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Strawberry cupcakes with cream cheese frosting decorated with freeze-dried strawberries on a metal cooling rack.

Strawberry cupcakes

These moist strawberry cupcakes with cream cheese frosting have a very prominent strawberry flavor and a soft, tender texture. They have a very natural pale pink color from the freeze-dried strawberry powder, so you don’t have to use any food coloring if you don’t want to.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Calories: 473kcal
Author: Anna

Equipment

  • Digital kitchen scale
  • Muffin pan
  • Muffin liners
  • Stand mixer or a hand mixer and a large mixing bowl

Ingredients

Cupcakes

  • 200 g all-purpose flour
  • 20 g freeze-dried strawberry powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 100 g unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 150 g white granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 20 g vegetable oil such as canola or sunflower oil
  • 2 large eggs at room temperature
  • 150 ml whole milk at room temperature

Frosting

  • 200 g unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 70 g powdered sugar
  • 400 g cream cheese
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla
  • 15 g freeze-dried strawberry powder

Instructions

For the cupcakes

  • Preheat the oven to 340F (170C) and line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners.
  • In a bowl, combine the flour, freeze-dried strawberry powder, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer and a bowl), add the butter, sugar, and vanilla extract and beat for 3-5 minutes or until pale and fluffy. Then, add the oil and beat until incorporated.
  • Add the eggs one at a time and beat to emulsify.
  • Add the dry ingredients while alternating with the milk and mix on low, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Should look like this – dry/half of the milk/dry/the rest of the milk/dry. Scrape the sides and the bottom of the mixing bowl and mix again until homogenous in consistency.
  • Fill the paper liners ⅔ full and bake for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake in the middle of the pan comes out clean.
  • Remove from the oven and let the cupcakes rest for 5 minutes in the pan. Then, transfer onto a cooling rack to cool down to room temperature before decorating with the cream.

For the frosting

  • Place the butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or you can use a hand mixer and a bowl) and whip until fluffy and white. Then, add the cream cheese in several parts and whip on medium to combine. Scrape the sides of the bowl and whip on medium until stable and fluffy.
  • Place half of the cream into a separate bowl and set aside.
  • Add the freeze-dried strawberry powder to the cream that is still in the mixing bowl and whip until well combined.
  • Place both creams into a piping bag fitted with a piping nozzle of your choice so they come out at once when you pipe. I usually spread uncolored cream with a spatula on one side of the bag, then the other one on the opposite side. Then, I connect both sides and push the cream down, towards the piping nozzle. Don’t worry if it’s a bit messy. When piped out, it will look very pretty! Decorate completely cooled cupcakes.

Notes

Store unfrosted cupcakes in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Frosted cupcakes can also be stored for 4 days but in the fridge.
 
Freeze unfrosted cupcakes for up to 2 months.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Strawberry cupcakes
Serving Size
 
1 cupcake
Amount per Serving
Calories
473
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
35
g
54
%
Saturated Fat
 
20
g
125
%
Trans Fat
 
1
g
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
2
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
9
g
Cholesterol
 
116
mg
39
%
Sodium
 
274
mg
12
%
Potassium
 
137
mg
4
%
Carbohydrates
 
36
g
12
%
Fiber
 
1
g
4
%
Sugar
 
22
g
24
%
Protein
 
5
g
10
%
Vitamin A
 
1133
IU
23
%
Vitamin C
 
36
mg
44
%
Calcium
 
91
mg
9
%
Iron
 
2
mg
11
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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