Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes made with fresh fruit in both the cupcakes and the frosting. These very lemony cupcakes are frosted with a homemade buttercream that is blended with strawberry jam and freshly cut strawberries.
These cupcakes are great for spring and summer parties and events. They have a bright and refreshing flavor that makes them perfect for warmer weather.

What Ingredients are in Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes?
These cupcakes are made from scratch so fresh fruit and pantry staples are used to make these cupcakes.
- Fresh lemon juice
- Lemon zest
- Unsalted butter, room temperature
- Vegetable oil
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Eggs
- Milk

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How Do You Make Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes From Scratch?
It's easy to make strawberry lemon cupcakes from scratch with the help of some kitchen tools.
For juicing and zesting the lemons, a lemon zester and a lemon juicer are great tools to use to make this recipe easier.
Preheat the oven- Preheat to 350ºF and place 16 cupcake liners in two cupcake pans.
Cream together the wet ingredients- Beat the softened butter until creamy. Beat in the granulated sugar and the vegetable oil. Then, pour in 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice as well as the lemon zest and the vanilla extract. Once that is done, beat in the eggs until combined.
Combine the dry ingredients- In a separate bowl, combine the all-purpose flour together with the baking powder, and salt.
Mix together the wet and the dry ingredients- Once combined, slowly mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture. Mix in the milk until incorporated. Do not overmix.
Fill the cupcake liners- Scoop the cupcake batter equally between 16 cupcake liners.
Bake the lemon cupcakes- Bake for 18-21 minutes or until the center of the cupcakes are done. Check with a toothpick to ensure they are done.
Allow the cupcakes to cool- Remove the cupcakes from the oven and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

How to Make Strawberry Frosting
Making strawberry buttercream frosting from scratch is easy. To make the process even easier, however, a mini food processor is a big help to help cut up the fresh strawberries into small pieces. The smaller the pieces the easier the frosting is to pipe!
A piping bag and a piping tip are a huge help when decorating these lemon cupcakes. A 1M Piping Tip is a good tip to use when piping this frosting because the hole is big enough to allow small pieces of strawberries to pass through without getting stuck.
Prepare the strawberries- Add ¼ cup of hulled strawberries to a food processor and pulse until the strawberries are into small pieces.
Beat the ingredients together- Beat the softened butter until smooth and creamy. Then, mix in the vanilla extract, lemon juice, and salt. Once everything is smooth, add in the pureed strawberries as well as the strawberry jam.

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Add the powdered sugar- Beat in the confectioners sugar by adding a little at a time. At this point, if it is needed, add a little milk at a time until the desired texture is reached. Frost completely cooled cupcakes and store them in the refrigerator.
If desired, top with fresh strawberries before serving.
What Cake Goes with Strawberry Frosting?
Lemon Cake is a fantastic pairing to strawberry frosting but there are some other flavors that pair just as well. A classic vanilla cupcake has a great balance when matched with strawberry frosting.
Another yummy pairing is Angel Food Cake. Angel food cake is light and fluffy and a little strawberry frosting goes a long way.

📖 Recipe

Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes
Strawberry Lemon Cupcakes made with fresh fruit in both the cupcakes and the frosting. These very lemony cupcakes are frosted with a homemade buttercream that is blended with strawberry jam and freshly cut strawberries.
Ingredients
Lemon Cupcakes
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, room softened
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cups granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ¼ cups all purpose flour -spooned & leveled
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoon milk
Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
- ¾ cup butter, softened
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup fresh strawberries, pureed
- ¼ cup strawberry jam
- 4 cups confectioners sugar
- 2 tablespoon milk (if needed)
Instructions
Lemon Cupcakes
- Preheat to 350ºF and place 16 cupcake liners in two cupcake pans.
- Beat the softened butter until creamy.
- Beat in the granulated sugar and the vegetable oil.
- Pour in 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice as well as the lemon zest and the vanilla extract.
- Beat in the eggs until combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine the all-purpose flour together with the baking powder, and salt.
- Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture.
- Mix in the milk until incorporated. Do not overmix.
- Scoop the cupcake batter equally between 16 cupcake liners.
- Bake for 18-21 minutes or until the center of the cupcakes are done (check with a toothpick).
- Remove the cupcakes from the oven and allow them to cool for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Frost completely cooled cupcakes.
Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
- Add ¼ cup of hulled strawberries to a food processor and pulse until the strawberries are into small pieces.
- Beat the softened butter until smooth and creamy.
- Mix in the vanilla extract, lemon juice, and salt.
- Mix in the pureed strawberries as well as the strawberry jam.
- Slow beat in the confectioners sugar.
- If needed, add a little milk at a time until the desired texture is reached.
- Frost completely cooled cupcakes and store them in the refrigerator.
Notes
These cupcakes contain fruit so they should be refrigerated due to the perishable ingredients.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 339Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 192mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 0gSugar: 39gProtein: 2g
Nutrition calculation is a rough estimate and can vary depending on the cooking technique and the exact ingredients used. For informational purposes only.