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Dining in Disneyland columnist Heather Sievers reports on some serious deliciousness from Disneyland!

The mini cupcake sampler from Marceline’s Confectionery has been on my radar for months.  As a regular visitor to Marceline’s in Downtown Disney, I’ve been eyeing it the past several trips.  The problem: we’re usually on our way to dinner or to the parks, and a box of cupcakes is not something I’m interested in carrying around.

Cupcake Shopping at Marceline's in Downtown Disney

So, a few visits ago, I decided I’d pick it up on our way home and do my “research” in the privacy of my own kitchen. I mean, it probably would have looked a little bizarre cutting each cupcake in half, photographing them and then passing them all around to my family of test tasters to get opinions…

On this particular day, they were also preparing the cupcakes in Marceline’s candy kitchen viewing area, so I got to see them being put in their cute little boxes!

Mini Cupcake Sampler Assembly

The mini cupcake sampler comes with six different mini cupcakes. And our California mini is not that mini, WDW’s mini cupcakes are TINY. Ours actually look like real cupcakes, just smaller versions.

The half dozen box will run you $6.95 which ends up being just over $1 each; not too bad for what you get.  The unfortunate thing is that the box lists the ingredients, but does not tell you the specific flavors.  Some were obvious to the naked eye, but I wanted to make sure that I had all of the facts.  I asked the lovely cast member if she could tell me all of the specific flavors.  She checked her cheat sheet and started rattling them off way too quickly for me to take notes.  I thought I’d get denied when I handed her my camera to just take a photo of the list for me, but nope, she snapped a pic of the list that was taped to the back of the display case.  Score!

The Not So Mini, Mini Cupcake Sampler

So, the delicious flavors are as follows:

• red velvet with cream cheese frosting
• chocolate with chocolate frosting
• carrot cake with cream cheese frosting
• vanilla with coconut flakes
• peanut butter cup
• chocolate with vanilla frosting

Honestly, there was not a bad cupcake in the bunch.  All of them were very moist and had what I thought to be the perfect amount of frosting for their size.  I cut them all in half for a pic, and my family took turns tasting them.

Now, don’t freak out on me, but I am NOT a chocolate person.  I do like chocolate, but it is not my first choice in a dessert, especially cake items.  I am more of a vanilla/fruity person.  This is why my top three favorite flavors were the carrot cake with cream cheese, the vanilla with coconut flakes, and red velvet, in that order.

My Top Three Favorites: Carrot Cake, Coconut Vanilla & Red Velvet

The carrot cake with cream cheese frosting had visible carrot shreds in it; they were not overpowering at all, and I believe that they did enhance the flavor of the cake.  There was also not a lot of “spice” flavor to it, which I prefer.

Carrot Cake Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

The peanut butter one was a bit too rich for me, I had just one bite and passed it on.  If, however, you are a chocolate peanut butter fan, I think you will LOVE it.

Peanut Butter Cup

The vanilla with coconut flakes was super yummy too.  I am a sucker for all things coconut, so I was biased before I even tasted it.  Smooth, creamy & coconutty perfection.

Vanilla Coconut

Normally I am not a big red velvet fan either.  It must be that I can handle it in small doses only, because I really enjoyed the red velvet mini cupcake with cream cheese frosting.  It was so pretty and had a very unique flavor; not very chocolaty — more buttermilky if that is even a word.

Red Velvet

The chocolate with vanilla frosting was your typical chocolate cupcake, very tasty and moist.  Not my personal favorite, but the rest of my taste testers enjoyed.  My opinion holds the same for the chocolate with chocolate frosting cupcake.

Chocolate with Vanilla Frosting

Chocolate with Chocolate Frosting

Overall, I thought that this was a very fun treat to share.  And the price is really reasonable for what you get when you compare it to an individual cupcake that can run you up to $5.00 or more for one (you know those crazy giant fancy ones).  My favorite thing about the Mini Cupcake Sampler is right in its title: it’s a sampler.  You get to try a little bit of everything, and you don’t feel sick from over-stuffing yourself afterwards.

Cross Sections of All 6 Flavors

If you have the chance, pick up a Mini Cupcake Sampler from Marceline’s.  Take it home or find a nice little place to sit down on site.  I promise you will not be disappointed.

And for more DFB mini-cupcake deliciousness, check out the Disney World version of the Disney mini cupcakes, and Disney Food for Families Columnist Erin Foster’s foray into experimenting with mini cupcakes at home!