Raspberry Cupcakes

Pretty in pink! These Raspberry Cupcakes are packed with juicy raspberry flavor in every single bite. They are soft, fluffy, and super easy to make. Great for Valentine’s Day, bridal showers, birthday parties, or every day indulging.

These cupcakes are fresh raspberry and vanilla cupcakes with a creamy freeze dried raspberry buttercream, topped with more fresh raspberries.

Craving more raspberry recipes? Try my Raspberry Almond Cake, Raspberry Blondies, and White Chocolate Raspberry Bundt Cake!

The BEST Raspberry Cupcakes Recipe

You are going to love how beautiful, simple, and delicious these cupcakes are!

• NATURAL RASPBERRY FLAVOR- You will find fresh raspberries AND freeze dried raspberries in these cupcakes. The fresh raspberries are sprinkled throughout the vanilla cupcake batter and on top of the cupcakes as a garnish. The freeze dried raspberries are in the buttercream which gives it the beautiful color and strong flavor.
• EASY INGREDIENTS- This entire recipe is only 14 ingredients and they are mostly basic pantry staples, aside from the raspberries. The cupcakes are 9 ingredients and the buttercream is only 5 ingredients.
• GREAT FOR ALL OCCASIONS- Make these for Valentine’s Day, birthday parties, as a weekend baking activity, or even for a bridal and baby showers. Not to mention, these can be simply decorated or more ornately decorated.

Watch Me Make These Raspberry Cupcakes In Under 1 Minute:

Ingredients in Raspberry Cupcakes

This recipe is 2 main elements: fluffy and moist raspberry and vanilla cupcakes, a creamy raspberry buttercream, and fresh raspberries for decorating. Below are all the ingredients needed with a few notes.

• Flour: I use unbleached all-purpose flour. This recipe has not been tested with other types therefore I cannot recommend.
• Baking Powder: A leavening agent for adding body and texture to the crumb.
• Salt: Because everything needs a little salt.
• Unsalted Butter: Softened and brought to room temperature. If you use salted butter you will want to omit the extra salt above.
• Granulated Sugar: This adds sweetness and stability to the crumb. Cane sugar is a great substitute.
• Egg: Brought to room temperature.
• Vanilla Extract: Use high quality extract because you can really taste it in these cupcakes. I recommend pure and not imitation varieties.
• Buttermilk: Brought to room temperature. Make your own: take 1 cup of whole milk, remove 1 tablespoon and replace it with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar. Allow it to sit and sour prior to using.
• Fresh Raspberries: Use dry and firm raspberries, they tend to have less moisture, it reduces the amount of moisture in the batter.

For the Raspberry Buttercream:

• Unsalted Butter: Always use softened to room temperature for your buttercream or it will not whip together well. You can use salted butter, just leave out the added salt below.
• Salt: see note above.
• Freeze Dried Raspberries (whole or powdered): These will add bold raspberry flavor without adding moisture to the buttercream. It also increases the stability of the buttercream. They can be found at your local grocers or I buy my whole freeze dried raspberries on Amazon.
• Powdered Sugar (Confectioner’s Sugar): Adds sweetness without being grainy like other sugars (do not mistake this for other types of sugar).
• Heavy Whipping Cream: To add creaminess to the buttercream. This is not always a necessary ingredient, it depends on if you have reached the desired consistency of the buttercream. I tend to add very little cream because I want the buttercream to be more stable.

Equipment Needed

Here are a few basic tools needed to make these Raspberry Cupcakes even easier!

• Cupcake Baking Pan: I love this one. Make sure the baking pan you are using is a light colored pan. Dark and even gold/ bronze pans will brown the cupcakes too quickly.
• Baking Cups: Use any color or pattern you prefer (just stay away from foil lined baking cups, they tend to brown the outside of the cupcakes too quickly). You can also use or make your own parchment cups.
• Piping Bags: I love these ones because they are disposable.
• Piping Tips: These are my go to and they come with piping bags! I always use extra large piping tips because they make beautiful swirls every single time.

How to Make Raspberry Cupcakes

This is a quick overview of the steps, below the recipe card will have all the details.

1. Bake the raspberry cupcakes- Whisk together your dry ingredients and set aside. Cream together butter and sugar, add the egg and vanilla extract. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and buttermilk. Fold in the flour coated fresh raspberries. Divide the batter and bake. Cool them completely before filling and frosting (or the buttercream will melt).
2. Whip together the raspberry buttercream- Beat together the butter and salt. Alternate adding the powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream. Continue to beat the buttercream until light and fluffy. Fold in the freeze dried raspberry using a spatula (this makes the frosting even creamier).
3. Decorate your Raspberry Cupcakes– You can frost them using a knife or by placing the raspberry buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a piping tip. Once you are done frosting them, top them with a fresh raspberry.

Storing Information:

These Raspberry Cupcakes should be stored in a cupcake carrier or an airtight container. At room temperature they should be eaten within 3 days, in the refrigerator 7 days, and in the freezer up to 3 months. When you freeze these cupcakes you will want to wrap them in plastic wrap before placing them in an airtight container or reusable bag.

A Few Fun Variations:

• No fresh raspberries? No problem! You can substitute fresh raspberries for frozen or freeze dried raspberries.
  • If you choose frozen raspberries make sure they are completely thawed with the excess moisture strained off. You will use the same amount of frozen raspberries as you would fresh.
  • If you are using freeze dried raspberries substitute 1 cup of fresh raspberries for a 1/4 cup of freeze dried raspberry powder or 3/4 cup of whole freeze dried raspberries.
• Make them Raspberry Filled Cupcakes. One of my favorite ways to elevate cupcakes is filling them with jam. After the cupcakes are baked scoop out or core the center of the cupcake and then fill it with raspberry jam. Frost as normal.
• Substitute the vanilla extract for other flavors. Almond extract goes great with raspberry. You can also use lemon juice or zest to make Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes. I even love the idea of adding white chocolate chips to make them White Chocolate and Raspberry Cupcakes.
• Make a Cream Cheese Raspberry Buttercream. All you have to do is replace a half cup (one stick) of butter with a half cup (half brick) of cream cheese. The buttercream will still have stability and great texture but with the tang of a cream cheese frosting. Or try this Almond Buttercream Frosting.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)

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