Easter Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream Frosting
Servings: 12
Ingredients
- For the cupcakes:
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest
- For the lemon buttercream:
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2-3 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Decorations:
- Candy grass or shredded coconut mixed with a couple drops of green food coloring
- Jelly Beans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners and set aside.
- In large bowl, beat together butter and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined.
- Add vanilla, and beat until combined.
- In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Add flour mixture to butter/sugar mixture.
- Combine milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest.
- Slowly add into batter, until just combined.
- Scrape down the sides and make sure all is completely mixed.
- Evenly distribute among 12 cupcake liners.
- Bake in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting:
- Beat together butter and powdered sugar, until well combined.
- Add cream/milk, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla, beating until well combined.
- Add more milk if needed for desired consistency.
- Beat for another 2-3 minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- To decorate:
- Frost the cupcakes either with a knife or by piping it on. Leave a little extra frosting for applying the jelly beans.
- Sprinkle with "grass", then use remaining frosting to stick jelly beans onto the grass. I just put a small bit of the frosting on the back of each jelly bean to ensure they stuck well.
- Enjoy!