Chocolate Frosted Lemon Cupcakes

A bright lemon cupcake is filled with a sweet raspberry puree and topped with rich, fudgy Greek yogurt chocolate frosting. These filled Chocolate Lemon Cupcakes are perfect for celebrating!

You are going to love these cupcakes. They start with a bright lemon cake, flavored with lemon zest and juice. Once the cupcakes are baked and cooled, you’ll cut a little wedge out of the top of each one to make room for some sweet, homemade raspberry filling. I’ve used frozen raspberries so that you can make these cupcakes any time of year.

For the frosting, I doubled up on the chocolate and added both cocoa powder and melted bittersweet chocolate. Instead of sticking with a standard buttercream I added a bit of Greek yogurt to the frosting to up the fudgy factor. Often, you will find sour cream or cream cheese in a frosting, and Greek yogurt is a great healthier option. Not that I’m trying to make these cupcakes healthy. We are celebrating, and we’re going all out. Pile on that chocolatey frosting, and go for a second cupcake, while you’re at it.

Tips before you bake these cupcakes:

• The eggs and milk for the cupcakes need to be at room temperature, so place them on your counter about an hour before you plan to begin making the cupcakes.
• The butter for the frosting needs to be at room temperature, so place it on the counter to soften now, too.
• Before you can puree the raspberries for the raspberry filling, they will need to be completely thawed. Take them out of the freezer before you begin any of the other steps so they will have time to defrost.  There’s lots of thawing/softening of ingredients going on here, and I promise it will be worth it!  😉

5 from 1 rating

Chocolate Frosted Lemon Cupcakes

Servings: 18

Prep Time: 45 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

A bright lemon cupcake is filled with a sweet raspberry puree and topped with rich, fudgy chocolate frosting. These filled Chocolate Lemon Cupcakes are perfect for celebrating!

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Ingredients

For the Lemon Cupcakes:

• ▢ 1 ½ cups cake flour, (192 grams)
• ▢ 2 tsp. baking powder
• ▢ ¼ tsp. salt
• ▢ 1 tbsp. lemon zest
• ▢ ½ cup unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces, softened slightly but still cool
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 3 eggs, at room temperature
• ▢ 1/3 cup milk, whole milk is best, at room temperature
• ▢ ¼ cup lemon juice
• ▢ 1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the Raspberry Filling:

• ▢ 4 ounces frozen raspberries, thawed
• ▢ 2 tbsp. water
• ▢ 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 tsp. cornstarch

For the Chocolate Frosting:

• ▢ 3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• ▢ 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• ▢ 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ▢ ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ▢ 1 pinch of salt
• ▢ 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• ▢ ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
• ▢ Fresh raspberries, for garnish

Instructions

 

Make the Cupcakes:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tins with paper liners.
• Sift cake flour, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the lemon zest, and, using the paddle attachment, mix together briefly on low speed.
• With the mixer on medium-low, add the butter, one piece at a time, letting each piece incorporate before adding the next. Mix in the sugar and then increase the speed to medium and mix until the mixture looks like fine, sandy crumbs with a few larger pieces, about 3 minutes.
• Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Combine the milk, lemon juice, and vanilla in a liquid measuring cup. Pour the milk mixture into the batter and beat on medium speed for about 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Scoop batter into cupcake wells, filling each a little over half full. Bake cupcakes for 14-15 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove to wire rack to cool completely before filling and frosting.

Make the Raspberry Filling:

• While the cupcakes bake, puree thawed raspberries with 2 tbsp. water in a blender until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a small saucepan to remove the seeds. Stir in the sugar and cornstarch and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly with a small spatula, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool.

Fill the Cupcakes:

• Use a small paring knife to scoop a small wedge out of the top center of each cupcake. Put the raspberry puree into a piping bag fitted with a small tip. (Alternatively you can use a small spoon to scoop the filling into the cupcakes.) Pipe a small amount of filling into the top of each cupcake.

Make the Frosting:

• Melt the chopped chocolate in the microwave by heating it for one minute, stirring, and then heating in 15-second intervals until melted, stirring until smooth. Set aside to let cool.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until pale and creamy, about 4 minutes. Add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Mix in the Greek yogurt and melted chocolate and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Frost cupcakes as desired and top with fresh raspberries.

Serving: 1cupcake, Calories: 314kcal, Carbohydrates: 36g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Cholesterol: 69mg, Sodium: 46mg, Potassium: 147mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 25g, Vitamin A: 520IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 49mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is an estimate.

Course: Dessert

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