Delicate, moist and tender vanilla cupcakes filled with strawberries and frosted with strawberry whipped cream.
The first few times I tried a cupcake, I didn’t really like it. I got dizzy from the amount of sugar in the frosting. I wasn’t a fan. Fast forward to a few years and 460 cupcakes later, I’ve changed my mind. Just take a tour of some of New York’s best bakeries and you’ll understand what I mean.
Today I have some special cupcakes for you – strawberries and cream cupcakes. What’s unique about them is that the frosting is actually whipped cream and not the traditional buttery frosting. Since whipped cream is a delicate frosting, sometimes I add instant vanilla pudding mix to stabilize it. There – I’ve shared another one of my secrets with you. 2-4 tablespoons per cup of whipping cream is all you need to make a stable and stiff frosting for cakes and cupcakes (you don’t need to make an actual pudding, just use the powder straight from the box). Still, the cupcakes should be kept in the fridge, but when ready to serve, they will hold well at room temperature.
While you make the frosting, watch it all the time. The moment you get a thick, stable frosting that holds its shape, stop the mixer. Don’t be tempted to whisk it more, since overbeating will break it down and ruin it. Use heavy whipping cream so the frosting will be as stiff (and delicious) as possible. Whisk the whipping cream until soft peaks form (which means it’s still soft but pretty stable, like the texture of shaving cream), then stop the mixer and add the strawberry puree. Keep whisking until the frosting is stiff.
The recipe for the cupcakes is easy and basic. Nothing fancy. I have a few vanilla cupcake recipes that I use and this is one of my favorites.
Erez said this is one of the best cupcakes he’s ever tasted. The cupcakes are soft, tender and moist with a refreshing vanilla and strawberry flavor. Then there’s that frosting… delicate, creamy, and too good to be true.
- 1⅓ cups (185 grams or 6.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (1 stick or 115 grams) butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 grams or 7 ounces) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120 ml) whole milk
- 1 cup diced strawberries (first dice, then measure)
- 1½ cups heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons instant vanilla pudding mix
- 6 tablespoons strawberry puree*
- Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Line muffin tin with 12 cupcake papers. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Set it aside.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugar on medium speed for 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl as necessary. On medium speed, beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the dry ingredients and beat just until combined. Add the milk and beat until combined. Add the other half of the dry ingredients and beat slowly or fold by hand only until combined. Do not overmix – the less you mix, the lighter the cake will be. Fold in diced strawberries.
- Divide the batter between 12 cupcake liners, filling them about ¾ full. Bake for 15-20 minutes (or 8-10 minutes if making mini cupcakes) until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Let the cupcakes cool completely on a wire rack.
- To make the frosting:
- In a mixer bowl, place the heavy cream, sugar and instant pudding mix. Beat until soft peaks form. Add the strawberry puree and beat just until stiff peaks form. Don’t overbeat. Frost cupcakes immediately after making the frosting. Decorate with more strawberries if desired.
- Store cupcakes in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 3 days. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
- Unfrosted cupcakes can be kept tightly covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
26 Comments
Winnie
May 12, 2014 at 4:59 pmאמאלהההההההההההה
קצת (הרבה) מסוכן להיכנס לבלוג שלך. רק לראות את התמונות פה ואני נעשית רעבהההההה
הקאפקייקס מדהימים ואין כמו קצפת ותותים (קינוח מאד רומנטי לדעתי)
ואין ספק שקצפת עדיפה על קרם חמאה
Shiran
May 12, 2014 at 8:54 pmI agree! Whipped cream is the best! Thank you Winnie! 🙂
Tessa Thompson
April 29, 2019 at 11:16 pmCould I replace the vanilla pudding with something else? I don’t buy it because I cannot eat the gelatin in it.
dina
May 12, 2014 at 8:34 pmthe frosting looks so creamy and delicious!
Shiran
May 12, 2014 at 8:54 pmIt is! 🙂
Nicole ~ Cooking for Keeps
May 12, 2014 at 9:16 pmI like you sharing your secrets! I have to give that a try!
Shiran
May 12, 2014 at 9:49 pmThanks Nicole! I love sharing my secrets with you 🙂
Anne
May 12, 2014 at 10:08 pmOMG!! Those look sooo good!!! Once I get my hands on some strawberries, I’ve got to try them.
In case you were wondering… If you overbeat sweetened cream (in what was supposed to be whipped cream) you get really sweet buttermilk and plain butter. Just thought I’d pass it along…
Shiran
May 13, 2014 at 8:39 amYou should definitely try them Anne! And thanks for sharing the info with everyone 🙂
Cindy @ Pick Fresh Foods
May 14, 2014 at 4:05 amThese look delicious! I love strawberries and cream, so in a cupcake it has got to be amazing! I love whipped frosting over butter cream. I like my sweet to not be super sweet so this sounds perfect for me. Pinning!
Shiran
May 14, 2014 at 8:50 amThanks Cindy! I’m glad you like it 🙂 I also prefer whipped cream over buttercream!
Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl
May 14, 2014 at 7:41 pmI’m in sweetness heaven, this looks perfect for a treat!
Shiran
May 15, 2014 at 7:26 amIt is heaven! 🙂
Michelle
June 9, 2014 at 12:28 amI used both recipes and while the frosting came out delicious, the cupcakes came out awful. They were flat and pocked and stuck to the liner. The tops were crunchy like the sugar had crystallized. Any idea where I went wrong? I feel like I followed the recipe exactly.
Shiran
June 9, 2014 at 7:08 amHi Michelle! I’m sorry the recipe didn’t work for you. It’s hard for me to know what exactly went wrong, because every little thing in the process can affect the end result. Did you use room temperature butter and eggs? Did you try not to overmix the batter after adding the flour? If the tops of the muffins were crunchy maybe you overbaked them, or maybe the oven temperature wasn’t precise . Do you use thermometer? Or did you wait for at least 30 minutes until the oven was hot enough? This is a basic cake batter recipe, and I’ve used it for years now, and never had any problems with it. It is supposed to look quite flat though – to make it easy to frost on top of it. If you have any more questions, please let me know! I’ll be happy to help 🙂 Hope that next time you try it, it’ll be as yummy as it should be!
Maria
April 22, 2015 at 10:03 pmJust tried out this recipe, and I’ve got to say: Ahhhhh-mazing!
I was a bit hesitant about putting strawberry chunks in the batter, but wow. It’s amazing-ly good. You ma’am, are a genius of many sorts.
The frosting didn’t come out so well for me… probably to do with the fact that I didn’t have any instant pudding mix so I tried to substitute with gelatine… it actually came out alright, just not as ‘stiff’ as I was hoping for it. but maybe refrigerating it overnight will help it a bit for tomorrow morning =)
Honestly though, I can/will/and have eat the cupcakes without the whipped cream frosting because it really is THAT GOOD.
I did make a small change to the batter recipe: instead of adding only white sugar, I mixed in a taaaad bit of golden brown sugar with the white sugar.
I also used pure vanilla extract from Mexico (EVERY BAKER SHOULD OWN THIS, its nothing like the vanilla extract you get in the grocery stores here) Not sure how big of the difference it made, but it came out really well so I can’t complain!
Shiran
April 26, 2015 at 10:19 amThat’s so sweet of you, Maria, thank you so much! 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed the cupcakes! My family really loves them, too. About the frosting – whipped cream is a bit tricky to make, and if over whipped it can get gritty or start to separate. Even when adding gelatin or pudding mix, it won’t be as stiff as buttercream. You can read more about whipped cream here. Thanks again 🙂
katie
June 16, 2015 at 8:30 pmHello, I am making this one day prior to serving them…do I add the topping and refrigerate or can I make, store over night and then add topping the next day?
Thanks so much!
katie
Shiran
June 18, 2015 at 5:33 amHi Katie! Since the frosting isn’t a stiff buttercream but rather whipped cream, I recommend making it the same day. You can make the cupcakes without the frosting a day before. Once you frost them, keep them in the fridge, and preferably serve at the same day.
katie
June 18, 2015 at 6:24 amOh thank you so much! Thats a great help. (Its my little girls 1st bday so Im really obsessing over every detail. I dream of cupcakes nightly at the moment!). Thanks again and would love to let you know how it goes.
katie
June 18, 2015 at 6:30 amI realise this might be an impossibility but I was hoping to write (somehow!) ‘ Happy birthday; etc, on the cupcakes. One cupcake per letter. Is there a way you can suggest considering that the cream is not a stiff buttercream? I do have individual candles that spell the words but thought be more impressive if I could get on to the actual cakes! Thanks again!
Shiran
June 18, 2015 at 12:46 pmI’m glad to help 🙂 If you want a stiff frosting you can use one of these recipes instead of the whipped cream: vanilla buttercream, Swiss meringue buttercream (and there’s also a cream cheese frosting recipe on the blog). The classic buttercream would be an easy and great choice. You can add strawberry puree until the desired taste. Happy birthday to your sweet little girl!
Steffi Seetric
June 28, 2016 at 4:13 amHi,
You are a total genius,amazing blog I have…just a few quick doubts…what happens if they are left in fridge uncovered and can bluebeeries be substituted instead of strawberries?
Shiran
June 28, 2016 at 4:55 amThank you so much for the sweet words 🙂 It’s always better to wrap cakes or place them in an airtight container to keep them fresh. You want to protect it from drying out or absorb smells from the fridge. You can use blueberries in the cake batter for sure. For the frosting, I suggest to start with a few tablespoons of puree, and add more, until desired taste and texture. It should have a mellow berry flavor.
Katlyn
April 19, 2018 at 8:12 pmI love these just made them and haven’t frosted and taste amazing! I wanted to know I’m having them for my sons 1st bday which is tomorrow and we are going to a park! Can I whip up the frosting tonight and take it in the frosting bag to the place then frost? Also can I make the frosting tonight and put in fridge if not on cupcakes?
Shiran
April 20, 2018 at 2:57 amHi Katlyn, it’s better to keep the cupcakes in the fridge because of the whipped cream frosting. Whipped cream is different than buttercream and is softer, but if it’s not too hot outside, the cupcakes should hold fine at room temperature. You need to frost them right away after making the whipped cream and keep them in the fridge. You can also make buttercream or cream cheese frosting instead, and add some strawberry puree. Happy birthday!