Lemon drizzle cupcakes that are easy to make and absolutely jam-packed with flavour.
As with the vanilla cupcakes they are based on, these lemon drizzle cupcakes are very simple to make. They use an all-in-one sponge so its simply a case of measuring out the ingredients, chucking them all into a big bowl and mixing them up. The simplicity of this recipe also means it’s perfect if you want to bake them with kids (and my kids absolutely love eating them too!).
What! No icing?
As you’ve probably all realised, I’m a big fan of adding a pretty swirl of buttercream onto my cupcakes. However, on these lemon drizzle cupcakes it’s just a waste.
It may mean that they’re not the most beautiful of cakes, but it’s definitely a case of substance over style. The syrup drizzled over the top of the cakes ensures they’re perfectly moist and bursting with lemon flavour. It also gives the top a little bit of a crunch which adds a lovely extra texture to the soft cake.
If you’d like to add a little decoration I have a couple of ideas that’ll work really well…
- Make a simple icing by mixing 1 tsp of cold water or lemon juice with 40g of icing sugar. You can then drizzle this over the top. I like to use a fork to do this as I did for my Spicy Chai Tea and Cranberry Iced Loaf.
- Add a couple of edible flowers to the top of each cake. Purple ones, such as pansies, would look fantastic against the yellow of the cake.
Want to make these cupcakes as a larger cake?
If you fancy making a full-sized lemon drizzle cake then take a look at my lemon drizzle loaf cake recipe. It’s a slightly different recipe to these cupcakes (I’ve explained all about why in the post), but it gives the same delicious result – a fluffy, moist lemon sponge with the zing of lemon drizzle.
FREE GRAMS TO CUPS CONVERSION CHARTS
Subscribe to the Charlotte's Lively Kitchen mailing list to get your FREE printable grams to cups and cups to grams conversion charts for twelve popular baking ingredients
Easy Lemon Drizzle Cupcakes
INGREDIENTS
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 110 g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 medium eggs
- 110 g soft margarine or butter
- 110 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp milk
For the drizzle
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 60 g caster sugar
Extras
- 8 cupcake cases
INSTRUCTIONS
- Pre-heat your oven to 160ºC/140ºC fan. Line a muffin tin with 8 cupcakes cases.
- Finely grate the zest of one lemon. Set the lemon aside to use the juice later for the drizzle.
- Put all of the cake ingredients into a large bowl (grated lemon zest, 110g self-raising flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 medium eggs, 110g soft margarine, 110g caster sugar, 1 tsp milk). Beat on a low speed (either using an electric mixer or by hand) until all of the ingredients are fully combined.
- Divide the mixture equally between the eight cupcake cases.
- Bake your cakes for 18-20 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. While the cakes are in the oven prepare the lemon drizzle by simply mixing together the juice of your lemon with the caster sugar (60g). Once your cakes are cooked remove them from the oven and immediately pour over the drizzle. I find it easiest to brush the drizzle onto the cakes with a pastry brush, going over each cake twice so it has a really good coating. Leave the cakes to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool fully.
- Enjoy!
NOTES
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Any nutritional information provided is the estimated nutritional information per serving. Please refer to my guide to Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen nutritional information if you would like to learn more about how this is calculated.
Free From/Suitable For…
The ingredients I used to make this recipe are all free from the following allergens. However, please check any labels carefully for allergens you need to avoid as brands can vary and product recipes can change over time.
- Suitable for Vegetarians
- Tree Nut-Free
- Peanut-Free
- Sesame-Free
- Soya-Free
- Sulphur Dioxide & Sulphite-Free
- Lupin-Free
Pin This Recipe For Later
Jen says
This is the second of your recipes I’ve made an I’m totally delighted with them both. I followed your recipe to the letter and the cakes were light, citrusy and went down a storm. Will def make again and I look forward to trying more of your recipes
Margaret Rainford says
Made 36 of these delcious cupcakes for a charity afternoon tea. Perfect recipe, thank you!
Janice says
My new favourite cupcakes. The cake is so light and the drizzle is divine.
Louise Savage says
Delicious and so light. Another go to recipe.
Sarah says
Delicious , thank you for sharing 🙂
Ann says
I actually made 19 from the mixture. So easy to make and absolutely delicious, really loved the texture of the cupcakes. These are definitely going to be a regular teatime treat from now on. Thank you x
Lynette Stock says
With the amount of mixture there was I had ended up doing 12 cup cakes and when they were cooking they spilled out over the case and the tray and oven base, and did not rise with a dome shape, ended being flat as a pancake. I will try again but only put only half full in the cup cases, end up with 24 cup cases.
I took a picture of them but cannot post on the comments. Any advise will be welcome.
Charlotte Oates says
Hi, what size were your cupcakes cases. I use muffin cases and haven’t had any problem with them overflowing. From what you’ve described it sounds as though you may have added a little too much baking powder. I always use a measuring teaspoon (as it’s easy to add too much with a regular teaspoon) and it must be level. Adding too much baking powder would cause them the rise too much and overflow.
When you say “flat”, were the tops level, or did they sink? If they sank, again, I would suggest this is down to too much baking powder. If they remained level rather than doming, then this is down to the design of the recipe.
Celia says
Same happened to me. I measure everything and a regular baker so know the ingredients and cases were right. Still lovely and light tho but flat.
Charlotte Oates says
They’re designed to be level (as you can see in the pictures), not domed. If you want more of a dome shape on your cupcakes, reduce the amount of baking powder.
Helena says
I made Charlotte’s Lively Lemon Drizzle cup cakes I actually made 29 mini cup cake for the two children I look after for Valentine’s day I decorated them with white & milk chocolate love heart & little wafer flowers(pity I could not show a picture of them)…they were delicious & so easy to make. This evening I made 9 medium cup cakes..(2 tips make sure your butter is very soft & I put the juice of the lemon& sugar in a jar & left it in the fridge over night the syrup was delicious I coated each one with several bruhes of the syrup I added sultanas to the second batch…I am looking forward to tasting them. Brilliant very simple but tasty recipe which I will definitely use over & over again…Thank You Charlotte for sharing your delicious recipe with us!Helena
David says
It’s so light, fluffy and delicious.thank You for the wonder recipe
Veneda says
Made these with my Grandson, absolutely delicious! Quick and easy.
Unicorn says
Yep, quick and easy! Perhaps spelling mistake on how much milk, but I dunno!
Mary Beale says
Easy and delicious
Cathy (a different one) says
Made yesterday for a family members birthday and they were delicious. Very simple but effective. Thank you
Talia says
I’m planning on making these. How long do they keep for please?
Charlotte Oates says
They should be fine for up to a week if they’re stored in an airtight container.
Cathy says
Delicious and easy to make. I don’t normally bake but will be doing these again!
Ian Newble says
Just tried this recipe and it turned out fabulous. Just added a bit of lemon juice to the mixture. As we have so many lemon growing on our tree. A big thanks xxxxxxxxxxx
Victoria says
Easy tangy & delicious.
Mo says
I’ve made these lemon drizzle cakes a few times and my neighbours love them . There light and fluffy, not to sweet.
Fred says
Great quick and easy recipe, very tasty too.
Colette says
Quick to make and very light tasty cakes.