When it’s hot outside, you can’t help but crave an ice-cold glass of lemonade. I prefer mine to be lip-puckering, no ice. The more lemon, the better. And what better dessert to bring to your next summer potluck than these Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes? They are lemonade cupcakes topped with strawberry curd buttercream frosting.



Did you know you can bake with lemonade? It’s just something that has never crossed my mind. Don’t judge me, but I make lemonade from those powdered mixes. It’s just so much easier to scoop some powder into cold water at the last minute than buying and squeezing a dozen lemons ahead of time. I’m not very good at planning menus, so making lemonade is a last-minute decision. Always.



The original recipe made 36 mini cupcakes, but I wanted regular-sized cupcakes. A little trick? Divide 36 by 4. That’s how many regular cupcakes it makes, which is 9. Reverse this method to know how many mini cupcakes a regular-sized recipe will make (9 x 4 = 36). Maybe it’s just the control freak in me, but I don’t like how it’s 9. Not 6 or 12. 9.



The buttercream is my favorite part, mainly because it uses curd. I saw the idea in a pamphlet at my favorite berry farm. You can make curd in almost any fruit flavor (click here for the strawberry curd recipe), which means you can make buttercream in almost any flavor. Sometimes homemade may be thinner than store-bought, so you may need to adjust the sugar for frosting thickness.



I get that curd is not something everyone has or makes, so you can also make Small Batch Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting.


 

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Yield: 9 cupcakes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Lemon cupcakes with strawberry frosting

Ingredients

  • 1 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup (4 ounces or 8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 egg, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup prepared lemonade

Frosting:

  • 1/2 cup (4 ounces or 8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/3 cup strawberry curd (homemade or store bought)

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with 9 paper liners.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
  3. In a large bowl, beat sugar and butter 1 minute or until blended and lighter in color.
  4. Beat in the egg, lemon zest, and vanilla.
  5. Gradually beat in flour mixture in two parts, alternating with lemonade until blended and smooth, beginning and ending with flour.
  6. Fill each liner with the batter. Bake 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes then cool completely on wire rack.
  7. For the frosting: beat the butter and salt until creamy. Beat in powdered sugar then strawberry curd. Depending on how thick your curd is, you may need to add more sugar. Frost onto cooled cupcakes.

Did you make this recipe?

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Source: Cooking Club of America 2012