Lemon raspberry cupcakes are made from scratch and have a moist and tender crumb. Loaded with lemon and raspberry in both the cupcake recipe and the lemon raspberry buttercream. Perfect for any occasion!
Disclosure | This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
As a busy mama and self taught baker, I have been making cupcakes for decades. In this post, I have tips and helpful information to help you make cupcakes that look as good as they taste, like these chocolate raspberry cupcakes or raspberry cupcakes.
This cupcake recipe has a bright flavor profile like my no bake lemon raspberry bars and raspberry almond cake that makes them perfect for spring and summer. They are made with frozen raspberries though, so they can also be made when you are craving a burst of sunshine in the winter!
Jump to:
💗 what makes this cupcake recipe stand out
These super moist bakery worthy cupcakes are a made from scratch cupcake recipe.
Packed with fresh lemon juice and zest and loaded with raspberries.
Then they are topped with a lemon and raspberry jam buttercream swirl.
They are beautiful and delicious!
🍋 ingredient notes
Please scroll to the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and baking directions.
Lemons ~ for the best flavor, use fresh lemons {washed and dried} for the zest and lemon juice. Lemon zest provides a ton of flavor without adding extra liquid to both the cupcake and buttercream recipe. Squeeze the lemons for the fresh juice after you have zested them {this Microplane zester is my favorite!} . Typically one medium-large lemon will yield one tablespoon of zest and about 2-3 tablespoons of juice.
Raspberries ~ frozen raspberries, chopped small are needed for the cupcakes. After you measure and chop the raspberries, return them to the freezer until you are ready to add them to the batter. Do not thaw them! Fresh raspberries have a tendency to fall apart too much as you stir them into the cupcake batter.
Raspberry jam ~ I tested the raspberry buttercream with both freeze dried raspberries and raspberry jam. Both work, but the recipe was written using jam as it is more available in stores. I use seedless jam, but if you don’t mind a few seeds in the buttercream, a raspberry jam with seeds can be used as well.
Eggs ~ 2 large egg whites are needed. It is easier to separate eggs while they are cold. Then allow the egg whites to come to room temperature for the best results.
🥣 how to make
Start by chopping the frozen raspberries into small pieces, then place in a bowl and put back into the freezer.
Then preheat oven to 350°F and place cupcake liners in a 12 count muffin pan.
Place the all-purpose flour, cornstarch and baking powder in a bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer, beat the butter, kosher salt both sugars and lemon zest together on high speed until light and fluffy. Scrape up and down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Beat in the egg whites and vanilla and mix on medium until well combined. Scrape up and down the sides of the bowl. {I accidentally added the lemon juice in this photo, which makes the mixture a little curdled.}
With the mixer on low speed, add half the flour mixture and mix until barely combined. With the mixer still on low, slowly add the buttermilk and lemon juice. Once mostly combined, add in the remainder of the flour mixture {saving aside about 1 tablespoon} and mix until barely combined.
Then take the frozen raspberries out of the freezer and toss the remaining flour mixture with the frozen raspberries and gently fold into the batter. You do not want to over-mix this batter.
Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pan. It’s approximately ¼ cup of batter per cupcake. You want the liner filled about ⅔ – ¾ of the way.
Bake for about 18-20 minutes, until a tester comes out mostly clean. This cupcake recipe bakes with a flatter top.
Allow to cool completely before frosting. If you need visual photos of making the lemon and raspberry buttercream, you can see this cupcake recipe post.
👩🏻🍳 tips for the best from scratch cupcakes
Use room temperature ingredients for the best lemon and raspberry cupcakes. Depending on the temperature of your kitchen you will want to pull out the butter, buttermilk and egg whites about 2 hours before baking. {My kitchen is on the cooler side, so I usually go 2-3 hours before baking}.
Chop the frozen raspberries into small pieces and then pop them back in the freezer until you are ready to add them to the batter.
Weigh the ingredients by using a food scale to ensure you have the correct amounts.
Don't over mix the batter. When cake and cupcake batter is overmixed, it creates a more dense cake crumb. We are going for fluffy and moist!
Use a cookie or ice cream scoop to get even amounts of batter into each liner. This helps the cupcakes to bake uniformly.
Use good liners. These Paper Chef liners are my very favorite brand that I use in my kitchen. {not sponsored, just a fan!}
For the best, moist and tender cupcakes, don't over bake them. Remove them from the oven when a toothpick or cake tester comes out with just a few moist crumbs. This from scratch cupcake recipe bakes with fairly flat tops.
🫙 how to store
Store the lemon raspberry cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
They can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Allow to defrost at room temperature before serving. I freeze them with the raspberry buttercream all the time!
The cupcakes taste best at room temperature, so let them sit out for 30 minutes prior to serving. {although I've eaten many cold from the refrigerator too! And my kids like them frozen!}
Remember to snap a picture and tag me @twosugarbugs on Instagram if you make these Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes. It warms my heart to see you bring these recipes to life! Thank you for being here and happy baking!
If you make this recipe {or any recipe!} from two sugar bugs please come back and leave a review and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating. I read every comment, and I LOVE hearing from you!
📖 recipe
From Scratch Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes
Lemon raspberry cupcakes made from scratch with a moist crumb and rich flavor, topped with lemon raspberry buttercream. Perfect for any occasion!
I highly recommend using weight {metric} measurements when available for more accuracy and the best results.
Ingredients
lemon raspberry cupcakes
- ¾ cup frozen raspberries (105g)
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (141g)
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch (24g)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature (113g)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100g)
- ¼ cup packed brown sugar (50g)
- 1 ½ teaspoon lemon zest*
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup buttermilk, room temperature (120mL)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice* (30mL)
raspberry lemon buttercream
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature (170g)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ¾ cups confectioners' sugar (210g)
- ¼ cup raspberry jam (80g**)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (15mL)
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream (30mL)
Instructions
- Start by chopping the frozen raspberries (¾ cup/105g) into small pieces, then place in a bowl and put back into the freezer.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and place cupcake liners in a 12 count muffin pan. Set aside.
- Place the all-purpose flour (1 cup + 2 tablespoons/141g), cornstarch (3 tablespoons/24g) and baking powder (1 ½ teaspoons) in a bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a hand mixer, beat the butter (½ cup/113g), kosher salt (½ teaspoon) both sugars (½ cup granulated/100g) (¼ cup brown/50g) and lemon zest (1 ½ teaspoons) together on high speed (speed 8 on KitchenAid) until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape up and down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Beat in the egg whites (2 large) and vanilla (1 teaspoon) and mix on medium (speed 6 on KitchenAid) until well combined, about 2 minutes. Scrape up and down the sides of the bowl.
- With the mixer on low speed, add half the flour mixture and mix until barely combined. With the mixer still on low, slowly add the buttermilk (½ cup/120mL) and lemon juice (2 tablespoons/30mL). Once mostly combined, add in the remainder of the flour mixture (saving aside about 1 tablespoon) and mix until barely combined. Then take the frozen raspberries out of the freezer and toss the remaining flour mixture with the frozen raspberries and gently fold into the batter. You do not want to over-mix this batter.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pan. It’s approximately ¼ cup of batter per cupcake. You want the liner filled about ⅔ – ¾ of the way.
- Bake for about 18-20 minutes, until a tester comes out mostly clean.
- Allow cupcakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan to cool completely on a wire cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
- For the raspberry lemon buttercream: Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or a handheld mixer, beat the butter (¾ cups/170g) and kosher salt (¼ teaspoon) for 5 minutes on high (speed 8 on a Kitchen Aid) stopping about half way through to scrape the bowl.
- After 5 minutes, scrape up and down the mixer bowl and add one cup the confectioners’ sugar (120g), half the jam (half of ¼ cup/80g**), vanilla (1 teaspoon), lemon zest (1 ½ teaspoons) and lemon juice (1 tablespoon/15mL). Mix on low until combined, then increase the speed and beat until fully incorporated.
- Stop the mixer, scrape up and down the bowl, and add the remaining confectioners’ sugar (¾ cup/90g), jam and the heavy cream (2 tablespoons/30mL). Again mix on low until incorporated, then increase the speed to high and beat another 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Decorate as desired. I used a Wilton 2M for the photos. A spoon or offset spatula can also be used to add the frosting to the cupcakes.
Notes
*One medium-large lemon should provide the lemon zest and juice needed for both the cupcake and buttercream recipe.
**I prefer seedless raspberry jam. Look at the gram measurements on your jam as they are all slightly different, but 80g is a good ballpark.
I highly recommend having your ingredients room temperature.
Buttermilk can be substituted with 1%, 2%, whole milk or kefir. I prefer using store-bought buttermilk, but if you find yourself without it you can make your own. Place 2 teaspoons of white vinegar or lemon juice in your measuring cup and add milk to equal ⅔ cup, stir and let stand until room temperature (about one hour). The milk will appear curdled.
Cupcakes can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 day. They can also be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, but they will be more prone to drying out.
The cupcakes can be frozen in an airtight container for 2-3 months. Allow to defrost at room temperature before serving. I freeze mine with buttercream all the time!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 332Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 176mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 1gSugar: 32gProtein: 1g
The nutrition information is based on third-party calculations, is an estimate only and may not be entirely accurate. Actual nutritional values will vary based on brands used and portion sizes.
Courtney
I don't have a standing mixer but I do have a hand mixer. I know it's not as powerful as a KitchenAid, but will it suffice?
Tasia
Hi Courtney, yes, a hand held mixer should do the job as well! Happy baking!