Should raspberries be voted the prettiest little fruit there is? For color alone, I’d say so! This Raspberry Cupcake recipe is for moist vanilla cupcakes filled with a raspberry purée and swirled with raspberry buttercream.
I love making these cupcakes when raspberries are in season and at their best! This recipe celebrates real raspberry flavor not just in the frosting but also in the hidden raspberry center.
If you love raspberries and would like to try other bakes that celebrate this delicious summer fruit, then look at this recipe for a Summer Raspberry Cake or these White Chocolate and Raspberry Cupcakes.
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Ingredients
You will need the simple ingredients listed below to make these delicious fresh raspberry cupcakes. Remember always to use fresh room temperature ingredients when baking.
- Sunflower oil
- Extra-large whole eggs
- Granulated white sugar
- Self-raising flour
- Salt
- Whole milk
- Vanilla extract
- Raspberries
- Lemon juice
- Caster sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar
Extra-large eggs – out of their shell, the eggs I use weigh 56 grams, if you aren’t sure if you have the same eggs – weigh the eggs you have and adjust accordingly.
Sunflower oil – This cupcake recipe uses oil instead of butter for extra moistness! Use neutral-tasting vegetable oil like sunflower or canola oil.
Self-raising flour - If you can't find self-raising flour use cake flour or all-purpose flour mixed with baking powder. Check the recommendations on the packaging of your baking powder to decide how much should be added.
Vanilla extract – choose a good quality vanilla extract for this recipe, if you don’t have vanilla essence will work. You can also choose to use vanilla bean paste instead.
Fresh raspberries – If fresh raspberries are unavailable, you can substitute them for frozen raspberries. Just remember that frozen fruits contain a higher water content so when making the purée adjust the cooking time if needed.
Unsalted butter – use unsalted butter rather than salted butter for this recipe. It is also essential that you use room-temperature butter.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
To make this easy fresh raspberry cupcake recipe follow the simple instructions below. First, you will be making the cupcakes, the raspberry filling, and then the buttercream frosting.
instructions for cupcakes
STEP 1: Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F) and line 24 cupcake liners into two 12-hole cupcake pans.
STEP 2: Beat eggs, sugar, and oil. Add the oil, eggs, and sugar to a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
STEP 3: Add dry ingredients. Sift together the salt and flour then add the flour mixture to the egg and sugar mixture. Beat at low speed until just combined.
STEP 4: Add wet ingredients. Mix together the milk and vanilla extract in a jug, and slowly pour this into the cupcake batter with the mixer's motor running at low speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again, making sure it is lump-free.
STEP 5: Bake. Pour the cupcake batter into the cupcake liners using a jug or ice cream scoop, filling each case two-thirds of the way up. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool in their tins for 5 minutes, then to cool completely on a cooling rack.
instructions for raspberry purée
STEP 1: Heat castor sugar, lemon juice, and raspberries. Add the fresh raspberries, castor sugar, and lemon juice to a small saucepan set over medium heat. Allow the fruit to soften and the sugar to melt. Stir occasionally with a spatula and press the fruit against the sides of the saucepan to help them break down if needed.
STEP 2: Cool the puree. Once the sugar is melted and the purée has thickened, allow the mashed raspberry purée to cool to room temperature. Reserve ⅓ cup for the frosting and add the remaining puree to a piping bag for the cupcake filling.
instructions for frosting
STEP 1: Beat butter and sugar. Add the butter and icing sugar to a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat at medium speed until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs.
STEP 2: Add milk and vanilla. In a jug combine the milk and vanilla, with the mixer's motor running at low speed slowly add the milk mixture. Continue until it has all been added. Increase the speed of the mixer to medium-high. Beat until light and fluffy, scrape down the sides of the bowl often.
STEP 3: Add raspberry purée. Add ⅓ cup of the cooled raspberry purée to the frosting and beat to combine. Add the frosting to a piping bag fitted with your chosen decorating nozzle.
STEP 4: Decorate. Use a cupcake or apple corer to remove the center of each cupcake, fill the center with the raspberry puree, and then pipe a swirl of frosting onto each cupcake. Decorate with the remaining raspberry purée and fresh raspberries.
Hint: for the perfect fluffy raspberry buttercream, ensure the butter is at room temperature before you make the frosting.
Variations
This recipe highlights raspberries and uses the fruit in three ways - in the frosting, in the center, and these cupcakes are decorated with whole raspberries! You can use fresh or frozen raspberries to make this recipe. If you don't want to go to the effort of making the raspberry puree you can use raspberry jam in the frosting and in the center of the cupcakes if you prefer. Just adjust the quantity as this will be much sweeter.
If you can't find raspberries, you can also make this recipe using other berries like blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, and even cherries.
This recipe is also delicious with this Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting.
Equipment
For these moist raspberry cupcakes, you will need x2 12-hole cupcake tins, 24x paper liners, a cooling rack, a cupcake corer, two disposable piping bags, a piping nozzle, a wire rack, a rubber spatula, and an electric mixer.
I always use a stand mixer or electric hand mixer to make the buttercream as they help ensure a fluffy frosting. I also always use an accurate kitchen scale when baking.
Storage
Cupcakes cool quickly and dry out just as quickly so try to frost them the same day they are baked. If you don’t have time to decorate the cupcakes the same day as baking them, store them in an airtight container or cover the cupcake trays in plastic wrap until the next day.
For any leftover filled and frosted cupcakes, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3 days. Choose to store these cupcakes in the fridge because of the fresh fruit inside and on top of the cupcakes.
To freeze these delicious raspberry cupcakes, remove the fruit from the cupcakes and then place any leftover cupcakes in a freezer-safe air-tight container and freeze them for up to three months. Defrost properly before consuming them.
Top Tips
Follow my top baking tips below to ensure your cupcakes come out perfectly.
- Ensure the cupcakes have cooled properly before frosting them.
- Use an oven thermometer to check the true temperature of your oven.
- Don’t overfill the cupcake cases as this can lead to mishappen cupcakes.
- Make sure the butter is at room temperature before starting this recipe.
FAQ
The eggs I use weigh 56 grams, if you aren’t sure if you have the same eggs – weigh the eggs you have and adjust accordingly.
Check your oven's temperature and ensure you haven’t overfilled the cupcake cases. Overfilling the cases can result in misshapen cupcakes.
I always recommend using a kitchen scale rather than cups when baking, this way you can ensure you’ve measured properly and that your baked goodies come out perfectly.
My advice is, no. You need to ensure the butter is at room temperature before making the buttercream. If the butter is cold, cut it into cubes and warm it in the microwave for a few seconds at a time but be very careful. Another way to get butter to room temperature is to place boiling water into a glass bowl. Allow the bowl to heat up and then place the bowl over the cubed butter, the heat from the bowl will warm the butter. Be sure that the butter does not touch the sides of the heated bowl.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
The sweet tangy taste of these raspberry cupcakes is just addictive, so I promise this won't be the last time you’ll be baking them! They are perfect to make for Valentine's Day, as a summer treat, or when you are looking to spoil yourself.
I hope you give these delicious raspberry cupcakes a try and if you do, please leave a comment and star review below. I love hearing from all of you!
Don’t forget to sign up for the newsletter and follow along @with_love_kitty to make sure you never miss a recipe.
Happy Baking
With Love,
Kitty
📖 Recipe
Raspberry Cupcakes
Equipment
- 2 cupcake pans
- 24 cupcake liners
Ingredients
Vanilla Cupcakes
- 120 ml sunflower oil
- 3 eggs extra-large
- 250 g sugar white, granulated
- 290 grams self-raising flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 270 ml milk full cream
Raspberry Purée
- 280 g fresh raspberries
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 40 g castor sugar
Raspberry Buttercream
- 160 g unsalted butter
- 500 g icing sugar
- 25 ml milk full cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup raspberry puree from above
Instructions
Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F) and line 24 cupcake liners into two 12-hole cupcake pans.
- Add the oil, eggs, and sugar to a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
- Sift together the salt and flour then add the flour mixture to the egg and sugar mixture. Beat at low speed until just combined.
- Mix together the milk and vanilla extract in a jug, and slowly pour this into the cupcake batter with the mixer's motor running at low speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again, making sure it is lump-free.
- Pour the cupcake batter into the cupcake liners using a jug or ice cream scoop, filling each case two-thirds of the way up. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool in their tins for 5 minutes, then to cool completely on a cooling rack.
Raspberry Purée
- In a small saucepan set over medium heat add the fresh raspberries, castor sugar, and lemon juice. Allow the fruit to soften and the sugar to melt. Stir occasionally with a spatula and press the fruit against the sides of the saucepan to help them break down if needed.
- Once the sugar is melted and the purée has thickened, allow the mashed raspberry purée to cool to room temperature. Reserve ⅓ cup for the frosting and add the remaining puree to a piping bag for the cupcake filling.
Raspberry Buttercream
- In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the butter and icing sugar. Beat at medium speed until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs.
- In a jug combine the milk and vanilla, with the mixer's motor running at low speed slowly add the milk mixture. Continue until it has all been added. Increase the speed of the mixer to medium-high. Beat until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl often.
- Add ⅓ cup of the cooled raspberry purée to the frosting and beat to combine. Add the frosting to a piping bag fitted with your chosen decorating nozzle.
Assembly
- Use a cupcake or apple corer to remove the center of each cupcake, fill the center with the raspberry puree, and then pipe a swirl of frosting onto each cupcake. Decorate with the remaining raspberry purée and fresh raspberries.
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