How To Make An Alligator Cupcake Cake

This alligator cupcake cake was perfect for celebrating my grandson’s first birthday! I used a gluten-free chocolate almond flour cupcake and a free printable alligator cupcake cake template. Scroll down to grab your copy and get creative!

Be sure to check out these gluten-free cupcake recipes too!

Too busy to make this right away? Save it for later! Pin this post to your favorite board on Pinterest so it’s there when you need it!

What are cupcake cakes?

A cupcake cake is a grab-and-go sweet treat made by arranging cupcakes together to form an image, and then icing them! The best part of a cupcake cake is that they pull apart so they don’t need to be cut and are easy to eat.

Cupcake cakes can be small or large depending on the number of portions that are required. My alligator pull-apart cupcake cake was about 36*12 inches and it had 24 cupcakes.

This post contains affiliate links.

Supplies

Make sure you have everything you need to make and decorate these treats. Here are the supplies I used for my gluten-free version.

• Free Alligator Cupcake Cake Printable Template
• 24 chocolate cupcakes(cooled) – try this cupcake cake recipe: Almond Flour Chocolate Cupcakes.
• Cake board, cutting board, or other flat surface.
• Buttercream icing tinted green
• Piping bag and tips for icing

• Wiggle eyes. I used 25mm Dragon Wiggle Eyes by Creatology from Michaels. You could also use flat black wiggle eyes
• Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies for the scales (gluten-free if you’re making a gluten-free alligator cake)
• Dandies marshmallows or regular marshmallows. You’ll need 1 large marshmallow for the teeth.
• Green jujubes cut in half for the claws
• 4 black jellybeans for the nostrils

How to ice a cupcake cake

Are you wondering how to put icing on a cupcake cake? I know I was! What I learned was that there are two ways to frost a pull-apart cake:

Ice each cupcake individually then put them together to create a themed design. This decorating method is easier to do and less messy to eat.

Ice all of the cupcakes as one cake to get a seamless design. But, it uses a lot more icing and can be messier to eat when the cupcakes are pulled apart. The cupcakes also have to be as close together and secured to the base so they don’t move around. When you ice this type of cupcake cake, you will want to put a generous amount of icing on each cupcake using an icing bag. Then, fill in any gaps with icing. The icing can be flattened out and decorated with an inscription, or left with rosettes on top from the icing tip!

How to make an alligator cupcake cake

Whether you call this an alligator cake or a crocodile cake, it can be adapted for use on various occasions. This could include birthday parties, baby showers, themed events, and more!

Here are step-by-step instructions for assembling the alligator pull-apart cupcake cake so you can achieve a cohesive design:

1. Gather all supplies
2. Print out the free alligator cupcake cake template
3. Prepare buttercream icing.

4. Assemble cupcakes as outlined on the printable template.

5. Pipe icing on each cupcake.

6. Assemble ingredients for decoration.

6. Cut jujubes for claws.

7. Add claws to alligator feet.

8. Place black jellybeans as nostrils and cut marshmallows as teeth.

9. Separate Oreo cookies and remove the cream then place on cupcakes to mimic alligator scales.

10. Separate two more Oreo cookies. Place the wiggle eye in the center of the cream side of the Oreo.

11. Set the eyes on the alligator cake.

My moist Almond Flour Chocolate Zucchini Cupcake recipe forms the base of this cake making it gluten-free, dairy-free, and Celiac friendly! You’ll need almond flour, zucchini, cocoa, chocolate chips, eggs, butter, and spices.

The buttercream icing was made with plant-based butter and milk using this recipe. You could also purchase a vanilla frosting and use it too!

Alligator Cupcake Cake Tips

• Do a sample layout with the free printable template and empty cupcake liners. Then take measurements to know how big of a cake board to use. I needed two cake boards for my alligator cake which was 36*12 inches.

• Be sure to leave yourself lots of time to decorate these crocodile cupcakes.
• Make sure your cupcakes are cool or your icing will melt.
• Gather all your supplies before you start icing the cupcakes as it will get messy!
• If you want all the toppers to be edible. Make your own alligator eyes using large marshmallows, Oreos, and black jujubes.
• When planning for events with specific guest counts, plan on one cupcake per serving.

How to transport a pull-apart cupcake cake

To avoid damage when transporting the cake, frost the cupcakes and put them in containers as per the order on the template. Then assemble and decorate the alligator cupcake cake with the scales, claws, teeth, and eyes when you get to the final destination.

This animal cupcake cake is super versatile and easy to make, great for your next celebration.

Recommended gluten-free recipes

Alligator Cupcake Cake Printable Instructions