Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes
Sweet, easy, and loaded with strawberry flavor… these fresh strawberry cupcakes are sure to please. Although I’ve said lemon is one of my favorite dessert options, strawberry does come close. Each little cake is soft and moist topped with a heaping swirl of fresh strawberry frosting. If you ever had those strawberry shortcake ice cream bars as a kid, I feel like these are similar, but just cupcake form! This pink frosting will send you right into a sunshine state of mind.
Currently, my Dad and I are on a big road trip from Florida all the way up to Maine with a few stops along the way at Charleston, Bethany Beach, Boston, New York, and finally Maine. I’ll be spending a lot of my time eating all the good food we can find. Lobster, Italian, and tons of sweets hopefully.
This is definitely one of my favorite new recipes coming to the blog, along with a couple of others. I’ll be writing about all of them during our long days on the road.
I kept trying to think of a fun name for these cupcakes- double strawberry, nah, soft and moist, meh, so I just ended up sticking with fresh because really that’s all there is to it. Each little bite is a burst of fresh strawberry flavor and it’s not too rich or heavy.
I feel like this recipe is a little bit different than some other strawberry cupcakes. This one is made from freeze-dried strawberries and strawberry jam. This gives the cupcakes the best flavor without making the batter too runny from fresh strawberries.
Not only that but each little cake is topped with a swirl of strawberry cream cheese frosting, again made with the freeze-dried strawberries to get the best flavor and natural color!
the details
There are two things I wanted to achieve with these fresh strawberry cupcakes. One, I wanted the recipe to be easy. Two, I wanted the strawberry flavor to really pop and not just be a weird artificial taste like many of those store-bought ones.
This batter comes together very easily similar to other cupcakes. First, you’ll want to pulse the freeze-dried strawberries so they turn into a smooth powder. This powder will be used in the batter and for the frosting.
Then, mix the wet and dry ingredients together. Add in some extra strawberry jam and freeze-dried pieces. Scoop the batter into each little cavity and bake until puffy.
The frosting is as simple as creaming a few things together and adding your remaining strawberry powder. Add it to a piping bag and swirl away. This is when it’s important that your strawberry pieces were fully pulsed, otherwise, pieces will get stuck in the piping tip. You could of course also just smear it on there with a spoon or knife.
whip up the fresh strawberry frosting
To finish off these pretties, all you need is a little mix and swirl action.
Cream together your butter and cream cheese until fluffy and smooth. Add in your sugar, strawberry powder, and vanilla. Cream it all together until it’s smooth and light pink.
If I had to choose, cream cheese is always a better route for frosting. It’s less sweet and tastes so good with everything! No one will even know.
I topped mine off with a little extra strawberry powder and some flowers for decor. You could definitely use some strawberry slices too!
Want more strawberry goodness? Check these out:
- Creamy Strawberry Pretzel Pie
- Strawberry Blossom Swiss Cake Roll
- Strawberry & Vanilla Stuffed Brioche Donuts
Did you make these delicious cupcakes? I would love to hear about it below in the comments or on social media on Instagram @tuesday.treats. They make the best and easiest summer treat.
Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes
Course: Cakes and CupcakesCuisine: DessertDifficulty: Easy20
servings30
minutes25
minutes1
hourThese fresh strawberry cupcakes are soft and moist with a heaping swirl of strawberry icing on top. These will top off any summer afternoon cravings!
Ingredients
- Strawberry Cupcakes
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups freeze-dried strawberries
1 cup butter, melted (2 sticks)
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
3/4 cup strawberry jam
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup milk
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup freeze-dried strawberries
Directions
- Strawberry Cupcakes
- First, pulse all your freeze-dried strawberries until they become a fine powder. You can do this with a blender or just smash it in a bag. Set aside. You’ll need this for the cupcakes and the frosting.
- Preheat your oven to 350 F. Line 2 cupcake tins with papers. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat together your wet ingredients including your melted butter, sour cream, eggs, sugar, jam, and vanilla extract. Beat until fully combined. Next, add in your dry ingredients including flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and your 2 cups of freeze-dried strawberry powder. Continue to mix until the batter starts to come together. Gradually add the milk to the batter while beating. In the end, the consistency should be between thick and thin.
- Use a 2 oz scoop or spoon to add batter to each of the cupcake papers. Fill each cavity until it’s half full. *Notes Bake for 25-28 minutes until they are puffy, lightly browned, and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool before frosting.
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing
- Start by creaming together your butter and cream cheese until smooth. Next, add in your powdered sugar, remaining strawberry powder (1/2 cup), and vanilla. Continue to beat until fluffy and creamy. If your frosting seems too thick, add a few teaspoons of milk to thin it out.
- Add your frosting to a piping bag with a star tip and swirl away on each cupcake. You can also just smear it on with a knife or spoon. I garnished mine with extra freeze-dried strawberries and a flower for pics. 😉 Enjoy!
Notes
- It’s important not to overfill your cupcake papers otherwise the cupcakes could sink in the middle, overflow, or underbake.
