Lemon Cupcakes with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream Frosting and Raspberry Curd

There is truly a burst of spring in every bit of this Lemon Cupcake with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream Frosting and Raspberry Curd.

Last week my daughter Eva turned 14. I can’t believe how time flies and what a beautiful young woman she has become.  We always take a few weeks to iron out the details of her big day. First and foremost is her birthday dinner, that is always cooked at home. She picked Ina Garten’s Shrimp Scampi. It was heavenly, buttery, tart and decadent, all at the same time – good choice Eva! I wimped out on dessert that night, but bought lemon squares from her favorite bakery.

Then of course there’s the party that took place two days later. Ten girls joined us at a Mexican restaurant for a nacho, guacamole, queso, taco fiesta. Then we proceeded to our house for presents, lemon raspberry cupcakes, a movie and popcorn. It was an evening filled with bright youthful energy that truly matched the cupcakes; vibrant, delightfully tart and genuinely sweet.

So, creating these lemon raspberry cupcakes became a slight process.  I originally led Eva to my cupcake board on Pinterest.  You’d think from over 100 cupcake recipes there would be the perfect one. Yeah, no. After a few more google searches, we pieced a cupcake together from 3 different food blogs; Sally’s Baking Addiction (lemon cupcake), Two Peas andTheir Pod (raspberry frosting) and Smells Like Home (raspberry curd).

These 3 recipes combined kicked but!  Have you ever had raspberry curd? It is off the charts. You can eat it straight with a spoon and since there was extra, that’s what Eva did. I swirled some into my yogurt for lunch today and Eva had it on toast for breakfast.  It’s very versatile.

Since I’m not the best baker, I relied on these great blogs to guide the way, and boy did they deliver. This recipe is one that will be made for many birthdays to come.

*Recipe Note: Using fresh raspberries gives the frosting a slightly different texture but amazing flavor. If you'd like a creamier texture reduce raspberry puree by half.

Lemon Cupcakes with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream Frosting and Raspberry Curd 

Recipe by Liz Hughes - Virtually Homemade

Yield: 12 cupcakes

Fresh Raspberry Curd:

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 pint raspberries
• 5 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cups sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 to 3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Cooking Directions

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the raspberries, egg yolks, sugar and salt. Stir, while mashing the berries. Keep stirring until the raspberry mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and let cool. The curd will further thicken as it cools. The curd can be made 2 to 3 days in advance.

Lemon Cupcakes:
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• the zest and juice from two medium lemons

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a twelve cup cupcake tin with paper liners. In a large bowl beat sugar and butter with a handheld mixer for 2 to 3 minutes until creamed. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until thoroughly combined about 2 minutes.
2. In a separate medium sized bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredient to the butter mixture in 3 additions, mixing by hand after each addition. Batter will be thick.
3. Add milk, zest and lemon juice and mix until just combined.
4. Pour batter into cupcake tins; each about two thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from pan and set on a rack to cool.

Fresh Raspberry Buttercream Frosting:

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup fresh raspberries
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• Extra raspberries for garnish

Cooking Directions

1. In a food processor, blend raspberries until they are completely pureed. Pour raspberry mixture through a sieve, pressing on solids to remove seeds.
2. In a medium bowl beat butter, half the sugar, raspberry mixture and vanilla until combined. Add the other half of the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. If the frosting seems to separate a bit, add a little more powdered sugar and beat.

Assemble Cupcakes:

With an apple corer or sharp knife cut an oblong well out of the center of each cupcake.  Pour raspberry curd into well and top with small piece of cake that was cut out.  Spread or pipe buttercream on top when cupcakes are completely cooled. Top with fresh raspberries if desired.