Description
Make beautiful flower bouquet cupcakes using a simple lemon-vanilla base and detailed buttercream piping instructions perfect for Mother’s Day.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup milk
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (for frosting)
- 4 cups powdered sugar (for frosting)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (for frosting)
- 1-2 tablespoons milk or heavy cream (for frosting)
- Food coloring (pink, yellow, green)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla extract and lemon zest.
- In a small bowl, mix the milk and lemon juice together.
- Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk mixture to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly among the 12 liners, filling each about two-thirds full.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Prepare the buttercream: Beat the softened butter until smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing on low speed until incorporated, then increase speed and beat until fluffy. Add vanilla and milk/cream one tablespoon at a time until you reach a smooth, pipeable consistency.
- Divide the frosting and color portions: leave some white, tint some light pink, yellow, and green for leaves and stems.
- Fit a piping bag with a large star tip (like Wilton 1M) for roses, or a petal tip (like Wilton 104) for roses and other flowers. Fit another bag with a leaf tip (like Wilton 352) for leaves.
- To pipe roses: Fill a bag with the desired color frosting and a star or petal tip. Pipe a small mound or cone in the center of the cooled cupcake. Starting at the base, pipe petals around the center, slightly overlapping, moving upwards to form a rose shape.
- Use the green frosting and leaf tip to pipe small leaves around the base of the piped flowers to resemble a bouquet.
- Arrange the finished cupcakes closely together on a serving platter to mimic a flower bouquet presentation.
Notes
- For realistic roses, use a flower nail and practice piping roses separately before transferring them to the cupcake tops.
- Use gel food coloring for the most intense and pure colors without thinning the frosting consistency.
- If you do not have a flower nail, you can pipe the flowers directly onto the cooled cupcake tops.
- Chill the frosted cupcakes for 10 minutes before serving for firmer piping details.
- Prep Time: 45 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking and Piping
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 380
- Sugar: 45
- Sodium: 150
- Fat: 19
- Saturated Fat: 11
- Unsaturated Fat: 8
- Trans Fat: 0.5
- Carbohydrates: 50
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 4
- Cholesterol: 65