Map Cupcake Cakes

I first made a pirate map cupcake cake for my daughter's 11th birthday party. It looked like a cake, but instead of cutting pieces, guests could just pull a cupcake out of the pan and eat. I have since used this technique to make game-inspired cupcake cakes as well. These map cupcake cakes will add a fun element to your next party or game night!

20 cupcakes (I used boxed, but any you want to use will be great.)

20 cupcake liners, if you are making your own cupcakes

Frosting (Again, I used from a can, but you could make your own, if you were ambitious that way.)

Frosting tools (frosting spatula, food-safe paint brushes, toothpicks)

Food coloring

A 9x13 pan to hold 20 cupcakes

Maps for inspiration and cut outs

A hexagon template, if you are doing a Catan-inspired map

Any fancy picks for decoration (I used pirate-themed picks for my pirate map.)

Any dice or game pieces for decoration for the Catan-inspired cake

Make 20 cupcakes. Let them cool for just a few minutes, then place them into a 9x13 pan. You want a tight fit to make the frosting step easier. If they are still a little warm, they squish together better. Once they are placed in the pan, leave them to cool completely for ease of frosting.

To begin, frost a solid layer across the top of all of the cupcakes. For the pirate map, I used Caramel Latte frosting, which already had a parchment color. For the Catan map, I used whipped vanilla frosting, leaving the middle plain where most of the hexes will go, and coloring the frosting for the edge like the sea.

For the pirate map, I used a contemporary map of the Caribbean region, cutting out the land masses and islands for my template. For the Catan map, I used a single hexagon template and cut that out.

Gently place the template on the cake and trace around it with a toothpick. Once you have all of your lines, you can go back and fill them in with food coloring using a food-safe paint brush. With the Catan hexagons, I used the brush directly and didn't use toothpicks. I did the Catan lines with brown food coloring. For the pirate map, I used the toothpick to make most of the lines, then back-filled them with black food coloring.

To fill in elements of your map, mix frosting to your appropriate colors and frost inside the template lines. In the case of the Catan map, I used yellow, brown, grass green, dark green, and Navy blue for the "tiles." If you mess up any borders, use the food coloring again to redefine those areas.

Add any design elements to your cake. For the Catan cake, I added two dice. For the pirate cake, I added pirate-themed decorative picks, including a compass rose, a pirate ship, a treasure chest, and an anchor. If you are going to cover the cake for transportation, you may want to include taller elements, such as the picks, when you are ready to put out the cake.

To serve the cupcakes, simply pull one out! No knife or serving-ware needed!

I hope you enjoyed this guide to presenting an easy-serve cake for parties or game nights.