Lemon Vanilla Cupcakes with Lavender Buttercream

LEMON VANILLA CUPCAKES WITH LAVENDER LEMON ZEST BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

I don’t make cupcakes often, but when February comes around, I’m usually all about those sweet romanticized treats.

When I make cupcakes, I like them as plain as possible, because many can be overkill. I stick with the basics. In most cases, what I mean is a plain chocolate, vanilla, lemon or strawberry.

Yes, there is lemon zest in the lavender frosting! And it’s delightful.

This is a recipe I’m pretty proud of, mainly because of the lightness and fluffiness of the textures. The lavender is just subtle enough to work so well with the lemon vanilla cupcake, I actually couldn’t stop sampling the buttercream out of the stand mixer.

LEMON VANILLA CUPCAKES WITH LAVENDER LEMON ZEST BUTTERCREAM FROSTING RECIPE

Ingredients

Lemon Vanilla Cupcake Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• 1/2 cup oat milk (or any whole or 2% milk)

• 2 room temperature eggs, lightly beaten

• 1 1/2 cups AP flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 8 tablespoons softened unsalted butter

• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract

• 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil, or any mild-flavored oil

Lavender Buttercream Ingredients

• 4.5 cups powdered sugar

• 8 tablespoons softened unsalted butter

• 1/2 cup whipped cream cheese

• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 3/4 teaspoon lavender paste

• 6 tablespoons oat milk (or any whole, 2% milk)

• purple food coloring optional

Instructions

For the lemon vanilla cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350°F.

Add the lemon juice to the milk to sour it. About 5-10 minutes until slightly curdled.

In a small bowl, keep the lightly beaten eggs aside.

Into a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Using an electric stand mixer or hand mixer with paddle attachment, beat the butter for 30 seconds and gradually add the sugar. Continue for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides if you need to.

Add the vanilla extract and continue beating until combined.

With mixer still on medium, add the eggs gradually. If the batter curdles, add a few tablespoons of flour to get it back to smooth.

On a lower speed, slowly add in the flour, then oil, then milk until just combined. Don’t over mix! Scrape down the sides to the bottom of the bowl.

If you haven’t already, use cupcake liners in your cupcake baking tray. I use a 12 muffin tray.

Fill the cups 2/3’s full, and take a spoon if you need to for smoothing out the tops so they bake evenly.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Let cool for about an hour before frosting the cakes.

For the lavender buttercream, sift the powdered sugar into a large mixing bowl.

Using an electric stand mixer with paddle attachment, combine the butter and whipped cream cheese.

Add in the lemon zest.

Beat on medium speed until mixed, and add salt.

Gradually add in the powdered sugar, 2 cups at a time. Scrape down the sides if necessary.

Add the lavender and milk.

Beat for about a minute before adding the rest of the powdered sugar.

Add the remaining sugar and continue to beat until smooth and creamy.

This cream frosting is subtle, but it’s up to you how much you want on your cupcakes. Know your audience!

I doubled the frosting for photos. It’s A LOT of frosting. You can definitely halve it.