Raspberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Photo by Donya.

This lemon cake recipe originated from a recipe in a magazine given to me by a friend. I have no idea what magazine it was, as the clipping given to me did not identify a title and I've googled to no avail. That being said, I've made enough adaptations over the past couple of years that I'm comfortable blogging it here as 'mine', but would very much like to give credit where credit is due! If you happen to recognize this as being something similar to something you read in a magazine, let me know!


The first thing we need to address before we get to the recipe is that this cake is finicky. So is the icing, for that matter. (See note about refrigeration in the icing instructions). The cake is sensitive to movement in the oven and, if irritated, falls in the middle. Luckily, if it comes out ugly, it still tastes good, but, the point is, if this is your first metaphorical rodeo, this is not your metaphorical horse. Or bull. Or whatever it is one rides at a rodeo. If you have not baked a cake from scratch before, start somewhere a little more straight forward, such as here or here. I don't mean you need to be an expert, I just wanted to give you fair warning that this is not the most simple of cakes. It is sensitive enough that it baked differently based on the color of cupcake paper I used (lighter worked better, FYI.) It is, however, delicious.



(For a printable version of this recipe, click here)

The Cake...

1 cup + 2 tablespoons whole milk
7 large egg yolks at room temperature
1 large egg white at room temperature
3 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups all purpose flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
5 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
10 ounces high quality white chocolate, melted and cooled


Step #1 - Preheat oven to 350* F.

Step #2 - Melt chocolate plus 1 tablespoons of the butter and set aside. You can melt in either a double boiler or the microwave. If using the microwave, meat in 10-15 second intervals, stirring between each.

Step #3 - In a small bowl, mix 1/2 cup  + 2 tablespoons of the milk, egg yolks, egg white, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla and salt with a fork.

Step #4 - In a separate, larger bowl combine flour, sugar and baking powder. Once blended add remaining butter and milk. Beat until smooth.

Step #5 - Add egg mixture to flour/butter mixture until blended. Add white chocolate and beat until smooth.

Step #6 - Fill cupcake papers 3/4 of the way full with batter and bake for 17-20 minutes. Cupcakes are done when toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

The Icing...

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup fresh raspberries, washed and dried
5 cups confectioners sugar

Beat all butter, raspberries and sugar together with a mixer until well combined.

If your icing seems thin, add more sugar-- how much liquid the berries create when you squish them varies, so you may find that your icing is thin with the measurements above. Just add sugar until it reaches your desired consistency. The sugar/fruit combination causes the liquid to release from the fruit, so you want to keep anything iced in this frosting refrigerated; but serve at room temperature.

Photo by Donya