Moist and fluffy lemon cupcakes filled with fresh raspberry filling and crowned with creamy raspberry buttercream frosting!
Although lemon and blueberry are a classic flavor duo, I’d like to point out how perfect lemon and raspberry are together. They’re both tart and tangy, but the floral sweetness of raspberries complements the zesty mouth-puckering tang of lemon so incredibly well.
And with summer in full swing, I can’t think of a better way to honor this sweet and tangy pairing than by making these Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes…
Why You’ll Love These Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes
Soft and Extra Fluffy: Packed with freshly-squeezed lemon citrus, every single heavenly bite is brimming with that bright lemony flavor. They’re moist, pillowy, and perfectly fluffy–not a dry crumb in the house!
Homemade Raspberry Filling: Each cupcake is filled to the brim with luscious raspberry filling. HOMEMADE raspberry filling, that is. This ain’t your typical canned raspberry filling you find in the store. It’s bursting with pure raspberry sweetness and it’s a baJillian times better than the store-bought stuff.
Creamy Raspberry Buttercream: The buttercream frosting is infused with fresh raspberries (thanks to the homemade filling), and it pairs so unbelievably well with the moist lemon cupcake. It’s smooth, creamy, and dangerously addictive.
Tips For Making These Cupcakes
Use Fresh Lemons – Both the juice and zest of the lemon are key ingredients for achieving maximum lemon flavor. Lemon juice provides both bright citrusy flavor and moisture, while lemon zest offers a more concentrated and fragrant citrus flavor without liquid or acidity.
Cream the Butter and Sugar Well: Try not to rush this step. Creaming the butter and sugar incorporates more air into the batter, allowing the cupcakes to bake up tall, light, and fluffy. During the creaming process, tons of tiny air pockets are created, which then expand during the baking process. It also ensures that there are no lumps since the butter is broken down and the sugar crystals are more evenly dispersed throughout the batter.
Avoid Over-Mixing: Cupcakes are delicate gems of sweetness and they should be treated as such. So when it comes to the mixing process, try not to over-mix the batter, or you’ll end up with dense and tough cupcakes. Once you’ve added the eggs, beat the batter just until the batter is smooth and combined. There’s no need to whip extra air in at this point since that was already done during the creaming process. The dry ingredients should be mixed in until just combined, meaning you should still see few streaks of dry flour.
Almond Extract is a MUST: Almond extract does an incredible job of enhancing the flavor of both the lemon and raspberries in these cupcakes. It provides that classic bakery flavor we all love, while also boosting the depth and sweetness. It packs a powerful punch, so you only need about 1/4 teaspoon in the lemon cupcakes and 1/4 teaspoon in the frosting.
Strain the Filling for the Frosting: For that smooth and creamy texture, before incorporating some of the raspberry filling into the frosting, strain the seeds out. You’ll need 1/3 cup of raspberry filling, and you should end up with about 3 Tablespoons of smooth raspberry filling after all of the seeds have been strained out. It’s just enough to infuse the frosting with raspberry sweetness while also creating that gorgeous shade of pink.
Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes
Ingredients
Raspberry Filling:
- 3 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- Pinch of salt
Lemon Cupcakes:
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 egg whites
- 1 whole egg
- 1 cup sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- ¼ cup milk
- 3 Tablespoons fresly-squeezed lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
Raspberry Buttercream:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ⅓ cup raspberry filling (from recipe)
For Decorting:
- Fresh raspberries
Instructions
Make the Filling:
- In a medium saucepan, heat the berries over medium heat until they soften and their juices start to release, about 2-3 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Add mixture to the berries and continue cooking until it begins to form a thick sauce, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and pour into a shallow bowl. Chill in the refrigerator to cool completely.
Make the Cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF degrees. Line a 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until combined; set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until lightened and creamy, about 3-4 minutes. Beat in the egg whites and whole egg, one at a time, until combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla, and almond extract on medium speed.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Add the milk, lemon juice, and zest, then mix until just combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Fill cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Frosting:
- Place the 1/3 cup of raspberry filling into a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl. Using the back of a spoon or a rubber spatula, press on the filling, straining as much of the seeds and solids out as possible. You should end up with about 3 Tablespoons of completely smooth filling; set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and salt together on high until smooth and creamy. Add the lemon juice, vanilla, and almond extract, beating until combined.
- Gradually add the powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until all of the sugar has been added and frosting is smooth. Add the strained filling, a tablespoon at a time, mixing until combined. Transfer frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip.
To Assemble:
- Using a paring knife, carve a cone-shape piece out of the center of each cupcake. Try to cut only about halfway deep. Fill each cupcake with the raspberry filling. Pipe the frosting on top of each cupcake. Finish each cupcake with a fresh raspberry.