Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes

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These Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes are so moist and tender and loaded with real lemon flavor and blueberries! And that lemon cream cheese frosting on top? Delicious! The perfect summer cupcake!

Why You’ll Love These Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes

Lemon and blueberry is a combination I just can’t resist. I’ve baked it into many desserts such as cake, cheesecake, a poke cake and even a mousse cake. Today, it’s time for cupcakes to get the spotlight. Cupcakes are so perfectly sharable and easier to decorate than a full cake. And this recipe makes the best lemon blueberry cupcakes around. They are:

• Tender and moist. These little desserts are a dream to bite into. The combo of vegetable oil, butter, and sour cream in the batter makes them wonderfully rich and moist. Plus, the sour cream makes them nice and tender. The perfect cupcake!
• Real lemon flavor. Aside from the optional splash of lemon extract in the frosting, all of the lemon flavor in these cupcakes comes from real, fresh lemon juice and zest. Pucker up and enjoy!
• So many blueberries. I made sure there were plenty of blueberries in these cupcakes. You should encounter at least one (likely more) in every bite.
• The best cream cheese frosting. Striking the perfect balance between decadently rich and light and fluffy, this tangy lemony cream cheese frosting is something else. I could eat it by the spoonfull!

What You’ll Need

Here’s what you’ll need to make these moist, tangy blueberry lemon cupcakes. Be sure to scroll to the recipe card below for precise measurements.

• Butter and vegetable oil – I used vegetable oil in addition to butter because it contributes additional moisture that you wouldn’t achieve through butter alone. The combination is great because you get the lovely flavor of butter and extra moisture from the oil.
• Sour cream – The sour cream adds moisture to these cupcakes, but even more importantly, it’s thicker than milk, giving you a thicker batter so that the blueberries don’t sink to the bottom of your cupcakes.
• Baking powder and baking soda – I find that the combination of baking powder and baking soda provides the perfect amount of rise and the best texture for these cupcakes.
• Salt – Without salt, your cupcakes would be bland. It brings out their flavor.
• Eggs – Be sure to use large eggs, not medium or extra large.
• Fresh lemon juice and lemon zest – I highly recommend using freshly squeezed lemon juice and freshly grated zest for a better, brighter flavor.
• Milk – Whole milk or 2% would would best. The higher fat content gives you more tender cupcakes and helps with the thicker cake batter needed for your blueberries to stay afloat during baking.
• Blueberries – I recommend using medium sized blueberries. The really small ones can sometimes be a little tart and the really big ones will make it hard to fit many into each cupcake.
• Cream cheese – Be sure to use full fat brick-style cream cheese. Tub-style cream cheese is much thinner, as is reduced fat cream cheese. Cream cheese frosting is already thinner than a typical buttercream, so you don’t want to be any harder for it to stay in place by using the wrong cream cheese.
• Powdered sugar – The powdered sugar not only sweetens the frosting but also adds volume and stabilizes/thickens it. I don’t recommend reducing it. If you’d like to use less, just reduce the overall amount of frosting you make so that all ingredients are reduced in equal amounts.
• Lemon extract – I added a little lemon extract to emphasize the lemon flavor but you don’t have to. The lemon zest does a pretty good job on its own.

How To Make Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes

Here’s a quick overview of how to make these yummy cupcakes. Don’t forget to scroll to the recipe card below for more detailed instructions.

• Prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
• Combine the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Combine the wet ingredients. Beat together the butter, oil, and sugar until light in color and fluffy. Mix in the vanilla and sour cream followed by the eggs, one at a time.

• Put it all together. Mix half of the dry ingredients into the batter and then combine the lemon juice, lemon zest, and milk and stir that into the batter. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients.
• Add the blueberries. Toss the blueberries with 1/2 tablespoon of flour and fold them into the batter.

• Bake. Fill the cupcake liners a little more than half full with batter and bake for 17-20 minutes.
• Cool. Allow the cupcakes to cool on a wire rack.

• Make the frosting. Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Mix in half of the powdered sugar followed by the vanilla, lemon extract, and lemon zest. Mix in the remaining powdered sugar.
• Decorate the cupcakes. Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes and top each with a quarter of a lemon slice and a blueberry, if desired.

Tips for Success

• Don’t over measure your flour. Over measuring can lead to dry cupcakes. I always recommend a food scale. If you don’t have one, use the spoon and level method.
• Room temperature ingredients. The butter for the batter and the frosting should be at room temperature. So should the cream cheese in the frosting. If too cold, they won’t mix properly.
• Always fresh. I highly recommend using freshly squeezed lemon juice in these cupcakes. Bottled versions don’t light a candle to the fresh stuff. The same goes for the lemon zest. Fresh is best.
• Don’t skimp on creaming time. When beating together the butter, oil, and sugar, do so until the mixture has significantly lightened in color and become fluffy. This process incorporates air into the batter, giving you lighter, fluffier cupcakes.
• Don’t over-mix. When mixing the dry ingredients into the batter, mix just until everything is incorporated. Mixing past this point can cause the glutens in the flour to overdevelop, which can give you overly dense cupcakes.
• Cool completely. Allow the cupcakes to cool to room temperature before frosting them. If they are too warm, the frosting will slide off.
• Frost like a pro. No need to reinvent the wheel here, ladies and gents. Check out my tutorial on How to Frost Cupcakes to learn how to make these little desserts look like they came from a professional bakery.

Can I use frozen blueberries?

Yes, you can. But I recommend thawing and patting them dry before adding them to the batter. If you add them still frozen, they will add excess water to the batter that will cause the cupcakes to rise less and be a little more dense.

Can I make this into a cake?

Definitely! Just double the recipe and divide the batter between three 8-inch pans. Bake for about 25-30 minutes. You can also check out my Lemon Blueberry Cake recipe.

Proper Storage

Seal any leftover cupcakes in an airtight cupcake carrier or arrange them in a single layer in an airtight container tall enough to accommodate the frosting. You can store them in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

These cupcakes are best enjoyed at room temperature, so allow them to thaw in the fridge (if applicable) and then to sit on the counter for a bit before diving in.

More Cupcake Recipes To Try

Cupcakes are the perfect shareable dessert. Here are a few of my other favorites. Let me know what you think!

• Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes
• Carrot Cake Cupcakes
• Red Velvet Cupcakes
• Homemade Moist Chocolate Cupcakes
• Cookies and Cream Cupcakes
• Champagne Cupcakes
• Strawberries and Cream Cupcakes
• Banana Cupcakes

Watch How to Make Them

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