Fluffy lemon cupcakes topped with swirls of elderflower scented buttercream and fresh flowers are the perfect spring dessert!
When it comes to floral desserts, you can never have too many! This May Day my menu features two floral sweet treats: delicate floral honey possets and these crowd-pleasing cupcakes. Lemon and elderflower are a popular flavour combination for a reason. Fresh lemon adds a zing of these cupcakes and a splash of elderflower liqueur adds a floral aroma to the Swiss meringue buttercream. Fresh flowers are the perfect garnish for these lemon elderflower cupcakes.
Ingredients List
Lemons: Fresh lemon zest and juice add a burst of citrus flavour to these soft and fluffy cupcakes.
Elderflower liqueur: A splash of elderflower liqueur, such as St Germaine, adds a floral aroma to the Swiss meringue buttercream. Substitute with elderflower cordial if you prefer.
Buttermilk: Using buttermilk in the cake batter imparts a slight tangy flavour, helps with leavening, and keeps the texture of the cake soft and moist. It is the acid in buttermilk that does all these things so, if you don’t have buttermilk, you can use a substitute. Add 1 tsp lemon juice to an equal amount of milk and let sit for a couple of minutes. Then proceed with the recipe.
How to Make Lemon Elderflower Cupcakes
Make the cupcake batter
Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with paper liners and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the softened butter and sugar. Beat on low for a minute just to combine the butter and sugar. Scrape down the sides and turn the speed up to medium high. Beat for 2 to 3 minutes or until the butter is lightened in colour and fluffy.
Turn the mixer down to low and add the vanilla extract along with one egg. Mix until the egg is fully incorporated, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the remaining eggs, one at a time, beating until fully combined. Once all the eggs have been added, turn up the speed to medium and beat for another minute until the mixture is thick, fluffy, and fully emulsified. Turn off the mixer.
Meanwhile, in a separate bowl combine the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk together until there are no lumps, then set aside. Add the vegetable oil, lemon zest and juice to the buttermilk and whisk to combine.
Turn the mixer back on low. Add one third of the flour mixture and mix just until the flour is mostly incorporated. Pour in half the buttermilk mixture and continue beating until it is mostly incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. Repeat by adding another third of the flour followed by the remainder of the buttermilk. Add the last of the flour and mix on low just until the batter is fully combined.
Bake the cupcakes
Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl and make sure there are no streaks of unmixed butter in the batter. Portion the batter into the muffin cups filling them two-thirds full.
Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean and the top springs back when touched. Let the cupcakes cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Make the elderflower Swiss meringue buttercream
Fill a saucepan with 1 inch of water and place over medium high heat. Bring the water to a simmer. Combine the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk together. Place the bowl over the simmering water and whisk the egg whites until they reach 165°F or are hot to the touch. Do not stop whisking or the egg whites will cook onto the bottom of the bowl.
When the meringue has cooled down, begin to add the butter. Gradually add the butter a tablespoon at a time while beating on medium speed. The meringue will deflate as the butter is added. Continue beating until the buttercream firms up and becomes fluffy again. It will initially look like the mixture is runny but don’t worry, it will come together in the end. If it looks like the buttercream is curdled or split, keep beating and it will come together.
Decorate the cupcakes
To decorate the cupcakes, pipe the elderflower buttercream decoratively on top. The piping tip I used here is a Wilton 2D, but any star tip will work well. Garnish with fresh flowers if desired. Enjoy!
May Day Recipes
Round out your May Day menu with these spring inspired recipes:
- Sweet Woodruff Cocktail
- The May Queen Cocktail
- Fried Goat Cheese Balls with Honey and Fennel Pollen
- Dandelion Pesto Twists with Baked Camembert
- Tarragon Vermouth Roast Chicken and Smashed Potato Salad
- Floral Honey Possets
Lemon Elderflower Cupcakes
Ingredients
Lemon Buttermilk Cupcakes
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
- 2 ¾ cups flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- zest and juice of 2 lemons
Elderflower Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- 4 egg whites
- 1 ⅓ cups sugar
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 tbsp elderflower liqueur
Instructions
Lemon Buttermilk Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with paper liners and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the softened butter and sugar. Beat on low for a minute just to combine the butter and sugar. Scrape down the sides and turn the speed up to medium high. Beat for 2 to 3 minutes or until the butter is lightened in color and fluffy.
- Turn the mixer down to low and add the vanilla extract along with one egg. Mix until the egg is fully incorporated, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the remaining eggs, one at a time, beating until fully combined. Once all the eggs have been added, turn up the speed to medium and beat for another minute until the mixture is thick, fluffy, and fully emulsified. Turn off the mixer.
- Meanwhile, in a separate bowl combine the flour, kosher salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk together until there are no lumps, then set aside. Add the vegetable oil, lemon zest and juice to the buttermilk and whisk to combine.
- Turn the mixer back on low. Add one third of the flour mixture and mix just until the flour is mostly incorporated. Pour in half the buttermilk mixture and continue beating until it has mostly incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides. Repeat by adding another third of the flour followed by the remainder of the buttermilk. Add the last of the flour and mix on low just until the batter is fully combined.
- Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl and make sure there are no streaks of unmixed butter in the batter. Portion the batter into the muffin cups filling them two-thirds full.
- Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean and the tops spring back when touched. Let the cupcakes cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Elderflower Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Fill a saucepan with 1 inch of water and place over medium high heat. Bring the water to a simmer. Combine the egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk together. Place the bowl over the simmering water and whisk the egg whites until they reach 165°F or are hot to the touch. Do not stop whisking or the egg whites will cook onto the bottom of the bowl.
- When the egg white mixture is hot, remove from the heat and attach to the stand mixer. Using a whip attachment, beat the egg white mixture until it has stiff peaks and has cooled to room temperature. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes. Check that the sugar has fully dissolved into the meringue by rubbing a bit between two fingers. It should be smooth without any granular bits.
- When the meringue has cooled down, begin to add the butter. Gradually add the butter a tablespoon at a time while beating on medium speed. The meringue will deflate as the butter is added. Continue beating until the buttercream firms up and becomes fluffy again. It will initially look like the mixture is runny but don’t worry, it will come together in the end. If it looks curdled or split, keep beating and it will come together.
- When the buttercream is finished, add the elderflower liqueur, and beat until combined. Pipe the elderflower buttercream on top of the cooled cupcakes. Decorate with fresh flowers if desired. Enjoy!