Soft and fluffy cranberry cupcakes filled with a sweet and tart cranberry curd and finished with a naturally flavored cranberry buttercream is beyond delicious!
Making cranberry curd has been on my to-do list for the longest time. Finally got around to making some and; oh my goodness, it sure is yummy, especially in these cranberry cupcakes! The smooth sweet and tart flavor of the cranberry curd goes perfectly with the vanilla cupcake base. For an extra hit of cranberry flavor, these cupcakes are topped with the most flavorful cranberry buttercream. I was feeling extra festive and added some sugared cranberries and white chocolate cranberry cutouts as a decorative finished but this is completely optional.
(NOTE: The full recipe with exact measurements is down at the bottom of this post in the recipe card!)
How to Make Cranberry Cupcakes
Cranberry Curd
Key Ingredients
- Fresh/Frozen Cranberries
- Granulated Sugar
- Fresh Orange Juice
- Egg
- Egg Yolk
- Unsalted Butter
How To Make Cranberry Curd
- Cook – in a medium, deep bottom pot under medium-low heat, add the cranberries, fresh orange juice and sugar. Stir ingredients together and cook until cranberries start to pop/burst open and release its juices, about 5-6 minutes. Remove cranberry mixture from heat and cool to room temperature, about 10-15 minutes.
- Blend – cooled cranberry mixture in a blender or food processor into a puree.
- Strain – cranberry mixture through a fine-mesh sieve/strainer into a medium mixing bowl.
- Whisk – in a separate medium mixing bowl, add the egg and egg yolk. Whisk ingredients together to combine. Next, whisk in the cranberry puree until thoroughly.
- Cook – cranberry curd mixture over a double boiler stirring constantly until curd takes on a thick consistency and registers 170F(77C) on a kitchen thermometer. (Alternatively, cranberry curd maybe cooked directly on stove top in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.) Remove curd from heat.
- Strain – cranberry curd into a medium mixing bowl using a fine-mesh sieve/strainer.
- Whisk – softened butter one tablespoon at a time into warm cranberry curd.
- Cool – cranberry curd slightly before covering directly with plastic wrap and refrigerating to set, about 2-3 hours. Once set, reserve 3 oz (6 tablespoons) of cranberry curd for cranberry buttercream. The remaining curd will be used to fill cupcakes.
Vanilla Cupcakes
Key Ingredients
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Eggs
- Granulated Sugar
- Whole Milk
- Unsalted Butter
- Neutral Flavored Oil
- Vanilla Extract
- Apple Cider/White Vinegar
To Make Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat – oven to 350F(180C). Add cupcake liners to a cupcake pan and set aside until ready to use.
- Whisk – in a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk ingredients to combine. In a 1 cup measuring cup or small mixing bowl, add the milk and vinegar and lightly whisk to combine.
- Cream – in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with a hand-held mixer, add the butter, oil and sugar. Cream ingredients together at medium high speed until mixture appears light in fluffy in appearance, about 4-5 minutes.
- Beat – vanilla extract into butter mixture. Next, beat in the eggs one at a time into butter mixture ensuring that the previous egg is fully incorporated before adding the next one into batter. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides and base of mixing bowl and mix batter for an additional minute at medium high speed.
- Mix – reduce mixer speed to low. In an alternating fashion, mix half of the dry ingredients into batter, followed by all of the milk mixture and ending with the remaining dry ingredients. Once all of the dry ingredients have been incorporated into batter, stop mixer and scrape down the sides and base of bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase mixer speed to medium and mix vanilla cupcake batter for an additional 1-2 minutes.
- Bake – divide cupcake batter into prepared cupcake pan and bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through bake time. Vanilla cupcakes are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center of one of them comes out clean.
- Cool – vanilla cupcakes in pan for 3-4 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely to room temperature.
Cranberry Buttercream
Key Ingredients
- Powdered Sugar
- Unsalted Butter
- Cranberry Curd
- Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt (optional)
How To Make Cranberry Buttercream
- Cream – in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand-held electric mixer, add the butter and pinch of salt (if using). Cream butter at medium high speed until it takes on a light and fluffy consistency, about 3-4 minutes.
- Mix – cranberry curd into creamed butter. Reduce mixer speed to low and mix 2 cups of powdered sugar into cranberry-butter mixture. If cranberry buttercream appears to be on the soft side, mix in the remaining powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until a smooth, thick but pipeable consistency is achieved. (You may not need to use all of the remaining powdered sugar). Add and mix in the vanilla extract into cranberry buttercream.
- Scrape – down the sides and base of the bowl with a rubber spatula and give cranberry buttercream a good mix before using.
Bring It All Together – Cranberry Cupcakes
- Transfer – cranberry buttercream into a large pastry bag fitted with a 2D wilton/preferred pastry tip with cranberry buttercream. Place pastry bag filled with buttercream in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- Core – the center out of cooled vanilla cupcakes. I used this tool but this treat corer is a good alternative as well.
- Fill – a pastry bag with reserved cranberry curd.
- Pipe – cranberry curd into the center of cored vanilla cupcakes. Next, pipe cranberry buttercream on top of filled cupcakes in a swirl design. See this video for reference.
- Decorate – cranberry cupcakes as you like with fresh or sugared cranberries and fresh herbs like mint or rosemary. For the sugared cranberries, I used this recipe but halved it. For the white chocolate cranberry circles, I used this tutorial on how to make chocolate geometric shapes but added dried cranberries top for a pop of color.
How to Store Cranberry Cupcakes
- Cranberry curd may be prepared 1-2 days in advance. Curd will last up to one week stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Unfrosted vanilla cupcakes tightly wrapped in plastic wrap will last up to 3-4 days in the refrigerator and 1-3 months in the freezer. When ready to use frozen vanilla cupcakes, simply thaw out in the refrigerator overnight.
- Cranberry buttercream stored in an airtight container will last up to 1 week in the refrigerator and 3 months in the freezer. When ready to use frozen buttercream, simply thaw out in the refrigerator overnight and re-whip to restore fluffy texture before using.
- Frosted and decorated cranberry cupcakes stored in an airtight container will last up to 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
Looking for More Scrumptious Recipes, See Links Below:
If you make this recipe, please make sure to let me know by tagging me @nourishedendeavors on Instagram or by leaving a comment in the comment section down below so I can find out how this recipe turned out for you! If you have any questions, ask away! I would love to answer your questions! Happy baking!
PrintCranberry Cupcakes
Soft and fluffy cranberry cupcakes filled with a sweet and tart cranberry curd and finished with a naturally flavored cranberry buttercream is beyond delicious!
- Prep Time: 60 Minutes
- Cook Time: 25 Minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 12 Cupcakes 1x
Ingredients
Cranberry Curd
- 12 Ounces (342 g) Fresh or Frozen Cranberries
- 1 Cup (200 g) Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 Cup (120 ml) Fresh Orange Juice
- 2 Large Eggs
- 2 Large Egg Yolks
- 4 Tablespoons (2 oz) Unsalted Butter, Softened
Vanilla Cupcakes
- 1 1/2 Cup (188 g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 1 1/4 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 Cup + 2 Tablespoons (125 g) Granulated Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs, Room Temperature
- 1/2 Cup (120 ml) Whole Milk, Room Temperature, May Substitute with Milk of Choice
- 1/4 Cup (2 oz) Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature, Not Softened
- 3 Tablespoons (45 ml) Neutral Flavored Oil i.e. Vegetable/Avocado Oil
- 1 1/2 Teaspoons Apple Cider/White Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
Cranberry Buttercream
- 1 Cup (16 oz) Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature, Not Softened
- 2–3 Cups (220–330 g) Powdered Sugar, Sifted
- 1/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons (3 oz) Cranberry Curd, Room Temperature
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla extract
- Pinch of Salt (Optional)
Instructions
Cranberry Curd
- In a medium, deep bottom saucepan under medium-low heat, add cranberries, fresh orange juice and sugar. Stir ingredients together and cook until cranberries start to pop open and release its juices, about 5-6 minutes. Remove cranberry mixture from heat and cool to room temperature, about 10-15 minutes.
- Blend cooled cranberry mixture in a blender or food processor into a puree.
- Strain cranberry puree through a fine-mesh sieve/strainer into a medium mixing bowl.
- In a separate medium mixing bowl, add the eggs and egg yolks and whisk to combine. Next, whisk in the cranberry puree until thoroughly combined.
- Cook cranberry curd mixture over a double boiler whisking constantly until curd takes on a thick consistency and registers 170F(77C) on a kitchen thermometer. (Alternatively, cranberry curd may be cooked directly on stove top in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.) Remove curd from heat.
- Strain cranberry curd into a medium mixing bowl using a fine-mesh sieve/strainer.
- Whisk softened butter one tablespoon at a time into warm cranberry curd.
- Cool cranberry curd slightly before covering directly with plastic wrap and refrigerating to set, about 2-3 hours. (Make sure that plastic wrap is directly touching the surface of cranberry curd to prevent the formation of skin on curd while refrigerated.)
- Once set, reserve 3 oz (6 tablespoons) of cranberry curd for cranberry buttercream. The remaining curd will be used to fill cupcakes.
Vanilla Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350F(180C). Add 12 cupcake liners to a cupcake pan and set aside until ready to use.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk ingredients to combine. In a measuring cup or small mixing bowl, add the milk and vinegar. Lightly whisk to combine.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl with a hand-held mixer, add the butter, oil and sugar. Cream ingredients together at medium high speed until mixture appears light in fluffy in appearance, about 4-5 minutes.
- Beat vanilla extract into butter mixture. Next, beat in the eggs one at a time into butter mixture ensuring that the previous egg is fully incorporated before adding the next one into batter.
- Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides and base of mixing bowl and mix batter for an additional minute at medium high speed.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. In an alternating fashion, mix half of the dry ingredients into batter, followed by all of the milk mixture and ending with the remaining dry ingredients. Once all of the dry ingredients have been incorporated into batter, stop mixer and scrape down the sides and base of bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase mixer speed to medium and mix vanilla cupcake batter for an additional 1-2 minutes.
- Divide cupcake batter into prepared cupcake pan and bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through bake time. Vanilla cupcakes are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center of one of them comes out clean.
- Cool vanilla cupcakes in pan for 3-4 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely to room temperature.
Cranberry Buttercream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand-held electric mixer, add the butter and pinch of salt (if using). Cream butter at medium high speed until it takes on a light and fluffy consistency, about 3-4 minutes.
- Mix cranberry curd into creamed butter. Reduce mixer speed to low and mix 2 cups of powdered sugar into cranberry-butter mixture. If cranberry buttercream appears to be on the soft side, mix in the remaining powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until a smooth, thick but pipeable consistency is achieved. (You may not need to use all of the remaining powdered sugar). Add and mix in the vanilla extract into cranberry buttercream.
- Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides and base of the bowl and give cranberry buttercream a good mix before using.
Assembly
- Transfer cranberry buttercream into a large pastry bag fitted with a 2D wilton/preferred pastry tip. Place pastry bag filled with cranberry buttercream in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- Core the center out of cooled vanilla cupcakes taking care to not go all the way down to the bottom of the cupcakes. You only want to remove/core out about an inch from the centers of the cupcakes. I used this tool but this treat corer is a good alternative as well.
- Fill a pastry bag with cranberry curd and pipe cranberry curd into the center of cored vanilla cupcakes.
- Retrieve cranberry buttercream from fridge and pipe cranberry buttercream on top of filled cupcakes in a swirl design. See this video for reference.
- Decorate cranberry cupcakes as you like with fresh or sugared cranberries and fresh herbs like mint or rosemary. For the sugared cranberries, I used this recipe but halved it. For the white chocolate cranberry circles, I used this tutorial on how to make chocolate geometric shapes but added dried cranberries top for a pop of color. Chocolate circles are completely optional.
Notes
- Cranberry curd may be prepared 1-2 days in advance. Leftover curd will last up to one week stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Cranberry buttercream may be prepared in advance and will last up to 1 week stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and 3 months in the freezer. When ready to use frozen buttercream, simply thaw out in the refrigerator overnight and re-whip to restore fluffy texture before using.
- When coring cupcakes, you only want to remove/core out about an inch from the centers of the cupcakes.
- Frosted and decorated cranberry cupcakes stored in an airtight container will last up to 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
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Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies
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