Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes

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These Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes are cupcake perfection! They are moist, light and fluffy. Our secret ingredient is yogurt. Topped with strawberry frosting, these cupcakes would make a wonderful Valentine’s treat or Mother’s Day dessert. But don’t wait for a special occasion – they’re so delicious you will want to make them right away.

Cupcakes are a huge favorite around here. Perfectly sized, they’re just the right treat on a holiday or to add sweetness to any regular day of the week.

This yogurt cupcake recipe doesn’t use milk or buttermilk – the moistness comes from rich, creamy yogurt. The frosting recipe is a sweet American buttercream with real strawberries blended into it. So delicious!

These Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes were inspired by my moist Vanilla Cupcakes. The Frosting was inspired by my Homemade Strawberry Frosting with Real Strawberries.

If you love strawberry desserts, like I do, be sure to also try my Strawberry Shortcake Cake and my Fresh Strawberry Cake.

What You’ll Need

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes

• All Purpose Flour: No need for cake flour here, all purpose flour will give you the results you want!
• Butter: Unsalted sweet cream butter is what I tested the recipe with and it’s fantastic.
• Sugar: Regular granulated sugar for sweetness.
• Eggs: The eggs help hold the cupcakes together as well as add richness.
• Vanilla: I used homemade vanilla extract but any high-quality pure vanilla will work. Vanilla bean paste is also a great option if you want more flavor.
• Leavening: Baking powder is used in the recipe so the cupcakes rise tall and fluffy.
• Salt: Just a little salt is added to balance the flavors.
• Yogurt: This is key! Use whole-milk yogurt here. Greek will be too thick, and low fat or fat free yogurt won’t give you quite the same consistency.

For the Frosting:

• Strawberry puree: Make your own with fresh or frozen strawberries and a food processor.
• Butter: Once again, use unsalted sweet cream butter here too.
• Salt: Just a pinch is all you need.
• Confectioners’ sugar: For the perfect consistency.

Recommended tools

To make these Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting you will need:

• Muffin Pan: This recipe yields 12 cupcakes so you’ll need a regular muffin pan lined with cupcake liners.
• Mixing Bowl: These Pyrex glass bowls are my favorite.
• Mixer: A stand mixer is what I use most but a handheld electric mixer will also work just fine.
• Food Processor: I have this food processor, but you can also use a high powered blender.

How to Make Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes

It’s very easy to make these homemade vanilla yogurt cupcakes from scratch. It takes just a few minutes to whip up the batter and they bake in about 20- 25 minutes. It’s a little longer cooking time than other cupcakes because of the extra liquid from the yogurt.

1. Get ready to bake – turn on the oven to 350°F and line a muffin pan with paper liners.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In a separate large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Beat in the eggs one at a time and then add in the vanilla.
5. Add half the flour mixture and beat until just combined, then add the yogurt and mix until almost combined before adding the rest of the flour mixture.
6. Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups and bake. Let cool before frosting.

To make the frosting

The frosting is a simple American buttercream with a few small adjustments so it’s creamy and fruity. The butter should be at room temperature but not too soft – take it out of the refrigerator when you are cooking the puree.

1. Make strawberry puree by blending fresh or frozen and thawed berries in a food processor.
2. Cook strawberry puree over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 2-3 tablespoons. Cool the puree.
3. Blend the butter until creamy and pale in color, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the salt and the confectioners’ sugar in two increments until fully incorporated and fluffy.
5. Add the cooled puree and beat until fully mixed.
6. When the cupcakes are fully cooled, frost them using a pastry bag with a frosting tip and garnish with fresh strawberry slices.

Recipe FAQs

Storage & Freezing

1. Cupcakes will keep for up to 5 days stored in the refrigerator.
2. Unfrosted cupcakes can be made one day in advance, then covered and stored at room temperature.
3. The frosting can be made 1 day in advance. Cover and store in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before using.
4. Frosted and unfrosted cupcakes can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Vanilla Yogurt Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting

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These vanilla yogurt cupcakes are made with yogurt and topped with strawberry frosting. They are fluffy, moist, and perfectly light!

Jen Sobjack

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Serving Size 12

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

• 1 ½ cups (195 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, softened & cut into pieces
• ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• ⅔ cup (151 g) plain whole-milk yogurt, at room temperature

For the frosting

• ½ cup (120 ml) strawberry puree
• ¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• pinch salt
• 3 cups (360 g) confectioners' sugar

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Instructions

Make the cupcakes

• Heat the oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners and set it aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together until well combined.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl using an electric hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
• Gradually beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stop to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla.
• Add half the flour mixture and mix at low speed until almost combined. Add the yogurt and continue to mix until almost combined. Finally, add the remaining flour mixture and mix just until combined.
• Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups and bake for 20-25 minutes. While cupcakes are baking, begin preparing the strawberries for the frosting – see instructions below.
• Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

Make the frosting

• Add strawberry puree to a small saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until the puree has reduced to 2-3 tablespoons.
• Remove from heat and transfer to a small bowl. Allow the puree to cool completely, stirring every so often.
• Once the puree has cooled, add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or to a large bowl using an electric hand mixer. Beat on medium-high speed until creamy and pale in color, about 5 minutes. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Add the salt and half the confectioners' sugar and beat on low speed just until the sugar has fully moistened, then turn the speed up to medium-high and beat until well incorporated, about 3-5 minutes.
• Add the remaining confectioners' sugar and beat on low speed just until the sugar has fully moistened, then turn the speed up to medium-high and beat until well incorporated, about 3-5 minutes.
• Add the puree and beat at medium-low speed until fully mixed in.

Notes

• Flour: Properly measure the flour. I highly recommend using weight measurements.
• Yogurt: Be sure to use regular yogurt and not Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt is too thick for this recipe. For added vanilla flavor, use vanilla yogurt. Choose whole-milk yogurt as nonfat yogurt will not yield the best results.
• Strawberry puree: This can be made with fresh or frozen and thawed strawberries. Pulse a handful in a food processor until mostly pureed while some specks of strawberry are still visible. I used about 8-ounces of whole strawberries.
• Butter for frosting: Use room temperature but not oily butter. If the butter sits at room temperature too long it will become too soft and oily. This will cause the frosting to be too soft once the puree is added. Set the butter out as the puree in cooling in step 2. Then once the puree has cooled completely, the butter should be soft but still cool to the touch and not oily. This is the perfect time to begin making the buttercream.

Make ahead tip

1. Cupcakes will keep for up to 5 days stored in the refrigerator.
2. The plain cupcake can be made 1 day in advance. Cover and store at room temperature.
3. The frosting can be made 1 day in advance. Cover and store in the refrigerator. When ready to use, bring to room temperature.
4. Both frosted and unfrosted cupcakes can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupcake | Calories: 417kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 80mg | Sodium: 118mg | Potassium: 121mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 43g | Vitamin A: 645IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 1mg

The nutrition information provided is for convenience and as a courtesy only. It is not guaranteed to be accurate because nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator and input the exact ingredients and brands you used in the recipe.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

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