Delicate, fluffy lemon cupcakes with lemon buttercream icing.
Still avoiding chocolate in the post-festive period, this week I’ve made easy lemon cupcakes. These are so simple to make using the most basic of sponge recipes plus some lemon zest. The buttercream swirl helps to make them a little more exciting! Perfect for every occasion from afternoon tea to the school bake sale.
Ingredients (makes 10-12 lemon cupcakes):
- 125 g / 4.5 oz butter or margarine
- 125 g / 4.5 oz caster sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 125 g / 4.5 oz self-raising flour
- 2 tbsp milk (use the milk you already have in the fridge)
- Finely-grated zest of 1 small lemon (you can use less if you want your cakes to be less “lemony”)
For the buttercream
- 100 g / 3.5 oz butter (softened)
- 200 g / 7 oz icing sugar (sifted)
- 1-2 tbsp of lemon juice (depending on how “lemony” you want your buttercream). If you are using artificial lemon flavouring, use a few drops.
- Yellow gel food colouring (optional)
- Possibly 1-2 tsp of milk if required
Method:
Put 12 cupcake cases into your muffin tin. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees C (160 fan)/ Gas Mark 4 / 350 degrees F.
Using an electric mixer (or hand beaters), beat the butter for a few minutes until it is paler in colour. Add the sugar and beat again for 3-5 minutes until the mixture is fluffy. Add the eggs, beating your mixture after adding each egg. Add the lemon zest and flour and stir through slowly until combined.
Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases.
Bake for about 20 minutes until the lemon cupcakes start to brown on top and a knife inserted into the middle of one comes out clean (not gooey. Some crumbs may come out but that’s fine).
Take the lemon cupcakes out of the oven, leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before setting them out on a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the buttercream, first beat the butter (using the electric mixer again) for at least 5 minutes until it’s almost white in colour. Add the icing sugar and beat until smooth. Be careful here to avoid an icing sugar cloud. Make sure you use a lid on your mixer. If you would like your buttercream to have a lemon flavour, add as much lemon juice as you like at this point and stir through until combined. If the resulting buttercream is very stiff, add a little milk, stirring between additions, until it reaches a consistency you will be able to use in a piping bag. Of course, if you’re planning to apply the buttercream with a knife or spoon, you won’t have this to worry about!
I created the subtle two-tone swirl by dividing the basic buttercream mix in half and adding yellow gel food colouring to one half. I then spooned both colours into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip.
All that’s left is the fun part: piping the final buttercream swirl onto the lemon cupcakes.
Lovely light lemon cupcakes. So good it’s a little too easy to eat more than one in a single sitting!
If you would like other recipes featuring lemon:
Lemon sponge layer cake with lemon curd and vanilla buttercream filling.
Lemon sponge cake with white and yellow feathered icing.
Those look delicicous. And you are such a tidy baker!! I am in awe!
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Thank you very much ๐
They are lovely. There’s only one left!
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These look so good, I bet they smell divine. My stomach definitely growled after I saw this. I need to eat and soon.
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The smell in the kitchen while they were baking was lovely! Reason enough alone to make them, but they’re also delicious! Luckily it’s nearly dinner time here ๐
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That is lucky, it’s raining and morning here, They must taste divine.
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Oh yum! I love anything lemon and I sure wish I could forget about my diet now! ๐ I’ll definitely keep these in mind for later though.
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They’re so small and light, I don’t think one would hurt your diet ๐
(yes, I’m a bad influence!)
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Hahaha I’m definitely going to make some next month! Right now I’m preparing for a wedding I have to attend in two weeks and the dress I bought is still a little tight. xD
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I adore all baked goods with lemon. These sound perfect! Plus, the swirled frosting is really adorable and subtle. I love this and will try them tomorrow. Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you ๐
I hope they turn out well for you. They taste lovely!
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Lemon addict talking over here (I eat lemons like apples…)! Someone please pass a napkin cause I’m drooling over here… All the cupcakes look SO tasty and perfect! Would it be too much to ask for a care package? haha Anyhow, definitely trying the recipe!
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Thank you!
I wish I could send things by some sort of teleportation device to everyone who reads my blog – it would stop my waistline expanding ๐
I hope they turn out really well for you. The smell in your kitchen will be terrific.
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They look delicious! I wish I could still bake, I could just eat a lemon cupcake now! ๐
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Thank you. I wish I could send one to you ๐
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These look so good and I love the twirled icing…so pretty ๐
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Thank you ๐
They were very nice indeed. They vanished very quickly!
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Your cupcakes look so nice and fluffy
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Thank you ๐ I was really pleased with how these turned out. Beating the butter for a while, then the butter and sugar for a few minutes makes a real difference!
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Great tip! Will remember that for next time
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Looks delicious๐
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Thank you! They were lovely, even if I do say so myself ๐
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Yum yum yum. I’m a big fan if anythu
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Pressed send too soon! Should have said I’m a big fan of anything lemon flavoured!
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Me too ๐ I often surprise everyone and go for the lemon option over chocolate. Sometimes chocolate is just too heavy, particularly if it’s a dessert after a big meal, while lemon is just right. I was very pleased with how these cakes turned out. The pictures are from the second time I made them in the week. The first time I took some to a friend’s baby shower and they vanished in minutes ๐
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I’m with you. Would much rather have lemon instead of chocolate!
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I’m not a huge fan of lemon but those look delicious ๐
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They’re very nice. And you can adjust the amount of lemon zest you use so the flavour is very subtle ๐
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That’s awesome!
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My love for your recipes has no limits. Lemons are my favorite and those cupcakes… I need them! Now I need to buy muffin tins and cupcake cases!
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Thank you ๐
I have to say, I actually think these cupcakes are worth investing in bakeware and cupcake cases! ๐
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I know! I got madeleines and financiers plates and it’s so much easier! ๐
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I’ll be using my brand new mini muffin tin this afternoon. It’s bizarrely exciting! (or an indication of how tragic and boring my life is – haha!) ๐
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Haha, no! It’s definitely exciting. You should have seen me with my new mixing bowls, scales and pastry bags, I was like a kid on Christmas morning.
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That looks so freaking delicious Claire!
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Thank you – they were very nice! ๐ Even allowing for baker’s bias!
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So lovely Claire!
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Thank you ๐
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I finally made these and they were so SO good! This recipe is definitely an instant new favorite. ๐ (Even though mine didn’t turn out nearly as pretty as yours haha)
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Hooray! I’m so glad they turned out ok ๐
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I loved the texture of the cupcakes; so light and fluffy! Definitely a big hit at home. ๐
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These look great!
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Thank you ๐ They were delicious!
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It looks delicious ๐ you have made it very simple to understand and execute. Will definitely try this ๐
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Thank you very much. I hope they turn out well for you.
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