Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
These Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting are perfect for any type of small celebration. Made with fresh strawberry puree, these cupcakes exude strawberry flavor from the cake to the decadent strawberry cream cheese icing they are topped with! Makes 6 cupcakes.
Love small batch sweets? Don’t miss Margarita Cupcakes with Salted Tequila Frosting and Bourbon Maple Bacon Cupcakes!
Today’s an important day—it’s our anniversary!
On our wedding day, we cut into a gorgeous tiered cake with white, chocolate and strawberry layers at our wedding reception. A year later, we ate the strawberry cake topper to celebrate one year of matrimony.
So today, I wanted to share my Small Batch Strawberry Cupcake recipe as a nod to our wedding cake. These cupcakes are topped with a decadent strawberry cream cheese frosting. And the best thing? We don’t have to use any artificial strawberry flavoring to get the flavors we want and need!
Why I love this recipe
I cannot tell y’all how many times I have tried and failed to make cupcakes using actual strawberries instead of strawberry jello or strawberry extract. The texture can get gloopy if not done right, and a cupcake not done right is incredibly sad.
These cupcakes are delightful! They don’t taste artificial (because hey, they use FRESH STRAWBERRY PUREE to flavor them!) The strawberry flavor is subtle, the cake is fluffy and the icing, which is made with more strawberry goodness, sings.
The added bonus is that this recipe makes just six cupcakes. The icing is for six cupcakes. And you won’t have the chance to overindulge as much as you would with a recipe that makes 18-24 cupcakes.
It’s a win-win… especially if you’re celebrating an occasion with just two people!
Other celebratory desserts we adore: Funfetti Sugar Cookie Bars | Chocolate-Covered Raspberry Cupcakes with Raspberry Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling and Raspberry Buttercream Frosting | Strawberry and Blueberry Hand Pies
What you need to make Strawberry Cupcakes
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- Muffin/cupcake tin
- Parchment paper cupcake liners
- A large mixing bowl (plus a smaller one for the frosting!)
- A cookie scoop to scoop the ingredients into the prepared cupcake liners
- Hand mixer to mix up the frosting easily
- Tipless piping bags (or the ones that have a star tip to decorate the final cupcakes)
In addition to these tools, you’ll need some ingredients that may or may not live in your pantry, depending on how you stock yours.
- Coconut oil — I prefer refined because it has less coconut flavor, but if you don’t have this on hand, feel free to use canola or vegetable oil. You could also substitute melted unsalted butter, too.
- Strawberries — fresh or frozen! You’ll need about a cup of these to make the strawberry puree.
- Cream cheese — it adds a lovely tang to the frosting and makes it to where it’s not too sweet!
If you want a more intense strawberry frosting, check out my Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting, made with freeze-dried strawberries.
You could swap out the Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting for classic Cream Cheese Frosting or even a Strawberry Buttercream Frosting.
How to make Small Batch Strawberry Cupcakes
Preheat the oven, and place your cupcake liners in a cupcake tin. Since this recipe only makes six cupcakes, you’ll only need six.
In a large bowl, whisk together the oil and granulated sugar. We want them to be combined and happy before we add in more ingredients.
Add the eggs, vanilla extract and strawberry puree to the bowl. Whisk until all the wet ingredients are combined.
In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk ’em together so that they are evenly dispersed throughout the batter.
Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined.
Measure 3 tablespoons of the batter into each cupcake liner. I like to use a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop so they’re all even, but you could easily do this with a tablespoon measure or even eyeball it. You do you.
Bake the cupcakes. Keep an eye on these because if they overbake, they will become tough.
Allow the cupcakes 30 minutes to cool before frosting.
How to make Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
While the cupcakes bake, get out another bowl.
In the bowl, add the cream cheese and strawberry puree. Use a hand mixer to beat these ingredients together until smooth. They’ll serve as the base for your frosting, and I like to do this to ensure that there aren’t any cream cheese lumps.
Sprinkle in the powdered sugar. If you want, run it through a fine mesh strainer before adding to the frosting so there are no lumps.
Use the hand mixer to incorporate the powdered sugar into the frosting.
Chill in the refrigerator until it’s time to frost the cupcakes.
Transfer to a piping bag or dollop the frosting on top of the strawberry cupcakes. Garnish with a halved strawberry for extra fanciness, and enjoy immediately!
When the icing is smooth, chill in the refrigerator until icing the cupcakes. You can transfer the icing to a piping bag, or you can simply dollop it onto the cupcakes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen strawberries to make the strawberry puree?
Yes! Use the strawberries you have on hand. If you happen to have frozen whole strawberries, let them defrost before blending so your puree isn’t half-frozen.
Can I double this recipe since it only makes six fresh strawberry cupcakes?
Technically, you can, but I don’t advise it. Every time I’ve doubled the recipe, I’ve run into issues.
If you want to make 12 cupcakes, I suggest making a batch of these… then making a second batch. :/
Quick tips and tricks for the best Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- These fresh strawberry cupcakes are perfect for a small, family party! We made these beauties for my younger one’s birthday, and we’ve baked them several times for our wedding anniversary, too.
- Substitution alert: If you don’t have coconut oil on hand, you can use another unflavored (or lightly flavored) oil like canola or vegetable oil. You can also use unsalted butter.
- Pro tip: The strawberry puree can be made with fresh or frozen strawberries. Just make sure they’re defrosted so you don’t have frozen puree!
I’m so pleased with this here recipe, and I’m even happier to share it with y’all today on our anniversary. It’s only fitting.
We’ll be celebrating in style with these cupcakes that tastes like our wedding cake. Happy anniversary, Winston!
Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Strawberry Cupcakes
- ¼ cup coconut oil melted and cooled slightly
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons strawberry puree
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing
- 2 oz. cream cheese softened
- 2 tablespoons strawberry puree
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Equipment
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Instructions
Make the Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place six cupcake liners in a cupcake pan. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oil and granulated sugar.
- Add the eggs, vanilla extract and strawberry puree. Whisk until all the wet ingredients are combined.
- In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and whisk.
- Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, and stir until just combined.
- Measure 3 tablespoons of the batter into each cupcake liner.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. (Keep an eye on these because if they overbake, they will become tough.)
- Allow 30 minutes to cool before icing.
Make the Frosting
- While the cupcakes are baking, beat the cream cheese and strawberry puree together in a large bowl with a hand mixer.
- When the strawberry cream cheese is mixed, add the powered sugar. Use the hand mixer to incorporate the powdered sugar into the icing.
- When the icing is smooth, chill in the refrigerator until icing the cupcakes. You can transfer the icing to a piping bag, or you can simply dollop it onto the cupcakes.
Then ice the cupcakes and enjoy!
Notes
- If you don’t have coconut oil on hand, you can use another unflavored (or lightly flavored) oil like canola or vegetable oil. You can also use unsalted butter.
- The strawberry puree can be made with fresh or frozen strawberries. Simply throw a handful of strawberries (that have the stems removed) into a blender or food processor.
Nutrition
Have you ever tried to make cupcakes with fruit puree?
How do you celebrate your anniversary?
About the Author:
Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her…
Oh man, those look SO good! I might need to give them a try!
Happy, happy anniversary to two of my absolute favoritest people. May there be many more beer showers and Mexican food dinners to come. Love y’all!
Also…strawberry cupcakes. Mmmmmm…
Happy, happy anniversary to two of my absolute favoritest people. May there be many more beer showers and Mexican food dinners to come. Love y’all!
Also…strawberry cupcakes. Mmmmmm…
Congrats on 5 years! Strawberry cake is basically my fav (or cherry chip!) so I’m excited to see a recipe with just straight up real strawberries. It’s entirely possible that when you posted a picture of these on instagram, I thought it was your 5 yr anniversary with your dog lol — I’m a little sleep deprived, so I’m going to hope I didn’t leave any puppy-related comments lol
Happy Anniversary! These cupcakes look like the perfect way to celebrate!
My boyfriend and I have just become engaged and I can’t wait to see what traditions we find to celebrate our eventual wedding anniversary. At the moment we celebrate our ‘dating anniversary’ by seeing a movie and eating dinner. Nothing too fancy, but there are many years ahead for that 😉