Here is a Minnie Mouse 1st birthday cake I made for a sweet little girl for her first birthday. I decorated this cake based on a picture provided by the girl’s mother. And she wanted the cake to look exactly as in the image she provided.

Since the design was not mine (I merely recreated it with some slight tweaking), I did an internet search to see if I can find the original designer. And to my surprise, I found many variations of this design (similar to another Minnie Mouse cake I made previously based on a customer request), so again I am not quite sure who is the original designer.
This was a very pretty cake. It turned out very pretty and my customer was totally happy. Her exact words were ‘This cake is better than the photo I gave you’. That made my day and so I am sharing here how I made this pretty one layer Minnie Mouse 1st birthday cake.
How to the Make Minnie Mouse 1st Birthday Cake
Main supplies for the cake:
- Cake – I baked a marble cake for this project and it was an orange chocolate marble cake.
- Number “1” template – I don’t have a ‘1’ shaped cake tin. So I had to carve the ‘1’ out of a rectangle cake.
- Buttercream – I filled the cake with buttercream and crumb coated with buttercream.
- Fondant
– The whole cake was covered in fondant. I used Satin Ice in 3 main colors, i.e., white, light pink, and dark pink. The other color I used was green and it was only for the tiny leaves on the cake.
- Edible image – Minnie Mouse’s image on the cake was an edible image print. I downloaded it from the internet and ordered the print from a local supplier.
- Fondant cupcake image – I cut out the cupcake in fondant. I then hand-painted it to match the cupcake in the image provided to me. For the outline, I used my black edible ink pen.
- Shortening – I used shortening to attach all my fondant cut-outs on the cake including the cake borders.
Tools
- Sugar Paste Extruder– I used the tool fitted with a circular disc to pipe out the border for the cake edges. I also used the same for the fondant plaque frame with the birthday girl's name.
- Clikstix Groovy Letter Cutter - I used Clikstix alphabet cutters for the ‘Happy birthday’ phrase. I also used it for the girl’s name.
- Flower Plunger Cutter, Round Plunger Cutters and Oval Plunger Cutters- The flower cutters were used for the tiny flowers at both ends of the “happy birthday’ message as well as the girl’s name. As for the round cutters, I used them in 2 sizes. One for the white polka dots on the cake. The other, a slightly larger one for the large pink dots on the cake board. The oval cutters were used for the tiny green leaves placed near the flowers.
- Number 1 template
- Plaque cutter
- Sugar craft knife
Baking the cake
- I started by baking the cake. My original marble cake recipe here is a combination of vanilla and chocolate cake batter. To make orange chocolate marble cake, simply replace vanilla essence and milk in the plain batter with grated orange rind and freshly squeezed orange juice.
The number 1 template
- Since I did not have a '1' shaped cake tin, I made my own cake template. I drew the number '1' on a piece of A3 paper. And I used it to carve the cake out of a rectangle cake.
Carving the cake
- To optimize the cake, I split the template into 2. I carved the cake in 2 sections. The long vertical part of the number ‘1’ formed the first part. And the horizontal base of the number ‘1’ was the second.
- Next, I carved the cake, using my templates as a guide. After that, I crumb coated the cake and did the fondant covering. I did this by sections, starting with the top and then the sides. I covered the sides with a darker shade of pink. For the cake border, I piped out a long thin roll of dark pink fondant using my extruder tool. I attached it all around the base of the cake.
Minnie Mouse and the cupcake images
- Next to go on the cake were Minnie Mouse and the cupcake images. The name plaque with the girl’s name went on next. I also added the “happy birthday’ wordings on the cake board.
The polka dots
- The polka dots were the next step. If you notice carefully, I arranged them in a pattern. This is to make sure I space them out consistently. Where they fall on Minnie Mouse or the cupcake or even the name plaque, I cut the dots off so that they fit on the cake naturally.
- And the final touch up for the cake were the tiny flowers and the matching green leaves. I used a small oval cutter to cut out the leaves. I then pinched one end of the cutouts to form the leaves.
Like this Minnie Mouse 1st birthday cake idea? Here are my other posts you might want to check out:
- Purple Minnie Mouse Cake - How to Make
- Pink Minnie Mouse Cake Design - How to Make
- Two Tier Minnie Mouse Birthday Cake
- Minnie Mouse Buttercream Cake
- Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Cake
- Hello Kitty Cake Design for Birthday
- Pink Hello Kitty Birthday Cake Design
- Butterfly Birthday Cake
Recipe (Printable)
Here is the full printable version of my Minnie Mouse 1st birthday cake recipe and decorating guide:
📖Recipe
Minnie Mouse 1st Birthday Cake
Equipment
- Sugar Paste Extruder
- Clikstix Groovy Letter Cutter
- Flower Plunger Cutter, Round Plunger Cutters and Oval Plunger Cutters
- Number 1 template
- Cupcake Template
- Edible black food marker
- Sugarcraft knife
- Plaque cutter
For best results, use the metrics measurements. US customary measurements have not been tested and are only meant for guide.
Ingredients
Cake
- 960 g butter
- 960 g castor sugar
- 960 g self-raising flour
- 16 eggs
- 240 ml milk
- ⅔ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 ½ teaspoon vanilla essence
Frosting and Decoration
- Buttercream
- Fondant
- Minnie Mouse edible image
- Shortening
Instructions
Baking the cake
- Preheat oven to 170 °Celsius.
- Beat butter and sugar till soft and creamy for about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold in the sifted ingredients into the creamed mixture alternately with milk, starting and ending with flour.
- Finally, add in vanilla essence and combine well. Pour batter into two greased and floured cake pans and bake for 45 to 50 minutes until the top of the cake springs back when lightly pressed. The cakes are done when a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out without any wet batter.
- Remove cakes from oven and let them cool completely before icing and decorating.
The number 1 template
- Draw the number '1' on a piece of A3 paper. This will be the template used to cut the cake into number '1' shape.
Carving the cake
- To optimize the cake, split the template into 2 and carve the cake in 2 sections. The long vertical part of the number ‘1’ to form the first part. And the horizontal base of the number ‘1’ is to form the second part.
- Carve the cake with the template as a guide. After that, join the piece together with buttercream and give the entire cake a smooth buttercream crumb coat.
- Next, roll some pink fondant and cut out the full number '1' as per the paper template. Gently roll the cut fondant into a rolling pin and unroll it onto the cake top.
- After that, roll some darker pink fondant. Roll it into a long strip, enough to covered the entire sides of the cake. Make sure the width of the strip is as tall as the cake. Gently roll the strip onto your rolling pin and unroll it onto the sides of the cake. Trim off excess fondant at the top and bottom.
- For the cake border, pipe out a long thin roll of dark pink fondant using the extruder tool. Attach it all around the base of the cake with shortening.
Minnie Mouse and the cupcake images
- The Minnie Mouse image is printed on an edible paper. Cut the image following its outline and attach it onto a thinly rolled piece of white fondant. Cut the fondant out and let it firm up before attaching it to the cake top. You can use shortening to help the image stick to the cake.
- For the cupcake, draw it on a piece of paper. Use the paper as a template to cut out the outline of the cupcake on white fondant. Use food colors to paint the cupcake and the candle and draw the black outline with an edible food marker. Cut the cupcake out of the fondant and attach it to the cake with shortening.
The name plaque
- Cut the fondant plaque with a plaque cutter. Also cut out the birthday girl's name and attach to the plaque. Cut out the “happy birthday’ wordings and place them on the cake board. Stick these with shortening.
The polka dots and flowers
- Cut out white polka dots with a round cutter and attach them to the cake. For consistent spacing, arrange them in a pattern. Similarly, cut pink polka dots in fondant and attach them to the cake board.
- Complete the cake decoration with the tiny flowers and the matching green leaves. Use a small oval cutter to cut out the leaves. And then pinch one end of the cutouts to form the leaves. Attach these to the cake with shortening.
Nutrition
And that's my Minnie Mouse 1st birthday cake decorating guide.
Happy Decorating 🙂
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