This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Flavorful strawberry cupcakes are made with my quick strawberry jam to maximize their strawberry power. Frosted with an easy strawberry buttercream frosting for the best strawberry cupcake recipe.
Strawberries are one of those fruits that you want year-round! They are calling your name all summer, and you can’t live without them during the holidays. Using fresh or frozen strawberries means you can have these moist and tender cupcakes for spring parties, summer picnics, holiday get-togethers, and let’s not forget, Valentine’s Day!
Now, if you are looking for more bright and delicious strawberry desserts you must start with strawberry lemon donuts. Then there is classic strawberry shortcake, strawberry scones, and my red velvet cupcakes, which are topped with strawberry cream cheese frosting!
Table of Contents
Why You Will Love These Strawberry Cupcakes
- Bursting with strawberry flavor! Using the strawberry jam in the cake and the buttercream means these cupcakes are full of fresh strawberry flavor! Cooking the strawberries with sugar and lemon amplifies their flavor while thickening the jam.
- Moist, light, and tender cake. This cake has the perfect ratio of egg whites to butter, sugar, and dry ingredients. Then, adding the strawberry jam to the cake will help create a moist and fluffy cake base.
- No food dye! This recipe is based on my white cake recipe; using only egg whites gives it a white color. Adding the strawberry jam to this cake base gives it a light pink color. Then the buttercream is also a beautiful pink color without any food coloring! Of course, if you would like to use coloring for a richer pink, feel free.
Professional Tips for Making Strawberry Cupcakes
- For the best-textured cake, use cake flour and room-temperature ingredients. Cake flour and room-temperature butter and milk will give you the best-textured cake. When folding egg whites into a cake, I always find it best to use cake flour, just like in my angel food cake. Using room-temperature butter and milk will make folding in the egg whites much easier, leading to a lighter and more tender cake.
- Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting them. With any cupcake, it can be hard to wait, I know. But let the cake cool completely before piping or spooning on the buttercream. Otherwise, it will just melt right off.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Overmixing can happen in two different stages of this cake. When adding the flour to the butter mixture or when folding in the egg whites. Overmixing in the flour can cause a tough cake and create tunnels in the cake. Then, when folding in the egg whites, if you mix too much it can cause the cake to be denser.
Ingredients & Substitutions
For the jam:
- Strawberries: You can use fresh or frozen strawberries for the jam. Fresh out-of-season strawberries can be quite watery, so shop frozen if the fresh strawberries aren’t up to par. The better the strawberry puree, the better the jam.
- Granulated Sugar
- Lemon: Using the fresh lemon juice and lemon zest will help accentuate the strawberries’ natural flavors and add a bit of acidity to balance the sweetness.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch thickens the jam. You may use pectin or tapioca flour if that’s what you have at home.
For the Cake:
- Cake Flour: I use cake flour instead of all-purpose flour only when absolutely necessary. This strawberry cake is one such instance. The lower gluten content and finer texture are essential for getting that light, airy finished cake!
- Baking Powder: Baking powder leavens twice, once in the presence of an acid like the lemon in the jam and again in the oven. It makes a more even crumb and lighter texture in the cake.
- Kosher Salt
- Unsalted Butter
- Granulated Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Egg Whites: The egg whites will be whipped into a meringue. Freshly separated egg whites create more stable meringues compared to pre-separated ones. Save the egg yolks for caramel pastry cream or vanilla bean ice cream!
- Whole Milk: A little milk cuts the sweetness and adds needed moisture to the cake. Whole milk adds more fat to the cake, but you may use any alternative milk you have in your fridge.
- Strawberry Jam: Use the homemade strawberry quick jam. You may use store-bought. Just know the cake and buttercream will be sweeter and possibly less flavorful.
For the Buttercream:
- Butter: Use good quality unsalted butter for the most stable buttercream. If you use salted butter, your buttercream will be salty! In frostings and buttercreams the butter is there for stability. It will firm up when cold.
- Confectioner’s Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Kosher Salt
- Strawberry Jam
- Lemon Juice: Fresh lemon juice is added to counteract the sweetness of the buttercream and help loosen the buttercream so it is pipeable.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Add a filling to your cupcakes. Add lemon curd, caramel sauce, or chocolate fudge glaze.
- Change the size. Make this into a 9-inch two or three-layered cake, or make mini strawberry cupcakes.
- Change the buttercream. Top with caramel Swiss meringue buttercream, Lemon buttercream frosting, or chocolate buttercream frosting.
- Add or fold in additional flavor. Fold in chopped frozen strawberries, dark chocolate, white chocolate, chopped walnuts, or pecans. You can also zest lemon, limes, or oranges into the sugar before mixing. That would be a lovely rendition for strawberry shortcake cupcakes, like my easy lemon strawberry shortcake for two.
How to Make Strawberry Cupcakes
Use these instructions to make the perfect strawberry cupcakes every time! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.
Quick Strawberry Jam:
Step 1: Combine chopped strawberries, sugar, zest, and lemon juice in a pot.
Step 2: Bring to a boil and cook on medium heat until the strawberries begin to break down and release their juices.
Step 3: Immersion blend or mash with a potato masher. You can also use a traditional blender or food processor (carefully!).
Step 4: Once the strawberry mixture thickens, combine cornstarch and 2-3 teaspoons of water in a small bowl. Gradually whisk the cornstarch slurry into the jam for a smooth consistency. The mixture should thicken immediately upon addition. Reduce heat to medium-low if in danger of burning and boil for 60 seconds to cook the cornstarch.
Step 5: Pour into a bowl or onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet to cool quickly.
Cool completely before preparing the cake. This step can be made up to a week in advance!
Prepare the cake:
Step 6: Preheat the oven to 325°F convection (fan) or 350°F conventional. And place a liner in 21 cupcake tins (this will leave 3 empty in the pan). Cupcake liners are optional, but do make things easier.
Step 7: In a large bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Sifting is essential; it will remove the clumps from the cake flour, which won’t come out in the mixing process and cause pockets of flour. It also will help evenly distribute the baking powder.
Step 8: In a medium bowl, whisk or stir together milk, vanilla extract, and cooled strawberry jam from above. This will reduce the amount of folding needed to combine the ingredients later and will keep the cake lighter and more tender.
Step 9: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, begin whisking the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form.
Be careful not to overwhip, or the egg whites will be difficult to incorporate into the batter, thus defeating the purpose!
Step 10: Remove the meringue from the mixer bowl and transfer it to a clean bowl (or switch to a second mixer bowl if you have one! Lucky!).
Step 11: Don’t stress about any meringue that remains behind. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl. Switch to the paddle attachment and cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
This will take at least 5 minutes, depending on your mixer. It will also depend on how soft your butter was before mixing. The softer the butter, the faster the creaming process.
Step 12: With the mixer on low, alternately add the flour mixture and the milk mixture. I never allow the flour mixture to mix in completely before adding the next round. This helps prevent overmixing.
Step 13: Remove the mixer bowl from the machine and scrape down the paddle attachment. Fold in any remaining dry ingredients.
Step 14: Take about ¼ of the meringue and aggressively fold it into the batter. This is called “sacrificing” because you are sacrificing the aeration in the meringue to loosen the batter. Fold in the remaining meringue in 2-3 additions, being careful not to overfold.
When folding, be sure your silicone spatula touches the bottom of the mixing bowl. You don’t want unmixed batter at the bottom of the bowl.
Step 15: Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake tins. Bake in the preheated oven for 14-18 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out from the center with only clinging crumbs.
Step 16: Allow cupcakes to cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.
Prepare the Strawberry frosting:
Step 17: Beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until lightened and soft.
Step 18: Slowly add the powdered sugar, followed by the vanilla and salt.
Step 19: Once the buttercream has come together, add the strawberry jam 2 tablespoons at a time until the desired flavor and consistency is reached.
I added 1/3 cup of the jam so that I would be able to further loosen with lemon juice. I really wanted that tart contrast! Add additional lemon juice as needed to make it smooth, light, and pipeable.
Frost the cupcakes:
Step 20: Transfer the strawberry buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip (I used Ateco 808).
Step 21: Pipe one thick swirl of buttercream on each cupcake. Using a small spoon, create a little divot in the center of each cupcake. Add some remaining strawberry jam and diced strawberries to each cupcake.
Chef Lindsey’s Recipe Tip
If you end up adding too much jam to your frosting, making it too runny, you can add more powdered sugar to thicken the buttercream again.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store frosted cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for three days or in the fridge for a week. Unfrosted or frosted cupcakes can be stored in the freezer for up to two months. Allow to defrost overnight before serving.
You can use store-bought strawberry jam if you prefer, but I would not recommend it. The sweetness in store-bought jam can be overwhelming when used in buttercream or cake. I also firmly believe making a quick jam will give you a better strawberry flavor.
Finding perfectly ripe strawberries will help. Using frozen strawberries is an option as well. If your strawberries aren’t as flavorful as you would like, you can macerate them in the sugar and lemon juice overnight before making the quick jam.
You can decorate the cupcakes with various toppings, such as chocolate shavings, fresh strawberries, or some fun-shaped sprinkles. The buttercream can also be piped into different shapes, such as flowers or hearts.
If you tried this recipe and loved it please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below. I love hearing from you; your comments make my day!
Strawberry Cupcakes
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Strawberry Jam:
- 5 cups strawberries halved (2 lbs whole, not hulled)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from 1 lemon
- 1 lemon zested
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch up to 4 teaspoons
For the Cake:
- 2 ⅓ cup cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter soft and pliable, 12 tablespoons
- 1 ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5 large egg whites
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1 cup strawberry jam
For the strawberry buttercream:
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- ⅓ cup quick strawberry jam from above
- 1-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice for loosening as needed
Instructions
Quick Strawberry Jam:
- Combine chopped strawberries, sugar, zest, and lemon juice in a pot.
- Bring to a boil and cook on medium heat until the strawberries begin to break down and release their juices.
- Immersion blend or mash with a potato masher. You can also use a traditional blender or food processor (carefully!).
- Once the strawberry mixture thickens, combine cornstarch and 2-3 teaspoons of water in a small bowl. Gradually whisk the cornstarch slurry into the jam for a smooth consistency. The mixture should thicken immediately upon addition. Reduce heat to medium-low if in danger of burning and boil for 60 seconds to cook the cornstarch.
- Pour into a bowl or onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet to cool quickly. Cool completely before preparing the cake. This step can be made up to a week in advance!
Prepare the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F convection (fan) or 350°F conventional. And place a liner in 21 cupcake tins (this will leave 3 empty in the pan). Cupcake liners are optional, but do make things easier.
- In a large bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk or stir together milk, vanilla extract, and cooled strawberry jam from above. This will reduce the amount of folding needed to combine the ingredients later and will keep the cake lighter and more tender.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, begin whisking the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form.
- Remove the meringue from the mixer bowl and transfer it to a clean bowl (or switch to a second mixer bowl if you have one! Lucky!).
- Don’t stress about any meringue that remains behind. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl. Switch to the paddle attachment and cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- With the mixer on low, alternately add the flour mixture and the milk mixture. I never allow the flour mixture to mix in completely before adding the next round. This helps prevent overmixing.
- Remove the mixer bowl from the machine and scrape down the paddle attachment. Fold in any remaining dry ingredients.
- Take about ¼ of the meringue and aggressively fold it into the batter. This is called “sacrificing” because you are sacrificing the aeration in the meringue to loosen the batter. Fold in the remaining meringue in 2-3 additions, being careful not to overfold.
- Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake tins. Bake in the preheated oven for 14-18 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out from the center with only clinging crumbs.
- Allow cupcakes to cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.
Prepare the Strawberry frosting:
- Beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until lightened and soft.
- Slowly add the powdered sugar, followed by the vanilla and salt.
- Once the buttercream has come together, add the strawberry jam 2 tablespoons at a time until the desired flavor and consistency is reached.
Frost the cupcakes:
- Transfer the strawberry buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a large round tip.
- Pipe one thick swirl of buttercream on each cupcake. Using a small spoon, create a little divot in the center of each cupcake. Add some remaining strawberry jam and diced strawberries to each cupcake.
Notes
Nutrition
Before You Go
I hope you enjoyed this professional chef-tested recipe. Check out our other delicious and fun cupcake recipes—we have so many because who doesn’t love a cupcake? These include, but are not limited to, caramel cupcakes, carrot cake cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes, and lemon coconut cupcakes!
