Light and fluffy lemon cupcakes with lemon curd and a tangy, sweet cream cheese frosting.
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small batch lemon curd cupcakes
Hello hello and welcome to my recipe for the best lemon cupcakes *ever.* I absolute love all things citrus, and especially lemon curd. These cupcakes start out with a lemon vanilla cupcake that gets filled with a homemade zesty & tart lemon curd, and is then topped off with a tangy cream cheese frosting and even more lemon curd, for a ton of delicious lemon flavor in every bite.
why you’ll love these lemon curd cupcakes:
- They’re super light and fluffy. The cupcakes are made with the reverse creaming method, which involves beating together the butter and flour. This makes it so less gluten is developed, leading to a super light and fluffy cupcake.
- They’re super fresh and citrusy. The lemon curd is filled with flavor from fresh lemon zest and fresh lemon juice, making it a nice tart, citrus contrast to the sweetness of the cupcakes.
- The cream cheese frosting. It’s so rich, creamy and delicious.
expert baking tips
Weigh your ingredients:
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale.
Be careful when mixing the cupcake batter:
It is super important to not over-mix the cupcake batter or you will end up with tough and chewy cupcakes. Using the reverse creaming method makes it more difficult to over-mix the batter, but it’s still good to be aware of how much you are mixing it. Only mix just until all of the ingredients are cohesive.
Use room temperature ingredients:
This is super important for allowing the batter to come together smoothly. You’ll want to take your ingredients out of the fridge about an hour before baking to allow them enough time to come to room temperature.
Keep a close eye on the cupcakes while they bake:
Cakes and cupcakes like to go from under-baked to over-baked super quickly so it is important to keep a close eye on them. I’d recommend that you start checking on the cake around 15 minutes.
try to avoid metal utensils when making the curd
It’s possible for the curd to take on a metallic taste if you are using a metal bowl or whisk, so to be safe I would recommend staying away from those when making the curd.
A note on oven temperature:
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
lemon cupcakes ingredients –
lemon curd:
- Egg yolks: the base of the curd and what thickens it up. Don’t worry about having to save the egg whites because we’re using them in the buttercream.
- Granulated sugar: sweetens up the curd.
- Lemons: where all the flavor comes from! You’ll need fresh lemons for the zest and the juice.
- Salt: to balance and bring out the sweetness of the curd.
- Unsalted butter: for thickening the curd and giving it that melt-in-your-mouth feel. You can use salted butter here, just be sure to omit the extra salt from the curd.
vanilla cupcakes:
- All purpose flour: gives the cupcakes their structure.
- Baking powder: for helping the cupcakes rise.
- Salt: for balancing and bringing out the sweetness of the batter.
- Unsalted butter: for tenderizing the cupcakes and adding that nice buttery flavor to them. You can substitute in salted butter, just be sure to omit the extra salt in the batter.
- Vegetable oil: for tenderizing the cupcakes. If you don’t have vegetable oil on hand, you can use another neutral oil such as canola.
- Granulated sugar: for adding sweetness and for locking in moisture.
- Egg: for binding the batter together and adding moisture.
- Vanilla: for flavor.
- Sour cream & whole milk: for tenderizing the cupcakes and making them moist. I recommend full-fat for both of these for the best texture in the cupcakes, but low-fat or non-dairy alternatives should work well here. This recipe was originally made with buttermilk but I know that can be annoying to purchase. If you’d like to use buttermilk, replace the sour cream and milk with 85g full-fat buttermilk.
- Lemon: you’ll need one lemon for the zest here.
cream cheese frosting:
- Cream cheese: the base of any good cream cheese frosting.
- Unsalted butter: for thickening up the cream cheese frosting. You can substitute in salted butter, just be sure to omit the extra salt!
- Powdered sugar: for sweetening and thickening up the cream cheese frosting.
- Vanilla: for flavor.
- Salt: for balancing and bringing out the sweetness of the frosting.
how to make lemon curd cupcakes:
Here’s the basic rundown on how to make these cupcakes. You can find the full recipe at the end of this blog post.
- Beat together the butter and dry ingredients until only tiny little lumps of butter remain.
- Then beat in the wet ingredients until just combined.
- Bake the cupcakes.
- Make the lemon curd (if using homemade!) You’ll cook the ingredients over the stove until it reaches 170F (to bring the eggs to a safe temperature), then mix the curd into the butter.
- Beat together the cream cheese frosting ingredients.
- Make a hole in the center of the cupcakes and fill each of them with some of the lemon curd. Then top them all off with the cream cheese frosting and another swirl of lemon curd. Enjoy!
lemon cupcake recipe q&a
can I double this recipe?
Of course! Obviously they will not be small batch anymore but small batch isn’t always what we need! Simply double all of the ingredients in the recipe to make 12 delicious cupcakes. I even more strongly recommend measuring by weight if you are going to double the recipe for the best results.
can I make these cupcakes ahead of time?
You can make the lemon curd ahead of time, where it will keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days before making the cupcakes (it keeps for a week total.) I’d recommend waiting to make the cream cheese frosting until you want to frost the cupcakes so you don’t have to deal with letting it come to room temperature and re-whipping it before finishing the cupcakes.
how to store small batch lemon curd cupcakes
Because these cupcakes have lemon curd and cream cheese frosting, they will need to be stored in the fridge. Keep them stored in an airtight container, where they’ll keep well for 3-5 days. You can leave a cupcake out at room temperature for up to 2 hours.
tools and ingredients
You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use on my Amazon Storefront page, here!
other recipes you might enjoy:
did you make this recipe?
I’d love to see and know your thoughts! please leave a comment and review below, and tag me on instagram @freshbeanbakery. #freshbeanbakery
Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Curd
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 2 egg yolks
- 65 g granulated sugar (⅓ c.)
- 40 g lemon juice (2 ¾ tbsp.)
- zest of 1 lemon
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- 28 g unsalted butter cubed (2 tbsp.)
Lemon Cupcakes
- 100 g granulated sugar (½ c.)
- zest of 1 large lemon
- 90 g all purpose flour (¾ c.)
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 41 g unsalted butter room temperature, cubed (3 tbsp.)
- 32 g vegetable oil (2 ½ tbsp.)
- 1 egg white room temperature
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 45 g sour cream room temperature (3 tbsp.)
- 55 g whole milk room temperature (¼ c.)
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 130 g cream cheese room temperature (½ c. + 1 tbsp.)
- 84 g unsalted butter room temperature (6 tbsp.)
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- 210 g powdered sugar (1 ¾ c.)
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Instructions
Lemon Curd
- Prep a small mixing bowl by adding the cubed butter to it, along with a fine mesh sieve. Set aside.
- Add the sugar to a small saucepan, then zest the lemon zest into the pan. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar.
- Add in the lemon juice, egg yolks, and salt.
- Set the saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly (this can be slowly – we just need constant movement happening!)
- Continue to stir the curd until it thickens and reaches a temperature of at least 170°F / 76°C (This took me about 3-5 minutes.)
- Remove the curd from the heat and pass it through the fine mesh sieve, over the butter. Mix the curd and the butter together until the butter has melted and the mixture is smooth. Transfer the curd to the fridge until you're ready to assemble the cupcakes.
Lemon Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Line a cupcake pan with 6 parchment cupcake liners.
- To a medium sized mixing bowl, add in the sugar. Zest the lemon into the sugar, then use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar.
- Add in the flour, baking powder, salt, and cubed butter. Use a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to beat the mixture together until the butter has completely combined with the dry ingredients and no lumps remain.
- Add in the oil, egg white, vanilla extract, sour cream, and milk. Whisk the ingredients together just until a cohesive batter has formed.
- Distribute the batter evenly between the six liners. Bake for 15-18 min., or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out with only a few moist crumbs.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Add the cream cheese, butter, and salt to a medium bowl. With a hand mixer (or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) beat until light and fluffy (~1 minute)
- Beat in half of the powdered sugar until it's combined, then beat in the other half. Add in the vanilla and beat for an additional minute, until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Use a teaspoon measurement to push down in the center of the cupcakes to form a hole. Fill each hole with lemon curd up until the top of the cupcake.
- Top each cupcake with a heaping scoop of the cream cheese frosting*, then swirl in the extra lemon curd on top. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Please note that the nutrition facts are only an estimate and may vary based on different brands of ingredients and any substitutions made.
These cupcakes are absolutely delicious!! The proces of making them also turned out a lot easier than I expected beforehand. Personally the only thing I’d say is that you truly don’t need that much frosting, half of the measurements was plenty. Aside from this, absolutely amazing and I will most definitely make these again. Friends have already approved this recipe big time!
Thank you so much, I’m so happy you and your friends enjoyed these cupcakes! ☺︎