When my friend Jen told me she was making cupcakes for her sister Christine’s baby shower I immediately invited myself to join in on the project. Thanks for letting me, Jen! And of course I turned it into a bigger project than it needed to be (A 3-tiered cupcake tower display was an absolute MUST!), but that’s just the way I roll.
Jen and I decided on a lemon cupcake. Lemon is a light and fresh flavor perfectly fitting for June, and it went along with Christine’s color scheme of blue and yellow. Actually, I’m surprised we’ve gone all these months without posting a lemon cupcake. Shame on us!
We decided to do a yellow and white frosting; I admit I was a tad heavy handed with the yellow dye, they were a bit brighter than I planned. But the taste was on point! Note to self: a little dye goes a loooong way! Live and learn I guess. But overall I think the cupcakes were a success; the cake itself was not overly sweet, most of the sweetness came from the frosting. The addition of lemon zest is key, it really adds the needed zing.
We made the adorable cupcake tower using simple, detailed instructions from Annie’s Eats. We found all our supplies from Hobby Lobby and it was an easy project…minus the half hour drive around town in search of glue sticks. 😉 Check out Annie’s blog and make a tower for your next party! Because Christine went with cupcakes instead of a cake we wanted to make a topper so that we could still write a message. We made a giraffe using cardstock and stuck it in a cupcake with a toothpick. I think it was perfect!
CONGRATULATIONS to the parents-to-be!
This baby will be such a cutie and will have the most amazing parents!!
Here's what you'll need
Start by whisking together your dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt
Cream together butter and sugar
You'll need 3 eggs…1 of our eggs was a twin. We were so excited about it!
Add the eggs 1 at a time
Here's Kara zesting some lemons, we'll need the zest in a few minutes
And in goes the zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
Now alternately add the dry…
…and wet (sour cream ya'll!). Make sure everything is combined.
And that's it..fill cupcake liners 3/4 full
While cupcakes are in the oven go ahead and start the frosting. You'll need butter & confectioners' sugar
Plus a tablespoon of milk
And the star of the show…fresh lemon juice!
Well I guess the zest is a star too! I didn't mean to play favorites.
Add confectioners' sugar gradually until you reach the consistency you want
And of course some vanilla.
Ok now add in the lemon juice, you'll need about a quarter cup
Confectioners' sugar
For fun we decided to dye half yellow and keep the other half white
Now it's time to frost
A dollop of white on top
And some cute pearly blue balls for the perfect touch
Congrats Christine and Jim!
Can't wait for baby Charlie to arrive!
Ingredients
Yield: 3 dozen cupcakes
For the Cupcakes:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
16 ounces (about 2 cups) sour cream
For the Frosting:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
6 cups confectioners’ sugar
¼ cup lemon juice
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons milk
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl between additions. Stir in the zest and vanilla until combined. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Stir in half of the sour cream until just mixed in. Repeat this process with the remaining flour and sour cream until all of the ingredients are combined. Scrape the bowl then stir the batter for another 20 to 30 seconds to make sure everything is mixed in.
Fill the prepared liners 3/4 full with batter. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tops are just turning golden brown. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before frosting.
To make the frosting, cream the butter together with about one-third of the sugar and the milk. Once combined, stir in the zest. Add another third of the sugar to the mixture, along with the vanilla and half of the lemon juice. Stir well to combine. Finally, add the remaining sugar and lemon juice. Stir the mixture well until light and fluffy. Add color, if desired, and pipe on cooled cupcakes.
Source: Bakingdom
