These strawberry cupcakes have the most perfect, fluffy texture, are bursting with fresh summery strawberries, are topped with a sweet, buttery champagne frosting. Perfect for New Years or a summer party.
After four years of living in our house, I have yet to grow a good crop of strawberries.
The first year, it was the hail. I mean, golf-ball sized hail like I’ve never seen! It took out everything in my backyard…strawberries, tomatoes, our car windshield{!}.
The second year, it was the squirrels. I watched a squirrel climb down the tree, bound over to the strawberry plant and pluck a not-quite-ripe strawberry right off the bush, then sit there and eat it right in front of me. The nerve!!
The third year, Ben built a squirrel cage for the strawberry plants. To keep the strawberries in and the squirrels out. That was the year the slugs got all sluggy on the strawbs. Gross!
And then, possibly because in my pregnant-induced-fatigue last summer, when it was ‘survival of the fittest’ in my garden and not much was watered, half of my strawberry plants died.
I am cursed.
Reasons you’ll ♡ these strawberry cupcakes with champagne frosting
- they are bursting with fresh strawberry flavor
- the champagne brings a slight champagne flavor to the frosting that goes so well with the strawberries
- they are perfect for New Years or a summer party!
It is really too bad, strawberries, because I love you!
I will put you in sangria, muffins, smoothies, bruschetta, on salmon…and in cupcakes…
So for now, I will settle for the grocery store strawberries…they have nothing on the smallish, juicy, ultra-sweet ones that grow in the garden, but I will take what I am given 🙂
Even with grocery store strawberries, these strawberry cupcakes were still AH-MAZE-ING. So I can only imagine how good they’d be with freshly picked strawbs.
And fresh strawberry cupcakes topped with a sweet, buttery champagne frosting? So good. I mean, strawberries and champagne is such a perfect pairing, I knew this couldn’t be a bad decision 😉
These cupcakes are a simple, fun, and delicious way to enjoy your summer strawberries. They are the perfect lightly sweet cupcakes for this warmer weather. You could serve them at a barbecue. You could have them for a girls night out or bachelorette party.
Or, like us, you could have them for no particular reason at all! {I don’t need an excuse to make cupcakes :D} Just promise me you won’t skip the champagne frosting!
Tips & equipment for these fresh strawberry cupcakes
- I love this muffin pan, and used this electric hand mixer
- to make these non-alcoholic, swap the champagne for milk
- looking for more cupcake recipes? Check out these Key Lime Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting & Pistachios, or these Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream
Strawberry Cupcakes with Champagne Frosting
Ingredients
Strawberry Cupcakes:
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (188 g or fluffed, spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 5-6 medium strawberries (stems removed)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (113 g; at room temperature)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200 g)
- 1 egg
- 2 egg whites
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup milk
Champagne Buttercream:
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (86 g; at room temperature)
- 4 cups powdered sugar (500 g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 tablespoons champagne (or more to taste)
Instructions
Strawberry Cupcakes:
- Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Line a standard muffin tray with paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Process strawberries in a food processor until a smooth puree is formed. Measure out ⅓ of a cup and set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar and beat until well combined.
- Add egg, egg whites and vanilla, mix until well combined.
- Mix together milk and strawberries; add to the egg mixture.
- Mix in dry ingredients.
- Divide evenly between 12 cupcake liners. Bake for 18-23 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool for 5 minutes in muffin pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Champagne Buttercream:
- Beat butter until smooth.
- Add 1 cup of sugar, and beat until completely combined.
- Add the vanilla and 4 tbsp champagne.
- Add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, scraping sides of mixer until everything is evenly combined.
- If desired, add more champagne by the tablespoon. See note.
Frosting:
- Scrape buttercream into an icing bag fitted with a tip {I used the Wilton 1M tip}.
- Frost cupcakes.
Notes
- I don't recommend exceeding 5 tbsp champagne unless you don't mind your frosting being a bit 'droopy'
- Champagne may be substituted with milk.
Veronica
I’ve made these several times and they truly are delicious! I’m wondering though, if I make the cake in advance (without frosting) can they be at room temperature? Or must I refrigerate?
Denise
Hi Veronica, glad you enjoyed them! According to this site, you can store at either temp but they will last longer in the fridge.
felicia
What do we do with the 1/3 cup of strawberry puree that’s been set aside?
Denise
Hi Felicia! Sorry, I re-read the recipe and it isn’t written very clearly, I will have to fix that! The 1/3 cup of fresh strawberry puree is mixed in with the milk in step 6. I included the measuring step so that we’d be sure you had the same amount of strawberry puree as me, but ‘set aside’ sounds a little confusing. I hope you like the cupcakes!
felicia
Thanks Denise! Hope to try this recipe soon! 🙂
Margaret
In the champagne frosting. Is there really 1kg of sugar for 12 cakes. It seems a lot of sugar.
Denise
Hi Margaret, the recipe calls for 500g (4 cups) of sugar. So not 1kg!
dina
they look delightful!
Alessandra // the foodie teen
Sorry to hear about your strawberries, but these look absolutely delicious!
Denise
Thanks, Alessandra! The cupcakes helped me forget my inability to grow strawberries 😉
Medha @ Whisk & Shout
Oh wow… delicious and such a creative idea with the champagne frosting! I love strawberries too 🙂
Denise
Thanks, Medha!
Leah | So, How's It Taste?
Oh how perfect these are! I’ve made champagne cupcakes before, but never thought about pairing that flavor with strawberries, duh! Those two go so well together. I bet these tasted great!
Denise
I was going to make champagne cupcakes with strawberry frosting, but I like this version…you can still taste each flavor. Thanks, Leah!
Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes)
These cupcakes look absolutely perfect! I love the champagne addition!
Denise
Thanks, Jocelyn!
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice
Hopefully next year will be your strawberry year! These cupcakes look amazing, so the store-bought strawberries are working! 🙂 Love the champagne frosting, too…such a nice change from the usual frostings!
Denise
Aw thanks, Gayle! I will keep holding out hope that someday I will get a strawberry out of the garden 🙂
Denise
Classy…until you eat four of them at once! Not that that happened here 😉
Jess @ Flying on Jess Fuel
Squirrels are my arch nemesis!! They have been stealing the pears off my tree this year. 🙁 They aren’t even ripe yet so they can’t even be enjoying them that much. Little jerks.
Your cupcakes look amazing and I LOVE the idea of champagne frosting… how fun and special!
Denise
Squirrels are SO RUDE, right? I feel like they all have giant attitude problems. Sorry about your pears!
Annie @Maebells
These are so pretty!! I love the champagne frosting! So perfect with strawberries!
Denise
Aw, thanks 🙂 It was hard not to eat that champagne frosting right out of the bowl…