vanilla cupcakes with fresh strawberry buttercream
Happy Friday! I’m feeling pretty great about life today. Geoff and I went to Comic Con last night, and it was the most fun I’ve had in a loooong time. I got to stand inside a Tardis, Geoff met R2D2, and we saw a huge variety of insane costumes, from Mary Poppins to a man in spandex American flag pants carrying a live snake. It was a totally new experience for me but super fun! Besides that, we’ve been having a blast this week with Abby on spring break, and I’m excited for Easter on Sunday. If you’re looking for an awesome Easter dessert, look no further… these vanilla cupcakes with fresh strawberry buttercream are divine!
I know I’ve posted several vanilla cupcake recipes on this blog in the past, but this one is truly my favorite. The cupcakes are perfect every time I make them, the texture is amazing, and they work well with lots of toppings and fillings. I’ve been doing some baking for friends lately, and this is always the recipe I choose because it’s so reliably perfect. I don’t think I’ve ever had a better cupcake!
The strawberry buttercream, though… holy hannah it is delicious! The fresh strawberry flavor is amazing and makes the cupcakes taste so sweet and springy. It’s a perfect complement to the sweet and fluffy cupcakes!
Vanilla Cupcakes with Fresh Strawberry Buttercream
for the cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, cold, cut into small cubes
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk (I used skim, and it worked fine)
2 teaspoons vanilla extractfor the frosting:
2 sticks butter, softened
pinch of salt
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup strawberries, pureed to make about 3 tablespoons pureePreheat oven to 350. Line two muffin tins with paper liners. In a large bowl or a the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter and mix until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the milk and vanilla in a measuring cup, and add about half of the milk mixture to the flour mixture. Beat until well blended and smooth. Add the other half of the milk mixture, and beat until smooth. Fill paper liners 2/3 full and bake 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for a few minutes and then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely. To make the frosting, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the salt and powdered sugar, until combined. Add the vanilla and strawberry puree and beat until light and fluffy.
Cupcakes from this recipe and frosting adapted from Mikey’s in My Kitchen
Hey there – When I click the print button it takes me to a fluffernutter chocolate cookie recipe.
Oops! Apparently copy and paste is not my friend today. It's fixed now! 🙂
These look scrumptious Alicia!
(And pretty too.) 🙂
so i'm making these right now and they are completely flat… no doming at all. is that usual for you?
Mine usually dome just a little but not a full dome. I have noticed them being flatter when my butter is softer. I try to keep all the ingredients as cold as possible and that helps with the texture and fluffiness. The good news is that they taste good either way. 🙂
Does this recipe usually make a full 2 dozen cupcakes?
These look great!
just wondering how the cake comes out…I've been searching for a nice and light fluffy cupcake
Yes, I usually get a full 24 with enough batter left over for 1 or 2 extra.
The cake is amazing! It's always perfectly light and fluffy for me but still holds together well.
Hi there,
I'm just wondering if you used salted or unsalted butter for the cake and icing?
Thanks,
I used salted. I'm a rebel and I always use salted butter! 🙂
How many grams of butter is 2 sticks? 454 grams?
Will this cupcake recipe work just as well as a full 2 layer cake?
they look beautiful and love the fresh strawberry addition, I just don't see the point in using skim milk, if it's to reduce the fat it's meaningless compared to the one cup of butter or any kind of fat in the cupcakes, and skim milk almost has no nutrition at all, it's a waste of a natural good product is all I'm saying.
I agree, whole milk would be better in these cupcakes, but skim milk was all I had on hand. I don't drink a lot of milk anyway, but I like the taste of skim milk better than 2% or whole milk, so that's what I usually have in the house.
These are, hands down, the best cupcakes I've ever tasted. Obviously, the strawberry buttercream is the star, but the cake is THE BEST vanilla cake I've ever made. My dad and daughter request vanilla cake with chocolate buttercream every year for their birthday. Have you ever baked this batter as a cake? I'm going to have to try it, because this knocked my go-to recipe out of the line up! Thanks for sharing!
Could I replace the Cake Flour with All Purpose and still get the same result? Or is it better to have the cake flour?
YUM! I made the cupcakes a few weeks ago and they were sooo yummy. I was disappointed in how flat they were, but the second batch (with cooler butter, as you mentioned above in the comments) worked out better. Either way, they tasted amazing!
Quick question: How long do you think the icing would last in the fridge? Making a different cake for this Sunday and I think this icing would be great. I'd love to get the icing out of the way ahead of time. Just worried about the fresh fruit…Maybe I could freeze it?
-Chelsea
The cupcakes and frosting were wonderful. My new go recipes for both. Thanks!
Do you have a chocolate recipe that is light and fluffy like this one?
My favorite chocolate cupcakes are the ones from this recipe: http://www.thebakerupstairs.com/2015/02/chocolate-covered-strawberry-cupcakes.html
Is this enough icing to pipe onto 24 cupcakes?
Do they need to be refrigerated after frosting with the strawberries in the frosting? Thanks.
Can I ask the same question as someone else. What's with the cake flour? What does this give that normal flour doesn't
It depends on how you frost them, but I was able to frost 24 cupcakes with the amount of frosting pictured.
Cake flour has less protein than all purpose flour, which makes for a lighter cake. I definitely think it's worth using. If you don't have it on hand, you can make your own this way: http://www.thekitchn.com/the-easy-way-to-make-cake-flour-substitute-baking-tips-from-the-kitchn-44521
What happens if you use the standard creaming method for this recipe and replace half of the butter with vegetable oil?
How can I turn these into chocolate cupcakes?
Alicia, I just want you to know that this is my favorite cupcake recipe of all time. They taste amazing and they turn out perfectly shaped every time. That's coming from a pastry chef 😉 Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!