Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Calphalon. All opinions are my own.
Mother’s Day is just a few days away. And there’s nothing like the family coming together to make something special for mom! These homemade Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes are light, moist vanilla cupcakes, filled with a smooth lemon curd and topped with a fresh raspberry cream cheese frosting. Perfect for a Mother’s Day celebration!
How is the lemon curd made for these Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes?
To make these lemon raspberry cupcakes recipe from scratch, start with making the easy lemon curd. Add 3 egg yolks and one whole egg to a heat proof bowl with sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch. Traditional lemon curd does not contain cornstarch. But this recipe, I add some cornstarch just to thicken it for the filling for the cupcake. It can be left out of the recipe if desired.
Place the bowl on top of a small pot of simmering water, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens. Remove the bowl from the pot and strain the mixture into another bowl. The mixture needs to be strained to remove the small pieces of egg that usually forms in the curd as it’s cooking. After it’s strained add the lemon zest and butter to smooth the mixture out. Place the curd in a sealed container and place it in the refrigerator overnight.
How are these Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes put together?
To put the cupcakes together, start with cutting out the center of each cupcake. I like to use an apple corer to do it because it is easier to pull out the center by pushing into the cupcake, twisting the corer and removing the cake at one time. You can also remove the center of the cupcake by using a knife and cut the center out in a circular motion. Save the cake that was removed, to place it back on the cupcake after the filling is added.
Pipe the lemon curd into the center of the cupcake, then place the removed cake on top of the filling. Pipe the raspberry cream cheese frosting on top of the cupcake. You can use any large piping tip and pipe in a circular motion.
What did I use to bake these Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes?
They were baked in a 12 cup muffin pan from Calphalon Nonstick Bakeware 10-Piece Set, which includes ten essential pans to help you bake beautiful and delicious desserts. The heavy-gauge steel core heats evenly without hot spots so your baked goods come out of the oven perfectly and evenly browned. The bakeware set has interlocking nonstick layers to deliver high performance release. Even the stickiest baked goods can be removed cleanly for beautiful results and easy cleanup.
Calphalon’s bakeware feeds my baking passion and helps to fuel my creativity in the kitchen, so I can feel confident and explore new recipes. Using Calphalon products will easily bring the whole family together to bake amazing desserts for special occasions like Mother’s Day.
The bakeware set is available at Calphalon.com. Use code PEACHES25 for 25% of sitewide (excluding sale items)
Tips for making the recipe:
- If you don’t have a piping tip, you can still pipe the frosting without it. You can cut off about 1/2 inch of the tip of the bag and swirl the frosting on top.
- I like to use vegetable or olive oil for the cupcakes because it makes the cake softer and more moist. But, if you prefer to use butter, just substitute the same amount of butter for the oil in the recipe, 1/4 cup.
- For the raspberry cream cheese frosting, you can use either fresh or frozen raspberries. If you use frozen, thaw them first so that they can be blended into a purée.
Questions about the Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes recipe:
What makes the cupcakes moist?
The combination of the vegetable oil, buttermilk and sour cream makes the cupcakes moist.
Why did my cupcakes spillover?
Adding too much batter to the the muffin liner will cause the batter to spill over the top. To prevent spillover, only fill the liners 1/2-2/3 of the way with the batter. Any more will be too much.
What’s the best way to store these cupcakes?
Because of the lemon curd filling, store any leftover cupcakes in a plastic air-tight container in the refrigerator. Refrigeration does dry cakes out. So don’t refrigerate more than 2 days.
Is the butter necessary for the lemon curd?
Lemon curd can be made without butter, but it will taste different. Butter is important to give the curd the creamy consistency. If you don’t use enough butter, your lemon curd will be watery.
How do you store curd leftover lemon curd?
Store any leftover lemon curd in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Here are other great cupcake recipes:
Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes
These homemade Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes are light, moist vanilla cupcakes, filled with a smooth lemon curd and topped with a fresh raspberry cream cheese frosting. Perfect for any celebration!
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 1 large egg
- 3 large egg yolks
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- 6 tbsp butter
Cupcakes
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Raspberry Purée
- 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries, thawed
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp lemon juice
Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 2-3 tbsp raspberry puree
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Garnish
- Freeze dried raspberries
Instructions
Lemon Curd
- In a medium heatproof bowl, place eggs, egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch and heavy cream and whisk to combine. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Cook on medium heat, whisking constantly, until mixture becomes thick, about 10-15 minutes.Remove from heat then strain mixture. Add butter and zest and whisk until completely melted and incorporated, and mixture is smooth. Allow to cool to room temperature, then place the curd into a container with a lid. Place the container in the refrigerator overnight.
Cupcakes
- To the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl for using a hand mixer), add eggs and granulated sugar. Beat with the paddle attachment (or a hand mixer) until thick and fluffy, for about 2 minutes. Add butter and oil, then mix again. Add vanilla extract, lemon juice, buttermilk and sour cream. Blend together. Add the dry ingredients and blend until smooth.Add muffin liners to a 12 cup muffin pan. Scoop batter and fill into each muffin liner 1/2-3/4 full. Place in a 350 degree oven and bake for 20 minutes or until the cupcakes are fully baked. Cool completely on a wire rack.
Raspberry Purée
- Add raspberries, sugar and lemon juice to a blender and purée. Strain the mixture to remove the seeds. Place purée into a small saucepan and cook over low heat until the mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
Frosting
- Add butter and cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl for using a hand mixer). Beat until smooth. Add powdered sugar, salt and vanilla. Mix until incorporated. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the raspberry purée and mix in slightly so that there are still streaks of the purée throughout.
Assembly
- Use an apple corer or a knife to cut the center out of the cupcake about 3/4 of the way down. Add lemon curd to a pastry bag. Pipe the filling inside of the cupcake. Place lace the top of the removed cake back onto the cupcake. Place the frosting in another pastry bag with a large star tip. Pipe the frosting on top of the cupcake in a circular motion. Garnish with crushed freeze dried raspberries
