These individual cakes are a cute alternative to slices from a large one. The base is a moist vanilla cake recipe with cream cheese. The mini cakes can be frozen and glazed before serving, making them great for parties.
Dessert cakes
The beauty of these small cakes (like cupcakes without the paper liners) is that they can be topped with different glazes and toppings. That is exactly what I wanted to achieve: a plain vanilla cake that is easy to customize for parties, birthdays, Christmas, other holidays, and even a small wedding.
Besides the lemon, chocolate and cream ideas I used today, I've finished them with different sprinkles, like gold and red for Christmas or pink for my niece's birthday, and fresh raspberries for a Summer cookout.
Let your imagination fly and present different options.
One of our most popular categories is bundt cakes, so it was about time I introduced you to these fabulous and versatile mini ones.
Small cakes are a tad more laborious—not the batter, but filling the bundt cake pans and decorating—but so worth it! Especially for a gathering or party when you need impressive individual desserts.
I like vanilla as the base flavor, but you can also use these small chocolate cakes as the starting point and play with the toppings.
Ingredient Notes
Quantities are listed on the recipe card towards the end of this post. The Ingredients page has more details and lists the brands we use.
- Cream cheese: Use regular, full-fat cheese for a richer cake.
- Baking powder: Make sure it's not expired.
- Chocolate: For the ganache, use your favorite semisweet chocolate or mix it with milk or white chocolate for a sweeter topping.
- Strawberries or berries: use them fresh. Frozen fruit doesn't work.
- Citrus glaze: Use fresh juice and zest for the best flavor.
Steps to make vanilla cakes
Room temperature ingredients
This is important for the butter and cream cheese to integrate well and to get a smooth, lump-free cake batter.
Sifting
This step is necessary to avoid clumps or impurities and also helps with fluffiness.
You can sift the dry ingredients beforehand in a separate bowl or have them measured and sift them directly over the butter mixture (my choice).
Vintage Kitchen Tip
After incorporating flour in a cake batter, we don't want to develop gluten, as it will toughen the baked cake. So mix *just* until it's all well incorporated but don't overbeat. I like to end mixing with a silicon spatula to ensure the ingredients are fully integrated.
Mini bundt cake pans
Fill the pan to no more than ¾ of their capacity.
I used silicon pans for the first time with these and the mini pumpkin cakes. And (surprisingly) they're working better than my metal bundtlette pans that I was having issues with the cakes sticking.
Baking the cakes
How do you know when they're done? Mini bundt cakes bake way faster than large ones. Use a cake tester or toothpick to check: if it comes out clean (no wet crumbs or batter attached) when you insert it in the middle of one cake, they're done.
Removing the cakes
Let cool for 15-20 minutes before attempting to remove them. Do so carefully onto a wire rack.
Let cool completely
Don't glaze them until the cakes are at room temperature, or the mixture will thin out and drip too much.
Glazing bundt cakes
The fun part of making plain vanilla mini cakes is the different frostings and glazes you can use.
I usually make them chocolate, lemon and berries because they're extremely popular flavors. But don't limit yourself to them.
Lemon
For maximum flavor, we brush the cakes with lemon syrup and drizzle them with powdered sugar lemon glaze.
You can use only the lemon glaze and make a thicker layer to compensate for the lack of lemon flavor from the syrup.
Chocolate glaze
Though semisweet chocolate ganache is a classic, you can also use milk chocolate or white.
It can be made ahead and reheated when ready to drizzle.
Cream and berries
Whipped cream and strawberries or other fresh fruit is a fantastic seasonal option that never fails.
The cream can be made ahead and piped or spooned on top of the cakes.
Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: Consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Add-ins: you can add chopped nuts to the batter.
- Freezing: these moist cakes freeze well for a month; make sure they're individually wrapped. I use plastic wrap first and then aluminum foil. Defrost them in the refrigerator (it takes a while, so I recommend doing it the day before) or at room temperature, unwrapped.
Related recipes you might like:
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Mini Bundt Cakes (with different toppings)
Ingredients
Cream cheese mini cakes:
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3 cups sugar
- 6 eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Lemon syrup:
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Citrus glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons citrus juice, lemon, orange, lime or a mix
- citrus slices, zest or edible flowers, to decorate
Chocolate ganache:
- 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon corn syrup or honey
- chocolate shavings, chopped nuts or edible flowers, to decorate
Whipped cream and berries
- 1 cup cold cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 2 cups chopped fresh strawberries or mixed berries
Instructions
- Turn the oven to 350°F (180°C).
For the small cakes:
- Grease 18 mini bundt pans with soft shortening and dust with flour, shaking off excess. Or use baking spray (especially if using silicon molds). Reserve.
- Beat 1 ½ cups unsalted butter and 8 ounces cream cheese until smooth.
- Add 3 cups sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add 6 eggs, one at a time, and beat well after each addition. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and mix.
- Sift 3 cups all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon baking powder and ½ teaspoon salt and add them in 2 parts to the butter mixture, beating to integrate on low speed. Incorporate well, but do not overbeat.
- Pour into the prepared pan, filling each mold no more than ¾ of their capacity.
- Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool on a wire rack and remove from the pans.
- Glaze some with the icing, some with the ganache and others with whipped cream and fresh berries. Sprinkle or add some extras on top as garnish.
For the citrus glaze and syrup:
- Stir ¼ cup fresh lemon juice with 3 tablespoons granulated sugar. Pour over the cakes while still hot so it seeps into them. If the cakes are at room temperature, heat the syrup briefly before brushing.
- Mix 1 cup powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons citrus juice in a small bowl until smooth and creamy.
- Drizzle over cakes and top with citrus slices, zest or edible flowers.
For the ganache:
- Chop 8 ounces semisweet chocolate and place in a medium bowl.
- Heat 1 cup heavy cream until it’s about to boil, then pour over the chocolate pieces. Let stand for a minute and then whisk until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon corn syrup or honey and stir until incorporated and shiny.
- Pour over the cooled cakes and sprinkle with chocolate shavings, chopped nuts or edible flowers.
For the whipped cream:
- Beat 1 cup cold cream with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar in a medium bowl until firm peaks form. Be careful not to overbeat it, or it will curdle.
- Have ready 2 cups chopped fresh strawberries or mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries or a mix) that have been washed and dried.
- Pipe or spoon whipped cream on top and/or the center hole of the mini cakes and add the berries.
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