Lemon Cupcakes and Cookies with Raspberry Buttercream

Spring has sprung, and summer is on its way. So why not celebrate with some fresh and fruity desserts? In today’s recipe, I am going to be making lemon cupcakes with raspberry buttercream. I’m also going to show you how to make lemon cookies that you can also top with the buttercream.

I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to visit Williams-Sonoma again and film another LIVE shoot. This recipe will include a bunch of cool products that you can purchase on their website. Most of the products featured in this recipe and in the video are also available at local Williams-Sonoma stores. And in case you missed the live event, where I walk you through the steps for this recipe, check it out below!

To create the cupcakes we used Williams-Sonoma Lemon Georgetown Cupcake Mix and for the cookies, we used Williams-Sonoma Lemon Sugar Cookie Mix. The raspberry buttercream frosting was the perfect sweet touch to the dessert and paired very well with the acidity from the lemon. Some other products that we featured in the recipe include:

• Silpat Silicone Perfect Cookie Mat. I loved using this for baking the cookies because no baking spray is needed. It was such a quick and easy clean up too.
• [amazon link=”B07PBQ22PP” title=”KitchenAid Stand Mixer”] and [amazon link=”B00G3LRY3G” title=”Hand Mixer”]. By now you already know I cannot live without these two staples in my kitchen!
• Round Cookie Cutter Set. This set is my new holy grail cookie cutter set. Yes, they’re only circles, but circles in many sizes! It allows you to be very creative with your cookie creations. It also allows you to change up the portion sizes when you’re baking!
• Disposable Pastry Bags. These make decorating a breeze.

What you need

Now that I’ve covered some of the products we will be using, let’s jump right into the recipe.

For the Lemon Cupcakes

• Williams-Sonoma Lemon Georgetown Cupcake Mix
• 1 egg
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) butter, softened
• 1/2 cup milk

For the Lemon Cookies

• Williams-Sonoma Lemon Sugar Cookie Mix
• 1 egg
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

For the Raspberry Buttercream

• 1/2 cup fresh raspberries
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1 package (16 oz.) powdered sugar

Lemon Cupcakes and Cookies

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for the cupcakes. Line your cupcake pan with [amazon link=”B005NTZUOO” title=”mini cupcake liners”]. We made mini cupcakes and used a pan mini cupcake pan just like [amazon link=”B00R7JQDIK” title=”this one”].
2. For the cupcakes, combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl with a hand or stand mixer. The recipe requires you to use the whole box, so no need to measure out your cupcake mix.
3. Add your cupcake batter to the lined cupcake baking sheet. Since these are mini cupcakes you don’t have to bake them in the oven for as long as the instructions say. I baked them in the oven for about 12 minutes or so, until the tops were golden.
4. When the cupcakes were baking, I started working on the lemon cookies. For the cookies, like the cupcakes, combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. You will be using the entire box of the cookie mix. I found it helpful to use a [amazon link=”B01BWNINAW” title=”stand mixer”] to mix the cookie dough.
5. Next, roll out your dough using a rolling pin. You can flour down the area to make sure the dough doesn’t stick. You can also try using this [amazon link=”B08H5M2SHZ” title=”nonstick rolling pin set”]. Once the dough was rolled out to about 1/4 inch thick, I started using my desired cookie cutters to cut out the cookies. I made mini cookies so people at the store could sample them.
6. Once the cookies were all cut out, I laid down the Silpat Silicone Perfect Cookie Mat on top of the baking sheet. Since I made mini cookies, I only had to bake them in the oven for about 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Watch to make sure you don’t over-bake them. You should know when they’re ready when the tops are lightly golden.

[amazon bestseller=”cake decorating kit” items=”2″]

Buttercream

• Once the cupcakes and cookies were done in the oven, I started working on the raspberry buttercream. This gave me some time to allow the cookies and cupcakes to cool down.
• For the raspberry buttercream, cream the butter, vanilla, and salt in a medium bowl. Then start adding the washed raspberries. (I suggest straining the juice from the raspberries, so you can avoid the small seeds in the buttercream. You can use a [amazon link=”B00H2D47YS” title=”food sieve”] or strainer for this.) For time’s sake, however, I just added the whole raspberries to the mix. Then I gradually added in the powdered sugar. Make sure to not over mix the buttercream, it can become very runny since we’re adding fresh fruit to it. The fresh fruit naturally contains water, making it likely for a runny or watery buttercream. Just be sure not to overbeat it and it should be okay!
• Once all of the pieces were finished, I finally put it all together. I scooped the icing into the piping bag. I piped the icing onto the cooled cupcakes. If you desire, you can add the buttercream to the cookies as well like I did. Repeat until the desired buttercream has been added.

And here’s the end result!

I hope this recipe gave you some inspiration for your spring and summer baking! If you make any of these creations, share them to CakeJournal’s Facebook Page. Thanks for reading!

Happy Baking!