just until the icing reaches the edges. Slightly overfill so you can roll the edges in sprinkles.

To assemble the cupcake, simply place a completed macaron on top of the frosted cupcake, et voilà, you’re ready to laissez les bon temps rouler (let the good times roll)!

Happy Mardi Gras!  

Enjoy the King Cupcakes. I’ll be back with you again soon with more theme park inspired goodies.