These lemon cupcakes from scratch are soft, fine-crumbed vanilla-lemon cupcakes made with fresh lemon zest and juice, butter, sour cream and whole milk, topped with a swirl of yellow lemon buttercream. The recipe makes 12 cupcakes: about 20 minutes of prep and 18 to 20 minutes in a 350°F oven.
Lemon goes in twice, in the batter and again in the frosting, and each time it is zest plus juice. Zest carries the fragrance, juice brings the sour edge. Sour cream keeps the crumb tender so the cupcakes are still soft on day two.
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- Batter: 1 tablespoon lemon zest and 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Buttercream: another 1 tablespoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice
- Lemons to buy: 2 to 3 medium lemons cover both
- Batter base: 1½ cups flour, 1 cup sugar, ½ cup butter, 2 eggs, ½ cup whole milk, ¼ cup sour cream
- Pan: one 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners
Use fresh lemons. Bottled juice tastes flat and a little bitter next to fresh, and there is no zest in a bottle, which is where most of the lemon flavor lives. Zest the lemons before you juice them. Take only the thin yellow layer; the white pith underneath is bitter and you will taste it in the frosting. A cold lemon gives more juice if you roll it firmly under your palm first.
Want more lemon than this? Fill the centers with lemon curd, the way I do in my lemon curd cupcakes.
Sour Cream and Whole Milk vs Buttermilk in Lemon Cupcakes
The liquid here is ½ cup whole milk plus ¼ cup sour cream. Milk keeps the batter loose enough to rise into a dome. Sour cream adds fat and a mild tang, and that is what makes these moist lemon cupcakes instead of dry ones.
I have baked these with buttermilk too. It makes the crumb a touch softer, but it adds its own tang that can crowd a mild lemon, and the batter curdles more easily. Whole milk lets the lemon lead. No sour cream? Plain full-fat Greek yogurt swaps in at the same ¼ cup.
Why Lemon Cupcake Batter Looks Curdled
Beat the softened butter and sugar on medium for 2 to 3 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and let each one disappear before the next. Then the lemon juice, zest and vanilla go in.
This is where the batter often looks broken and grainy. Do not panic. The acid in the juice tightens the butter and eggs, and cold milk or sour cream makes it worse, which is why both should sit out until they reach room temperature. Keep going: once you add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and sour cream, the batter turns smooth again.
Start and end with the flour mixture, on low speed, and stop the moment you no longer see dry flour. Extra mixing at this point is what makes cupcakes tough and flat-topped. A swirl of fruit is easy to add here; my lemon raspberry swirl cupcakes start from a very similar batter.
Filling the Liners and Baking for 18 to 20 Minutes
Fill each liner about two-thirds full, roughly 3 tablespoons of batter. A large cookie scoop makes the 12 even, so they bake in the same time. White liners keep the pale yellow crumb looking fresh.
Bake at 350°F for 18 to 20 minutes and leave the oven door shut for the first 15. The cupcakes are done when the tops spring back under a light touch, the edges are just turning golden, and a toothpick from the center comes out clean. Leave them in the pan for 5 minutes, then move them to a rack and let them cool completely, about an hour, before any frosting goes on.
Yellow Lemon Buttercream for Piped Swirls
Beat 1 cup softened butter on high for 3 minutes, until it is pale and creamy. Add the 3½ cups sifted powdered sugar a cup at a time. Then add the lemon zest, vanilla and pinch of salt, and pour in the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice a little at a time. Dumped in all at once, the juice can make the frosting look split.
Color it with yellow gel, starting with a dab on a toothpick. Gel gives a clear, sunny yellow without thinning the frosting or adding a taste. If the buttercream is too stiff to pipe, beat in heavy cream 1 tablespoon at a time. It should hold a sharp ridge from a large star tip. This amount gives each of the 12 cupcakes a tall swirl. For a frosting you can use on cakes and cookies too, see my lemon buttercream frosting.
Dense, Sunken or Not Lemony Enough? Fixes
- Dense, heavy crumb: the butter and sugar were not creamed long enough, or the batter was mixed hard after the flour went in.
- Sunken centers: underbaked, the oven was opened too early, or the flour was scooped and packed. Spoon flour into the cup and level it.
- Peaked, cracked tops: liners filled too high or an oven running hot. Check it with an oven thermometer.
- Lemon flavor too faint: bottled juice, or zest that went in without the juice. Use fresh lemons and both.
- Frosting melted down the sides: the cupcakes were still warm, or the kitchen is hot. Chill the frosted cupcakes for 15 minutes to set the swirl.
Storing Frosted and Unfrosted Lemon Cupcakes
Frosted cupcakes keep 2 days at room temperature in a closed container. If your kitchen is warm, move them to the fridge after the first day and let them sit out for 30 minutes before serving so the buttercream softens again.
For making ahead, freeze the unfrosted cupcakes. Wrap each one in plastic and keep them in a freezer bag for up to 2 months. They thaw on the counter in under an hour and frost as well as fresh ones. The buttercream keeps in the fridge for a week; bring it to room temperature and beat it smooth before piping.
Lemon Cupcake Questions
Can I use bottled lemon juice?
You can, but the cupcakes taste flatter. You still need fresh lemons for the zest, so juice those too.
Can I make these lemon cupcakes without sour cream?
Yes. Use the same ¼ cup of plain full-fat Greek yogurt. Low-fat yogurt makes a drier crumb.
Can I double the recipe?
Yes, it doubles cleanly for 24 cupcakes. Mix it in one large bowl and bake one pan at a time on the middle rack if your oven runs uneven.
What other lemon cupcakes can I make from this?
Add poppy seeds for lemon poppy seed cupcakes, a little lavender for lemon lavender cupcakes, or strawberries for strawberry lemonade cupcakes.
Lemon Cupcakes From Scratch Recipe
These lemon cupcakes from scratch are soft, fine-crumbed cupcakes made with fresh lemon zest and juice, butter, sour cream and whole milk, topped with a piped yellow lemon buttercream. The recipe makes 12 cupcakes in about 40 minutes, with 18 to 20 minutes at 350°F. Lemon goes into both the batter and the frosting as zest plus juice, and sour cream keeps the crumb moist for days. If the batter looks curdled after the lemon juice goes in, keep going: it turns smooth once the flour is added. Bake these homemade lemon cupcakes for birthdays, baby showers, Easter or spring brunch. Swap Greek yogurt for the sour cream. Freeze unfrosted cupcakes up to 2 months.
Ingredients
- FOR THE LEMON CUPCAKES:
- 1 1/2 cups (190g) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) whole milk, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60ml) sour cream, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- FOR THE YELLOW LEMON BUTTERCREAM FROSTING:
- 1 cup (230g) unsalted butter, softened
- 3 1/2 cups (440g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons heavy cream (optional for consistency)
- Pinch of salt
- Yellow gel food coloring (as needed)
Instructions
PREPARE THE OVEN AND PAN: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with white cupcake liners.
MIX DRY INGREDIENTS: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
CREAM BUTTER AND SUGAR: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
ADD EGGS AND FLAVORINGS: Beat in the eggs one at a time, ensuring each is fully incorporated before adding the next. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract, mixing until the batter is smooth.
COMBINE WET AND DRY INGREDIENTS: On low speed, add the dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the milk and sour cream. Begin and end with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined, being careful not to overmix.
FILL CUPCAKE LINERS: Divide the batter evenly among the prepared cupcake liners, filling each about two-thirds full.
BAKE THE CUPCAKES: Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
COOL THE CUPCAKES: Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
MAKE THE BUTTERCREAM: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter on high speed for 3 minutes until creamy and pale.
ADD POWDERED SUGAR: Gradually add the sifted powdered sugar, one cup at a time, beating well after each addition.
ADD FLAVORINGS AND COLOR: Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla extract, and salt to the frosting. Beat until fully combined. Add yellow gel food coloring, starting with a small amount and increasing until the desired shade is achieved.
ADJUST CONSISTENCY: If the frosting is too thick, add heavy cream 1 tablespoon at a time until the consistency is smooth and spreadable.
FROST THE CUPCAKES: Pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes using a star tip to create a decorative swirl.
Notes
Use fresh lemons for both zest and juice; 2 to 3 medium lemons cover the batter and the buttercream. Zest only the yellow layer, the white pith is bitter. Have the eggs, milk and sour cream at room temperature so the batter does not split. Fill liners about two-thirds full and keep the oven closed for the first 15 minutes. Cool completely before frosting. Add the lemon juice to the buttercream a little at a time. Store frosted cupcakes in a closed container for 2 days, refrigerate in a warm kitchen, or freeze unfrosted cupcakes up to 2 months.
