STRAWBERRY LEMONADE CUPCAKES

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes image

These strawberry lemonade cupcakes are a beautiful summer treat.

Provided by Jody Rigdon

Categories Desserts Fruit Dessert Recipes Strawberry Dessert Recipes

Time 3h25m

Yield 18

Number Of Ingredients 18

Ingredients

12 ounces strawberries, chopped, or more to taste
1 ½ tablespoons white sugar, or to taste
2 ¾ cups sifted cake flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter
1 ¼ cups white sugar
4 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon strawberry extract
½ cup 2% milk
3 cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter
1 tablespoon 2% milk, or as needed
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 strawberries, sliced, or more to taste

Steps:

Place strawberries in a medium bowl. Cover with 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar and refrigerate, 2 hours to overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners.
Mash strawberry and sugar mixture with a potato masher, or pulse gently in the bowl of a food processor until strawberries are chunky. Strain strawberries over a bowl, reserving juice.
Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.
Beat butter and 1 1/4 cups sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until pale yellow and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing for about 1 minute after each egg and scraping down the sides of the bowl. Mix in vanilla extract and strawberry extract.
Add flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the milk, blending well and scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.
Fold in strawberries and 5 tablespoons strawberry juice with a wooden spoon until well incorporated and you can see bits of strawberry showing throughout the batter. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full.
Bake in the preheated oven until the tops of the cupcakes are a lovely golden color and they spring back when pressed, about 18 minutes.
Cool in muffin cups for 5 minutes. Remove from tins and finish cooling on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.
While the cupcakes are cooling, combine powdered sugar, butter, milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer; whip until creamy.
Pipe frosting onto cupcakes and garnish each with a strawberry slice.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 377.5 calories, Carbohydrate 54.4 g, Cholesterol 77.7 mg, Fat 16.7 g, Fiber 0.9 g, Protein 3.6 g, SaturatedFat 10.2 g, Sodium 226.7 mg, Sugar 36.2 g