Vanilla Raspberry Cupcakes
Soft vanilla cupcakes with an optional hint of lemon, topped with a delicious raspberry buttercream frosting made with real raspberries.
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Calories: 353kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
Vanilla cupcakes
- 110 g unsalted butter softened
- 115 g white sugar finely granulated e.g. caster
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 115 g plain all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoon milk
Raspberry buttercream
- 120 g raspberries fresh or frozen
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice roughly ¼ a lemon
- 1 ½ tablespoon water
- 150 g unsalted butter softened
- 320 g powdered icing sugar
Instructions
Vanilla cupcakes
- Preheat oven: 180°C / 160°C (fan) / Gas Mark 4 / 350°F
- In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar, either using a spatula, electric hand mixer or stand mixer, until light and pale.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time, then sieve the flour and baking powder into the mixture, gently folding in until just combined.
- Stir in the milk, oil and vanilla extract.
- Line your cupcake pan with 12 cupcake cases and divide the batter evenly between them (each case should be no more than ⅔ full).
- Bake in the oven for 15-20mins or until the cupcakes are lightly golden, springy to the touch and an inserted skewer comes out clean from the middle.
- Transfer the cupcakes to cool on a wire rack while you make the frosting.
Raspberry buttercream
- Using a blender or food processor, blend the raspberries, lemon juice and water until you get a smooth puree.
- Sieve the pureed mix into a saucepan, pushing through as much as you can and discarding the pulp.
- Heat over a low-medium heat and simmer for roughly 10-15mins until the puree has reduced to a thick liquid. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- While the raspberry reduction cools, beat the butter until pale and fluffy using a stand mixer or in a medium bowl using a hand mixer or wooden spoon.
- Sieve in half of the icing sugar to the butter and beat until combined, before sieving in the remaining icing sugar and beating again until smooth.
- Add the raspberry reduction to the frosting 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until smooth, until you have the desired colour and flavour (I usually use 1-3 tbsp).
Assembly and decoration
- Once your cupcakes have fully cooled, add your buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a nozzle of your choice (e.g. large open star) and pipe large swirls onto each cupcake.
- Add fresh raspberries or any leftover raspberry reduction to your frosted cupcakes and enjoy!
Notes
Storage: Keep your raspberry vanilla cupcakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Freezing: You can freeze your raspberry cupcakes wrapped in cling film then a layer of foil for up to 3 months. Defrost as normal and enjoy.
Top tips:
- Your vanilla sponges are cooked once they’re risen, golden and springy to the touch. An inserted toothpick or skewer should also come out clean from the middle.
- For the best flavour in your raspberry buttercream, push as much raspberry puree through your sieve as you can.
- If using frozen raspberries, it's easier if you thaw them or microwave them (30-45secs) first before you puree them.
- Swap your plain flour for self-raising flour and reduce the baking powder by 1 tsp.
- You can use either fresh or frozen raspberries for this recipe.
- You can use any neutral-flavoured oil for the cupcake batter e.g. sunflower oil or canola oil.
Nutrition
Calories: 353kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 68mg | Potassium: 47mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 36g | Vitamin A: 589IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1mg