Walk on the wild side with these adorable Minnie Mouse safari cupcakes! These sweet treats are perfect for birthday parties, movie nights, a baby shower, or any time you feel like indulging. The entire family will love these gluten-free cupcakes topped with a crave-worthy homemade peanut butter icing!

Minnie mouse safari cupcake with pink bow

Lately, I’ve been craving a bit of adventure. And while I can’t exactly head out into a jungle safari, I can do the next best thing: turn on Jungle Cruise and whip up a batch of safari-themed cupcakes featuring everyone’s favorite leading lady, Minnie Mouse!

These are super cute, and as I mentioned earlier, they are totally gluten-free.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that means these cupcakes will be dry or flavorless – they are still just as delicious as traditional cupcakes, if not more so!

While there are several steps to this creation, it’s actually very easy to make. You can opt to either use a GF cake mix as a base or make your cupcake from scratch, but this recipe is all about the icing and (edible) cake toppers!

So gather your ingredients and get ready to go wild with these Minnie Mouse safari cupcakes!

Note: For a list of ingredients and instructions, scroll down to the bottom of this post and save the recipe card!

How To Make Peanut Butter Frosting

First, let me give you a warning: this stuff is addicting. Seriously, I could eat this frosting by the spoonful…and mayyyybe I have.

I don’t always say this, but I really believe this is one you need to make from scratch. The store-bought version (if you can even find it!) is just not the same.

To make this peanut butter frosting, you’ll need:

Sweet cream butter (unsalted)
Powdered sugar
Pure vanilla extract
Heavy whipping cream

Here are some helpful tips to make whipping up this frosting a total breeze!

Use a stand mixer or hand mixer. You won’t get that lovely whipped texture without it!
Splurge on pure vanilla extract. It makes a huge difference, I promise!
Use a cookie scoop to add frosting to your piping bag. This is the easiest and cleanest way I’ve found to do it.
A large star tip will give you the best results.
DO NOT ice your cupcakes until they are completely cooled. Otherwise, the icing will melt all over the place, leaving you with a huge (yet delicious) mess.

Disney Safari jungle cupcakes on a black platter

Vee’s Tips for Working With Fondant

If you haven’t worked with fondant before, don’t be nervous! It really is simple, and it’s a lot of fun too!

While you can make your own fondant base, I prefer to buy a premade one (I get the Wilson brand) and then do the fun part—decorating!

You’ll need to make the cupcake toppers at least the DAY BEFORE you want to use and decorate them. It needs 24-48 hours to dry—so plan ahead!
Knead the fondant. Just like you would bread dough, knead your fondant until it’s soft and pliable.
Sprinkle cornstarch onto your cutting board to keep the fondant from sticking to it.
Roll out the fondant. Use a rolling pin to roll out the fondant to about 1/4 inch thickness.
Use round fondant cutters to cut out the circle shapes and bow molds to get Minnie’s signature bow look.

How to Make the Fondant Minnie Mouse

These are so much cuter than your standard safari cupcake toppers—you know, those plastic safari animal ones that are used for birthday decorations. 😉 Plus, these are edible too!

Once you have your fondant rolled out and cut (see tips above), it’s time to decorate.

White fondant circle as base for minnie mouse

Step 1: Grab a brown edible marker and the cheetah stencil. Place the stencil over one of the white round fondant pieces.

Step 2: Next, hold the stencil in place with one hand, then carefully and gently color in the cheetah spots.

Step 3: Set that piece aside and continue on with the rest of the white circles. Once you have all your cheetah print ready, take the black marker and trace each section for definition.

Tip: For a pretty shine, grab some silver cake spray and lightly spray it on.

Step 4: Next up are the bows—grab your dried bow pieces and place the stripe stencil on each. Then lightly spray the red cake spray onto the bow. Set all the pieces aside and allow them to air dry for several hours.

Close up of bows on a minnie mouse cupcake

Time To Assemble Your Safari Cupcakes!

Making the prettiest safari cupcake is super easy!

Step 1: Grab your cooled cupcake, and add a dollop of frosting on top with a butterknife. Then, roll the cupcake in toasted coconut.

Gluten free cupcake topped with peanut butter icing and rolled in shredded coconut.

Step 2: Now, use the piping bag with your star tip to pipe the peanut butter frosting on top.

Peanut butter icing pipped using a star tip

Step 3: I find it easiest to place the bow first. You’ll want it in the center, at the front of the frosting.

DIY fondant bow on a gluten free cupcake

Step 4: Then, grab your two ears and add one to each side of the bow behind it. And—chef’s kiss—that’s it!

GF safari cupcake with minnie mouse ears

How To Store Cupcakes

While making these safari cupcakes is easy, it does take several days due to the fondant drying time.

I often make the fondant pieces several days ahead of time, then make the cupcakes the day of or the day before an event.

You can also pre-assemble everything. Once it’s all done, these cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

I hope you enjoy making (and eating) these adorable Minnie Mouse safari cupcakes!

GF Minnnie Mouse safari cupcakes with shredded coconut and peanut butter icing.

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