Easy Homemade Fresh Raspberry Cupcakes

These easy homemade fresh raspberry cupcakes are light, moist, and fluffy. They make the perfect early summer treat.

Fresh raspberries are dotted throughout moist vanilla cupcakes adding a bright burst of berry color and flavor.

I love topping these raspberry cupcakes with lemon swiss meringue and filling them with bright lemon curd.

Lemon and raspberries just seem like they were made for each other.

Looking for more cupcake recipes? Try these chocolate strawberry cupcakes.

Raspberry cupcake topped with toasted Swiss meringue and a raspberry.

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Why You Will Love This Recipe
Ingredients
Equipment
Directions
Variations
Make-Ahead Tip
Storage
Frequently Asked Questions
Tips
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Why You Will Love This Recipe

These raspberry cupcakes are sweet and tangy with a burst of fresh raspberries in every bite.
They also stay moist for several days. Make them ahead of time for a stress-free party dessert.

Need more springtime desserts?

Ingredients

All-Purpose Flour: Because we are adding raspberries I used all-purpose flour rather than cake flour. I wanted to make sure the cupcakes had enough structure to support the raspberries and keep them from sinking to the bottom.

Baking Powder: The baking powder is used to give the cupcakes lift.

Salt: I add at least a pinch of salt to all of my recipes. Salt complements and intensifies the other flavors. For all of my recipes, I use Morton Kosher Salt which is saltier than Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. If you are using Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt you will want to double the amount of salt you add.

Unsalted Butter: Butter brings some amazing flavor to these cupcakes. I prefer to use unsalted butter because the salinity of butter can vary from brand to brand. By using unsalted butter and adding salt I can control how much salt is added to the batter.

Make sure your butter has softened to room temperature to make creaming the butter and sugar together easier.

Granulated White Sugar: When the butter and sugar are creamed together the sharp sugar crystals pierce the butter making it light and fluffy which translates to a fluffy cupcake.

Vegetable Oil: Just a small amount of oil added to the batter helps to keep these cupcakes moist for longer.

Vanilla Extract: My preference is to use pure vanilla extract rather than imitation vanilla. I usually make my own vanilla extract by soaking vanilla beans in vodka.

Eggs: The fat from the eggs helps to keep the cupcakes moist while also giving structure to the cupcakes.

Buttermilk: Make your own buttermilk by adding ½ a tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to ½ a cup of milk. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes until it begins to curdle.

Raspberries: Tossing the berries in a bit of flour helps to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the cupcakes. You can use fresh or frozen raspberries. If you use frozen raspberries do not thaw them first.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Equipment

Kitchen scale: Kitchen scales make baking faster and neater. Accuracy matters in baking. Scales are more precise than measuring cups. Too much flour or not enough sugar can dramatically change a recipe. The most accurate way to bake is to measure your ingredients by weight rather than volume.

A kitchen scale also reduces the number of dishes you will need to wash because you are measuring each ingredient directly from the container into the mixing bowl without the use of measuring cups.

This scale from OXO is the one I use after it was recommended by Alton Brown. What makes this scale great is the display pulls out to make viewing measurements easier when using a large bowl.

Stand Mixer: I have a stand mixer from KitchenAid. My mom and brother bought it for me for my birthday almost 15 years ago. I use it weekly and it still works just like it did when it was brand new. It makes so many kitchen tasks easier and comes with a variety of attachments.

Rubber spatula: For folding batters together, I prefer a stiffer spatula like this one from OXO. It fits comfortably in my hand, is dishwasher safe, and is heat-resistant up to 600 degrees Fahrenheit. Both the handle and head are silicone coated which makes it easy to clean and safe to use with my non-stick cookware and bakeware.

Muffin Pan: My muffin pans are from Wilton. They have a non-stick coating which means they are easy to clean and muffins come out cleanly with or without muffin liners. They are dishwasher safe but to keep them in their best condition I prefer to hand wash them.

Cooling rack: Cooling racks are essential for cooling baked goods quickly and preventing soggy bottoms. I really like these cooling racks from the Checkered Chef. They are recommended by Cook's Illustrated, are very sturdy, and are free from coatings which means they are safe to use in the oven as well.

If you're in the market for new sheet pans as well they also sell them as sets in both half sheet pan and quarter sheet pan sizes.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

Combine 1 ¼ cups flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium-sized bowl and set aside.

Butter and sugar creamed together in a metal bowl.

Add the butter, sugar, and oil to a large bowl and cream together with a mixer until light in color and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Butter, sugar, and eggs mixed together in a metal bowl.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating each egg in until completely combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated.

Butter, sugar, eggs, and flour mixed together in a metal bowl.

Butter, sugar, eggs, flour, and buttermilk mixed together in a metal bowl.

Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until combined.

Add the buttermilk and mix until well combined. The batter may look curdled, it's ok.

Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until well combined and smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated. Do not over mix the batter.

Raspberries coated in flour in a white bowl.

Add the raspberries to a small bowl and toss with the remaining ¼ cup of flour.

Raspberries coated in flour on top of cupcake batter.

Raspberry muffin batter in a metal bowl.

Gently fold the raspberries into the batter.

Raspberry muffin batter in a muffin tin.

Baked raspberry cupcakes in a muffin pan.

Fill the cupcake liners about ¾ full and bake for 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

Remove cupcakes from the oven and let them cool in the pan for 2 minutes.

Raspberry cupcakes cooking on a wire rack.

Remove the cupcakes from the pan and place them on a wire cooling rack to finish cooling. Leaving the cupcakes in the pan will allow them to continue to cook and become dry. Remember cupcakes are small and can easily overcook.

Variations

Skip the frosting and call them raspberry muffins.
Fill the cupcakes with lemon curd. I just bought this cupcake corer which makes removing the center of a cupcake really easy.
Top these cupcakes with your favorite frosting. I really like to pair these raspberry cupcakes with this lemon swiss meringue.
For a special treat mix white or dark chocolate chips into the batter along with the raspberries.

Make-Ahead Tip

Bake the cupcakes ahead of time. Once they have cooled, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for one to two days.

Unfrosted cupcakes can also be stored in the freezer sealed in an airtight container for up to one month.

Storage

Once frosted the cupcakes should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you know when cupcakes are done?

Baking times for all recipes are only suggestions. The actual baking time will vary depending upon your oven. It is helpful to know your oven and worth purchasing an inexpensive oven thermometer. Oven temperatures can vary as much as 50 degrees plus or minus.

Insert a toothpick or cake tester into the center of the cupcake. If it comes out clean the cupcakes are fully baked.

You can also check the internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer. Cupcakes are done when they have an internal temperature of 205 to 210 degrees Fahrenheit.

Raspberry cupcake topped with Swiss meringue and a raspberry.

Tips

Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature. Room temperature ingredients mix together better.
Alternating adding the wet and dry ingredients to the butter and sugar prevents the mixture from separating,
Toss the berries in a bit of flour to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the cupcakes.
You can use fresh or frozen raspberries. If you use frozen raspberries do not thaw them first.
Use a cookie scoop to evenly portion the cupcake batter into the muffin pans.
Do not overfill the cupcake liners. Overfilling will cause a muffin top and possibly allow the centers of the cupcakes to sink. The liner helps to support the cupcake. Once it rises above the liner it no longer has the necessary support.
If frosting the cupcakes, wait until they have cooled completely, otherwise the frosting will melt.

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