Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Sweet & Tangy Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes start with fluffy, moist lemon cupcakes and are topped with a fresh strawberry frosting!

Nothing says summer like a cool glass of Homemade Lemonade, or even better – Strawberry Lemonade! These Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes bring that delicious summer flavor, but in cupcake form!

These Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes garnished with a lemon slice

Summertime in a cupcake

I absolutely love strawberry lemonade because it’s like summertime in a glass and pretty in pink. And whenever there’s a delicious flavor combination – I always want to make it into cupcake.

These strawberry lemonade cupcakes are moist, perfectly fluffy, and bursting with fresh fruit flavors. The cupcakes have a delicious slightly tangy lemon flavor. Then we’re using fresh berries for the frosting. Isn’t strawberry season the best?

These have the perfect flavor combination. The hint of tanginess and fresh lemon flavor, moist cupcake crumb, and creamy strawberry frosting – I hope you love them as much as I do!

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes displayed on a wooden table

Making Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

PREP. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line a 12 cavity muffin pan with muffin papers.

DRY INGREDIENTS. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt.

WET INGREDIENTS. Then in a large bowl using an electric mixer beat together the butter, sugar and lemon zest until fluffy. Add in the egg whites and vanilla extract and continue mixing until combined.

COMBINE. Turn the mixer down to low speed and mix in about ½ of the sour cream followed by half of the flour mixture. Then turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Repeat with the rest of the sour cream and flour mixture. Then turn off the mixer and stir in the lemon juice. Be careful not to over mix.

BAKE. Spoon the batter into your prepared muffin pan, filling each muffin paper about ⅔ to ¾ full. You’ll end up with 12-14 cupcakes total. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Fresh berry Strawberry frosting for strawberry lemonade cupcakes

Strawberry Frosting

PREP. Core the strawberries to remove the green centers. Then puree in the food processor or blender until smooth. Then push the puree through a wire sieve to remove the seeds. You should have about ¾ cup of puree.

BOIL. Transfer the puree to a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil while gently stirring. Allow the mixture to boil for about 15-20 minutes, or until the mixture has reduced to about ⅓ to ¼ of the original volume (about ¼ cup). The thicker your puree is, the thicker your frosting will be.

CHILL. Remove from the heat and allow mixture to cool fully. You can place it in the fridge or freezer to speed up the process.

BEAT. In a large bowl beat the butter until fluffy, then beat in about 1.5 cups of the powdered sugar. Then turn the mixer down to low and beat in 2-3 tablespoons of the reduced strawberry puree. The mixture must be cold when it’s added to the frosting, otherwise the frosting will separate. Once added, beat in the rest of the powdered sugar and the whipping cream if necessary.

FROST. Frost the cupcakes either with a piping bag (I used a 1M tip) or with a knife.

Bite of a strawberry lemonade cupcake

recipe tips + Storing Info

How to substitute buttermilk for sour cream: When baking you can interchange buttermilk with sour cream. You do need to keep in mind they do not have the same texture and so you’ll need to make adjustments. Since buttermilk is more liquid than sour cream you will need to mix it with some butter. To substitute 1 cup of sour cream mix together  ¾ cup buttermilk and ⅓ cup butter.

Here are a few great tips when making the frosting: 

  •  The brighter red the strawberries are the darker the frosting will turn out. If you want a deeper    color you can add a drop or two of red food coloring.
  •  If your frosting has separated sometimes it can be tricky to figure out why this might have happened. For this particular frosting one reason it doesn’t turn out is because the strawberry puree was not boiled down long enough to let the excess water evaporate. Another reason is that the puree may not have been cold enough before mixing it with the butter/sugar mixture.

Make ahead: These cupcakes can be made a day ahead of time, covered, and stored in the fridge before serving. If you want to make these cupcakes farther in advance you can store them separately and then assemble before serving.

STORE frosting in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

STORE cupcakes in an airtight container on the counter for 2-3 days or in the fridge for about 5 days. To FREEZE them you’ll want to individually wrap them and store them together in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcake topped with a slice of lemon

And for more favorite strawberry treats, check out:

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

These Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes are so pretty and perfect for spring or summer. They start with fluffy, moist lemon cupcakes. Then they're topped with strawberry frosting made from fresh berries!
4.63 from 24 votes
Sweet & Tangy Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes start with fluffy, moist lemon cupcakes and are topped with a fresh strawberry frosting!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 12
Calories 442 kcal
Author Lil' Luna

Ingredients

Lemon Cupcake

  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 tbsp cornstarch
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tbsp lemon zest freshly grated
  • 3 large egg whites (you can discard the yolks)
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup sour cream room temperature
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice freshly squeezed*

Strawberry Frosting

  • 8 oz fresh strawberries
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
  • 3-4 cups powdered sugar sifted
  • 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream if needed

Instructions
 

Cupcakes

  • Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line a 12 cavity muffin pan with muffin papers.
  • In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt.
  • Then in a large bowl using an electric mixer beat together the butter, sugar and lemon zest until fluffy. Add in the egg whites and vanilla extract and continue mixing until combined.
  • Turn the mixer down to low speed and mix in about ½ of the sour cream followed by half of the flour mixture. Then turn off the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Repeat with the rest of the sour cream and flour mixture. Then turn off the mixer and stir in the lemon juice. Be careful not to over mix.
  • Spoon the batter into your prepared muffin pan, filling each muffin paper about ⅔ to ¾ full. You'll end up with 12-14 cupcakes total.
  • Bake in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Strawberry Frosting

  • Core the strawberries to remove the green centers. Then puree in the food processor or blender until smooth. Then push the puree through a wire sieve to remove the seeds. You should have about ¾ cup of puree.
  • Transfer the puree to a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil while gently stirring. Allow the mixture to boil for about 15-20 minutes, or until the mixture has reduced to about ⅓ to ¼ of the original volume (about ¼ cup). The thicker your puree is, the thicker your frosting will be.
  • Remove from the heat and allow mixture to cool fully. You can place it in the fridge or freezer to speed up the process.
  • In a large bowl beat the butter until fluffy, then beat in about 1.5 cups of the powdered sugar. Then turn the mixer down to low and beat in 2-3 tablespoons of the reduced strawberry puree. The mixture must be cold when it's added to the frosting, otherwise the frosting will separate.
  • Once added, beat in the rest of the powdered sugar and the whipping cream if necessary.
  • Frost the cupcakes either with a piping bag (I used a 1M tip) or with a knife.

Notes

 *Use 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice and 1 tablespoon milk for a less strong lemon flavor
**I recommend storing these cupcakes in an airtight container in the fridge

For more delicious recipes, head on over to Just So Tasty!

Like this recipe?

Pin it now to remember it later! Share it with your Facebook friends (you know they’ll love it). Or tweet it to the world. Maybe even email it to your favorite cousin!

Related Posts

Cherry Bars

With a hint of almond, a heavenly glaze, and bursts of sweet cherries, these delicious Cherry Bars are the sweetest way to treat a crowd! If you love all the…

43 minutes minutes

4.95 from 20 votes

Summer Desserts

During the summertime, we love making fruity, frozen, and no-bake desserts! This collection of summer desserts includes all of our favorites! More Collections: Summer Drink Recipes, Summer Dinner Recipes, Summer…

How to Make Egg Salad

Gather a handful of ingredients and follow these simple steps on How to make Egg Salad for a deliciously classic side or tasty sandwich. This one is a perfect recipe…

10 minutes minutes

4.94 from 15 votes

Summer Drink Recipes

Beat the summer heat with any of these delicious summer drink recipes! Serve these flavored drinks at BBQ’s and parties, or cool off with a refreshing fruit smoothie. More Collections:…

About Fiona

My name's Fiona and I love to bake and blog. I share homemade, from scratch, classic recipes for desserts & sweet treats including cakes, cupcakes, cookies and more.

Join the Conversation

Rate and Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Comments:

  1. 4 stars
    The taste was amazing – truly tasted like fresh lemon and REAL strawberries. We had a family cupcake bake-off and these took first place! Yes, they were time consuming, but worth it. I think we overmixed them, though. Our cupcakes were very dense, not fluffy and moist. Overall, lots of fun, great recipe.

  2. 5 stars
    If I could give this 10 stars I would!!!!!! This was soooooo good. I made them and took them to church tonight. It got rave reviews from the 14 people who were there. I will definitely be making this again!

  3. 5 stars
    I made these this weekend for a graduation party for my husband. They turned out amazing! The strawberry and lemon flavors really popped and you could truly taste the lemon. On its own, the frosting is a bit sweet, but when added to the acid of the lemon cupcake it creates a perfect blend. The frosting technique was also fun to practice. Would make again!

  4. 2 stars
    Discard egg yolks?! At least you could propose an idea what to do with them like a flan or something. And the video that pops up with a dead naked chicken I don’t want to see that while reading the ingredients for cupcakes moreover being vegetarian. No way to stop this video.

  5. 5 stars
    Great recipe for lemon cupcakes! I didn’t have fresh or frozen strawberries but did have freeze dried, so I ground those finely and then made a normal cream cheese frosting and stirred in the freeze dried strawberries. It was incredible.

See More Comments