Easy Lemon Cupcakes Recipe – The BEST Lemon-Filled Cupcakes

Looking for the best lemon cupcakes recipe? If so, you’ve come to the right place! These lemon-filled cupcakes are a mouth-watering delight!

I LOVE lemon flavors, especially lemon desserts.  It’s a delight for the palate, any time of year.  Just the scent makes my mouth start to water. 

As a matter of fact, my cousin actually had some lemon-filled cupcakes at her wedding several years ago.  They were amazing!  So much so, that I may have eaten three…or that’s when I stopped counting! (Where’s the self-control woman!)  But that’s another story. 

Anyway, ever since, I’ve been trying to create a recipe that would come close.  Sadly, everything I tried fell short – until recently.  After watching some MasterChef Canada, I was inspired to give it another go.  And I came up with a grand slam! 

If you love a dessert that packs a lemony punch, this Easy Lemon Cupcakes Recipe is for you! 

PS –  If you’re worried about skill level, these are actually quite easy!  They even use a cake mix!  But you can definitely make the cake part from scratch if you’d prefer.

The BEST Lemon-Filled Cupcakes

The last time we brought these to a church gathering (along with my macaroni rings pasta salad recipe), a couple of people had FOUR cupcakes each and said they had to restrain themselves from eating more! 

I will admit that I personally had two at that event.  But if I wasn’t trying to lose a little weight, I would have definitely devoured more.  Anyway, enough of telling you how good they are. 

Let’s get down to business and show you how to make them!

The Secret Lemony Surprise 

Not only is this lemon cupcake recipe easy to make, but they also feature a lemon curd surprise inside!  The excitement we’ve seen as people sink their teeth into the center has been so fun.  It’s a surprise element that is well received.

Easy Lemon Cupcakes Recipe

Ingredients

CAKE:

• 1 Box Of (Betty Crocker) Lemon Cake Mix

LEMON CURD:

• 4 Large Egg Yolks
• 2/3 Cup Sugar
• 1/3 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1/2 Teaspoon Lemon Emulsion
• 1/8 Teaspoon Salt
• 6 Tablespoons Butter

LEMON CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

• 1/2 Cup Butter, Softened
• 8 Ounces Cream Cheese
• 4 Cups Powder Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
• 2 Teaspoons Lemon Extract
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Make cake mix according to box directions for cupcakes. Scoop the cupcake batter into paper liners in a cupcake pan and bake according to box directions.
2. As the cupcakes are baking, it’s time to make the lemon curd.
3. In a double boiler, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, lemon emulsion, lemon juice, and salt.
4. Continue whisking over medium heat for about 10 minutes or till the mixture begins to thicken.
5. Remove from heat and mix in the butter.
6. Set aside to cool. It will finish thickening as it cools.
7. As cupcakes come out of the oven, take a small spoon (or frosting tip), and remove about a 1/4″ piece out of the top of each cupcake. You only want the diameter to be about 1/2″ as you want to be able to cover the dip with frosting soon.
8. Let cupcakes and lemon curd finish cooling.
9. Then it’s time to whip up the Cream Cheese Lemon Frosting.
10. In a stand mixer, or with a medium bowl and hand mixer, whip the butter and cream cheese together, on low speed initially and then medium speed until butter and cream cheese are well combined.
11. Then add the lemon juice, lemon extract, and vanilla extract.
12. Slowly incorporate the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time until you reach the right consistency.
13. Fill a piping bag and set aside.
14. Once your cupcakes and lemon curd are cool, it’s time to fill each dip with lemon curd.
15. Then frost the cupcakes with your frosting.
16. Add sprinkles for the perfect finishing touch.
17. Enjoy!

Photos Along The Way-

While I don’t have photos of every single step, I tried to include the ones that I thought you’d find most helpful.

Make The Cupcakes

To begin, whip up a cake mix according to the boxed instructions.  Remove cupcakes onto a wire rack to cool once they are finished baking.

We’ve made these in both regular cupcake sizes as well as mini cupcakes.  They taste the same so it just depends on what size you’d like.

Use cupcake liners for quick clean up and so your cupcakes release from the pan easily.

Create The Dips For The Custard

I don’t have a cupcake corer, so I find it easiest to use the large side of a metal decorating tip.  I gently twist into the top of the cupcake a short way and lift out. 

Because the cupcakes are still warm when you do this, the cake released easily.  Then we take a straw and push the cake out of the tip.  (And then eat the scraps of course – everyone fights to be a cake tester!)

Add The Lemon Curd

Gently pipe the lemon curd into the crevices you’ve created.  Stop once the curd reaches the top of the cupcake. 

Pipe The Frosting

You don’t want to overfill as you want this to be a sweet surprise that elevates the cupcake, not take it over.

Choose whichever frosting tip you’d like and pipe frosting on top of each cupcake, making sure to cover the lemon curd and the center of the cupcake completely.  

Add The Sprinkles

I love to top it with some yellow sugar sprinkles as the color just makes me think lemon.  

And then on half of the cupcakes, I add some yellow stars to the tops of the cupcakes for a little variety. You could also top your frosted cupcakes with small lemon slices for a more chic look.

And that’s it!  Serve this Easy Lemon Cupcakes Recipe right up.   When your guests bite into these amazing cupcakes, you’ll love all the compliments you will get as the lemon curd surprise really wows in both texture and flavor.

I do keep these perfect lemon cupcakes stored in the refrigerator but will leave them out for an entire day at a time on the day I’m serving.  (I will add, they have never lasted longer than about 24 hours in our experience!)

Tell me in the comments if you give them a try and what you think!

And if you’re looking for more lemon flavors, give this Strawberry Lemonade Frosting Recipe a try. And, don’t forget to check out all of my other great dessert recipes too!

Printable Recipe Card

Make sure you print this recipe to add to your recipe binder for later.

Easy Lemon Cupcakes Recipe – The BEST Lemon Filled Cupcakes

These scrumptious cupcakes feature a lemony surprise center that delights the taste buds of lemon lovers everywhere!

Print Pin Rate

Course: Desserts

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cupcakes, lemon cupcakes, lemon filled cupcakes

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 22 minutes minutes

Additional Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 57 minutes minutes

Servings: 24

Calories: 347kcal

Author: Mirande Welle

Equipment

• Wilton 2104-1369 Decorating and Piping 8-Piece Tip Starter Set
• Stainless Steel Double Boiler Pot for Melting Chocolate, Candy and Candle Making (18/8 Steel, 2 Cup Capacity, 480ML)

Ingredients

• CAKE:
• 1 Box Of Betty Crocker Lemon Cake Mix
• LEMON CURD:
• 4 Large Egg Yolks
• 2/3 Cup Sugar
• 1/3 Cup Lemon Juice
• 1/2 Teaspoon Lemon Emulsion
• 1/8 Teaspoon Salt
• 6 Tablespoons Butter
• CREAM CHEESE LEMON FROSTING:
• 1/2 Cup Butter Softened
• 8 Ounces Cream Cheese
• 4 Cups Powder Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
• 2 Teaspoons Lemon Extract
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions

• Make the cake mix according to the box's directions for cupcakes.
• Remove them from the cupcake tin and place on a cooling rack when done baking.
• As the cupcakes are baking, it's time to make the lemon curd.
• In a double boiler, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, lemon emulsion, lemon juice, and salt. * If you don't have a double boiler you can find videos on how to setup a makeshift double boiler on Youtube. You can also find really affordable ones to purchase on Amazon. *
• Continue whisking over medium heat for about 10 minutes or till the mixture begins to thicken.
• Remove from heat and mix in the butter.
• Set aside to cool. It will finish thickening as it cools.
• As cupcakes come out of the oven, take a small spoon (or frosting tip), and remove about a 1/4" piece out of the top of each cupcake. You only want the diameter to be about 1/2" as you want to be able to cover the dip with frosting soon. See photos within the post for a visual example.
• Let cupcakes and homemade lemon curd finish cooling.
• Now it's time to whip up the Cream Cheese Lemon Frosting.
• In a stand mixer, whip the butter and cream cheese together.
• Then add the lemon juice, lemon extract, and vanilla extract.
• Slowly incorporate the powder sugar 1 cup at a time until you reach the right consistency.
• Fill a frosting bag and set aside.
• Once your cupcakes and lemon curd are completely cool, it's time to fill each dip with lemon curd.
• Then frost the cupcakes with your frosting.
• Add sprinkles for the perfect finishing touch.
• Enjoy!

Notes

I do store these cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator because of the cream cheese frosting but will leave out for an entire day when serving too.

For an extra pop of fresh lemon flavor, add 1 tsp of lemon zest to your cupcakes before baking. I also recommend using fresh lemons if at all possible.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 347kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 67mg | Sodium: 270mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 49g