Pretty Little Butterfly Cakes (aka Fairy Cakes)
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Make these Pretty Little Butterfly Cakes (aka Fairy Cakes) for a lovely mid-morning snack, or for a birthday party. Or a random Tuesday.
I so MISS morning tea, done properly. It doesn’t seem to be much of a thing here in the US, but I live in hope that it eventually catches on.
If you want “pretty” try my Pink Velvet Cake, or my One Bowl Chocolate Bundt Cake, …or my Red Velvet Bundt Cake for a festive red cake that is just as fabulous!
Step-by-step photos and instructions are below. Jump to the recipe card if you wish!
Why you’ll love this
- They are so CUTE!
- Easy, common ingredients.
- They bake in 20 minutes!
What is “Morning Tea”?
Technically, morning tea is a snack break between breakfast and lunch. Unofficially, it’s an excuse to sit, sip tea, and eat butterfly cakes. Convinced yet?
And yes, there’s also afternoon tea – more cake, more reasons to participate. I’m in.
When I lived in Brisbane (Australia), there was a little spot where I’d always grab a mid-morning treat. I almost always went for butterfly cakes. Soft cupcakes filled with cream instead of frosting, topped with sprinkles. You might know them as fairy cakes, but either way, they’re fun and delicious.
I’ve been making this recipe forever. It’s a hit at birthday parties, and you can match any theme with different sprinkles and liners. My boys love pulling off the “wings” to scoop the filling before diving into the rest. They then devour the rest of the cake. It’s a process.
Step-by-step photos and tips and tricks are below. Jump to the full recipe card instead
Key Ingredients
This is a step-by-step photo guide. Full ingredients and instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
Jump
How to make Butterfly Cakes
This is a step-by-step photo guide. Full ingredients and instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
JumpFor the Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Line a 12 well cupcake pan/muffin pan with paper liners.
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Make the batter
- In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy and a very pale yellow color. You can use a hand held mixer and a large bowl and beat the butter and sugar if you need to.
- Add the vanilla extract, milk and the eggs (one at a time) beating well.
- Sift together the flour and baking powder.
- Fold the flour mixture into the batter, until just combined.
- Spoon the mixture into the paper lined muffin cups evenly.
Bake
- Bake for 15-20 minutes. Tops should be lightly golden brown, and spring back when touched.
- Transfer to wire racks, and leave to cool completely before decorating.
Make the Whipped Cream
- In a medium sized bowl, sprinkle the powdered sugar over the top of the heavy whipping cream.
- Beat until stiff peaks form, but don’t go too far and make it butter!
Assembly
- Using a sharp knife cut a circle out from the top of each cake, angling towards the center.
- Cut the tops in half and set aside. Trim them if necessary!
- Pipe whipped cream into each cupcake hole.
- Finish the butterfly cakes by placing two cake pieces over the cream to resemble butterfly wings.
- Sprinkle with sprinkles and dust with icing sugar.
- Devour.
Kylee’s Notes
- These cupcakes are designed to not be huge and domed. We want them to not get too tall so the tops are pretty flat. If you feel like you don’t have enough batter – you do! Just make sure it’s evenly divided among the 12 cupcakes liners.
- You can always use boxed cake mix instead of the vanilla cupcake recipe. Just be sure to underfill the cups so you don’t get too big of a dome!
- If you don’t have a stand mixer, a hand held beater will work just fine.
- If you want to get fancy, add some pieces of licorice for butterfly antennas. Otherwise, keep it simple (and delicious).
Substitutions/Additions
Almond extract is a great substitute for vanilla if you like those flavors.
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- Oreo Dirt Pudding Parfaits. Make this classic chocolatey deliciousness into individual servings, for an easy dessert!
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Pretty Little Butterfly Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Vanilla Cupcakes
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
For the Sweetened Whipped Cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
Serving
- 1 tablespoon sprinkles
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
For the Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 12 well cupcake pan with paper liners.
- In your stand mixer, cream the1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup white sugar together until light and fluffy and a very pale yellow color.1/2 cup butter, 1/2 cup white sugar
- Add the 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1/4 cup milk and the 2 large eggs (one at a time) beating well.1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1/4 cup milk, 2 large eggs
- Sift together the 1 cup all-purpose flour and 2 teaspoons baking powder. Fold the flour mixture into the batter, until just combined. Portion the batter into the paper liners evenly.1 cup all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder
- Bake for 15-20 minutes. Tops should be lightly browned, and spring back when touched.
- Transfer to a cooling rack, and cool completely before decorating.
For the Sweetened Whipped Cream
- In a medium sized bowl, sprinkle the 2 tablespoons powdered sugar over the top of the 2 cups heavy whipping cream.2 tablespoons powdered sugar, 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- Beat until stiff peaks form, but don’t go too far and make it butter!
Assembly
- Using a sharp knife cut a circle (about the size of a quarter) out from the of each cupcake.
- Cut the tops in half and set aside.
- Pipe whipped cream into each cupcake hole.
- Finish the butterfly cakes by placing two cake pieces over the cream to create wings.
- Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sprinkles and dust with 1/4 cup powdered sugar.1 tablespoon sprinkles, 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- Devour.
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Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Did you make this recipe?
Make sure to follow @kyleecooks on Instagram for more and tag me #kyleecooks so I can see!Update: This recipe was originally published in May of 2018. It was republished with updated photos in June of 2021.
About Kylee Ayotte
I am a born and raised New Zealander (a Kiwi), now living in Phoenix, Arizona. I’m happily married to the love of my life – a hot American boy I met while traveling the world. I’m a mama to 2 awesome little boys and love red things, rugby, cheesecake, and bacon. Mmmmm. Bacon. Meet Kylee
Ohh amazing site
I’m laughing so hard that they pull off the wings. Aggghhh boys!