Lemon Coconut Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting are a delectable treat packed with the freshest lemon flavor! Bake a dozen and then share this lemon cupcakes recipe with your friends and family.
If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I have a lot of Meyer lemons to use this season. My one Meyer lemon tree produced over 500 lemons this year! As I eat through my stash of lemons, I’m always looking for more ways to incorporate them into every single meal. Of course, I love adding fresh lemon flavor to dessert too. Today, I’m sharing these Lemon Coconut Cupcakes with homemade lemon frosting to celebrate the anticipated arrival of my friend Lindsay‘s twins! Lindsay creates the most delectable recipes at Life, Love and Sugar. If you love sweet treats then you will absolutely love Lindsay’s collection of recipes. Her cupcake and cake recipes are often the inspiration for digging out some flour and sugar to make desserts in my own kitchen. Congratulations, Lindsay!
Because we want to invite you to the party too, we are hosting this virtual baby shower to share over 15 sweet and savory recipes that you will love. Scroll down for the complete list of recipes from some of my favorite bloggers.
Do not miss the opportunity to make these Lemon Coconut Cupcakes! They are made with coconut cream, fresh lemon juice, lemon zest and a simple vanilla buttercream frosting. They come together easily and are an impressive treat for baby showers, special events and more. Or you can just bake the dozen to share with your friends and family.
See what everyone’s bringing to the party!
Banana Pudding Cupcakes, Lemon Coconut Cupcakes, Chicken Salad Cups,
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Star and Moon Decorated Cookies,
Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes, Cream Cheese Cookies with Nutella Glaze,
Salted Caramel Popcorn Brownies, Sugar Cookie Bars, Funfetti Cheesecake Pie,
Banana Chocolate Chip Cheesecakes, Sweet and Sour Slow Cooker Smokies ,
Red velvet Cookie Bars, Veggie Egg Muffins, 2 Layer Espresso Chocolate Cake
Lemon Coconut Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 eggs, separated
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
For the frosting:
- 1/2 cup butter, softened, (1 stick)
- 3 cups confectioners' sugar, divided
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup coconut flakes
Instructions
- To make the cupcakes, preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add egg yolks, one at a time, mixing until well blended. Add vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest and beat until combined. Slowly add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the coconut milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and beat until combined.
- In another clean bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. (You can use a stand mixer or hand mixer.) Stir one-fourth of the egg whites into the cake batter to lighten, then fold in the remaining egg whites until combined. (Be careful not to over mix. You want some egg whites to still be visible in the batter.) Divide the batter evenly among the lined muffin cups, filling them about 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes in pan, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Slowly add 2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar and beat until fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add lemon zest, lemon juice and remaining sugar. Beat for an additional one to two minutes.
- Pipe frosting onto each cupcake and sprinkle with coconut. Garnish with sliced lemons, as desired.
Notes
- You can use standard lemons or Meyer lemons.
Nutrition
Can I use regular milk or do I have to use coconut milk this recipe
You can use regular milk, but the coconut milk adds a little more coconut flavor. Enjoy!
I made these and the cupcakes came out good, but the frosting was a little dry. Does it need to be scooped out measured or spooned? Cause I typically use my measuring cup and just scoop out what I need unless the recipe says differently.
Also the frosting recipe says 1/2 cup 1 stick butter. Does that mean you want a 1/2 a cup and then a one stick of butter are you trying to explain that the half cup is a 1 stick? If you could clarify on your recipe that would help. Cause I wasn’t sure if I was missing a stick of butter and that’s why it was dry or I had too much of something else. Thanks! Nice recipe otherwise!
Hi Annie! I recommend to always use a spoon to scoop out flour and confectioners sugar into the measuring cup. If you just scoop using the measuring cup, the flour and sugar will be more dense, which can alter the outcome. And the frosting is 1 stick butter (1/2 cup). It looks like I had an issue with my recipe card displaying it correctly so I fixed it. If the frosting was too dry, it’s likely because you used more sugar than really needed. Next time, try scooping out the confectioners sugar into the measuring cup when measuring. This helps introduce air and prevents using too much sugar. Also be sure to whip the frosting really good which will also help lighten it up so it’s not so dry and dense. Thanks so much for your feedback. I really appreciate it!
Tried these last night, ,and they lovely. Although I would prefer more of a coconut flavor! So after trying the cupcake I decided to add coconut cream and extract to my buttercream – they were PERFECT. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Omg!!! These are so good!!! I didn’t have coconut milk, so I used regular milk and it turned out soo good!! I also decorated with strawberries to make little hearts. My brothers loved these. I definitely recommend.
So glad you loved these! These strawberries sound like such a great idea.
Whaich flavor is more prominent? The lemon or the coconut?
thanks
I would say that lemon naturally has more flavor and the coconut is more subtle.