Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
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Pink Lemonade Cupcakes are a bright and fun dessert that’s full of sweet and tart flavors that are perfect for summers by the pool or gatherings with friends.
I was watching some baking shows on TV last week while working on my blog and the more I watched the more I was itching to get in the kitchen and start baking. They were making fun flavors of cupcakes and all I could think about was what fun flavors I could make.
With summer quickly approaching I thought a lemonade cupcake would be fun. I had lemons in the refrigerator and new I could come up with a great recipe that was sweet but a little bit tart. I made a basic vanilla cake recipe but added in lemon zest and fresh lemon juice to give it a little zip. Then I added in some pink food coloring to add a pop of color.
Then when it came time to make the frosting I went with buttercream but also added in fresh lemon juice. You have to be careful when doing this because it can bread your frosting so only add a little at a time.
Looking at my frosting I decided to make these cupcakes a little more fun and added some yellow food coloring to make it really contrast with the pink cupcakes. Then I topped them with pink lemonade sprinkles and put a straw in them.
The flavor was perfection. The cupcakes was sweet and the frosting added a bit of tartness to it. These would be perfect served poolside or at a summer BBQ. I think kids would enjoy them as well!
Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 3 c. flour
- 2 t. baking powder
- 2 sticks butter softened
- 1 1/2 c. sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 T. fresh lemon juice
- 1 T. lemon zest
- 1 1/4 c. milk
- pink food coloring
For the frosting:
- 3 sticks butter softened
- 4 c. powdered sugar
- 2 T. lemon juice
- 2 T. milk
- yellow food coloring
- Pink Lemonade sprinkles
- Paper straws cut in half optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 muffin pans with cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl combine the flour and baking powder. Set aside.
- In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar.
- Add in the eggs and mix well.
- Stir in the lemon juice and zest and mix well.
- Add half of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix well.
- Pour in the milk and mix until combined.
- Add the remaining flour and mix until well combined.
- Add a few drops of pink food coloring and mix.
- Divide the cupcake batter between the prepared muffin tins filling each muffin cup 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
- To make the frosting place the butter in a large bowl and mix on medium high speed until creamy.
- Stir in the powdered sugar a half cup at a time until the frosting is well combined.
- Add the lemon juice, milk, and a few drops of yellow food coloring and mix until combined.
- Pipe the frosting onto each of the cupcakes then sprinkles with pink and yellow sprinkles.
- Cut the paper straws in half and stick a half in each one if desired.
Notes
Nutrition