These Strawberry Cupcakes are perfectly sweet, pink and bursting with strawberry flavor. Fluffy strawberry flavored cupcakes are topped with strawberry buttercream for a delicious single-serving dessert!
We’ve been on a strawberry kick lately. From Strawberry Cheesecake to Strawberry Eclair Cake, there are so many delicious ways to bake with strawberries!
Why These Cupcakes Are Best
Making cupcakes with real strawberry flavor is a challenge for most bakers. If you use fresh berries, you end up with dense cupcakes and a runny frosting.
Then there are the store bought strawberry cupcake mixes that look pretty but lack the luster of real strawberry flavor. Not to mention the food dyes they rely on for the pink color!
Once I figured out how to make the BEST Strawberry Layer Cake, it was easy to turn it into the BEST strawberry cupcakes.
- Freeze dried strawberries give these cupcakes the juicy flavor of fresh berries without messing with amount of liquid in the batter.
- Both the cupcakes and the strawberry frosting have a gorgeous pink color without a single drop of artificial food dye.
- Make them all year long! These strawberry cupcakes are the perfect summertime treat but you can make them year round, not just during strawberry season.
Try our favorite chocolate cupcakes too! Or top our strawberry cupcakes with sour cream frosting. A perfect combo.
Ingredient Notes
A few key ingredients make all the difference when it comes to baking cupcakes with the ideal texture, flavor and appearance.
- Freeze dried strawberries. Different brands of dried strawberries will produce slight variations in the color of your cupcakes. I like to order a few bags at a time online to stock up.
- Cake flour. It gives the cupcake a lighter crumb than all-purpose, due to its lower protein content. Find out how to make your own cake flour so you’re never without!
- Buttermilk. It makes the cupcakes more moist than regular milk. Here’s how to make buttermilk substitute that works just as well.
- Egg whites. Separate the yolks and save them for a batch of homemade lemon curd!
PRO TIP: Pick up a few extra bags of freeze dried strawberries. You’ll love them in our delicious strawberry rice krispie treats and strawberry cookies!
Tips and Tricks
- Making strawberry crumbs Place your dried strawberries in a food processor. Pulse several times until they turn into crumbs.
- Do not overfill cupcake tins. I fill each well about half full. This creates cupcakes with flat tops, perfect for holding crosting!
- Frosting variations. The strawberry buttercream on these cupcakes is a must try. They would taste amazing topped with chocolat frosting or vanilla frosting too.
- Serving suggestions. Add a fresh strawberry slice to the top of your cupcake for a beautiful finishing touch. Use frosting on our strawberry brownies next!
- Make it in a cone! Our ice cream cone cupcakes would be perfect with a batch of strawberry cupcake batter.
- Bake cookies! Stock up on some freeze dried strawberries to make our strawberry chocolate chip cookies next!
Recipe FAQs
No, you cannot use fresh or frozen berries with this recipe. Both contain a lot of water which would ruin the consistency and flavor of the cupcakes.
You can make your own cake flour with all purpose flour and cornstarch. See my guide on how to make cake flour and my tips and tricks.
Cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy within 3 days for best taste.
Yes, these cupcakes can be frozen before adding the frosting. Store them in freezer bags and keep frozen for up to 2 months.
Let the frozen cupcakes thaw then add frosting fresh before serving.
More Easy Dessert Recipes
- Rice Krispie Treat Recipe
- Banana Pudding Recipe
- Apple Crumble Recipe
- Strawberry Shortcake Recipe
- Snickerdoodles
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
- French Silk Pie Recipe
More Cupcake Recipes
See all Cupcake recipes
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section below!
Pin this now to find it later
Pin It
Strawberry Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 1 ounce bag freeze dried strawberries
- 5 large egg whites room temperature
- ¾ cup buttermilk divided
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 2 ¼ cup cake flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the Frosting
- 1 ounce bag freeze dried strawberries
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3-4 Tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cupcakes
- Begin by adding the freeze-dried strawberries to a food processor and pulse until fine crumbs. You may have some small bits and pieces, and that is perfectly fine. Set aside. (You should have about ½ cup of crumbs).
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place liners in a standard-sized cupcake tin and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the egg whites with ¼ cup of the buttermilk. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine cake flour with baking powder and kosher salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with granulated sugar and strawberry crumbs. Scrape down sides of the bowl as needed and beat for about 2-3 minutes, until fully blended.
- Beat in vanilla extract.
- Add in the dry ingredients, slowly, just until combined. Slowly add in the egg mixture, beating until well blended (about 1 minute).
- Finally, beat in the remaining buttermilk.
- Spoon batter evenly into the prepared cupcake tin, filling about ½ full. Bake for 17-19 minutes until lightly browned and springs back when you touch it.
- Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.
For the Frosting
- In a food processor, pulse freeze dried strawberries until fine crumbs. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl with whisk attachment, beat butter for 2-3 minutes until pale in color (scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed).
- Add in powdered sugar, 3 Tablespoons of milk, vanilla, and strawberry crumbs.
- Beat an additional 2-3 minutes until well blended, and fluffy. Add in more milk if needed to achieve the consistency you want. Pipe onto cupcakes and decorate as desired.
Notes
- Freeze Dried Strawberries- Various brands of the freeze dried strawberries result in various shades of color. They come in 1-ounce bags and can be found at most grocery stores as well as Walmart, Target, and amazon in the dried fruit aisles.
- Storing. These cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature. (I wasn’t sure if you want to advise freezing the cupcake before frosting or go with the same instructions for freezing the cake here.)
- Frosting. Our cake is delicious served with strawberry frosting. But would also pair beautifully with our homemade chocolate frosting, vanilla frosting, or sour cream frosting!
Nutrition
Strawberry Cupcakes topped with strawberry buttercream are moist, light and bursting with fresh-from-the-vine summer flavor!
Hi Aimee,
I’d like to make these strawberry cupcakes using the ice cream cone cupcake directions you have listed. Can I swap out the recipe?
Thanks for such delish inspiration, I’ve enjoyed every recipe I’ve tried!
Lori