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.
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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
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Charlotte Root says
Very simple recipe to follow. I managed to get 10 cakes out of my mixture. Just got them out of the oven and the look amazing. Cannot wait to tuck in!
Shazia says
Absolutely brilliant! I use this recipe most of the time now because the results are splendid. It’s a must try!
David Brooke says
Great,if you wanted to make a batch will it make a difference to the recipe by making the quantity larger ?
Charlotte Oates says
The recipe is just the same for a larger batch, just be aware that if you overcrowd you’re oven they make take longer to cook and the cakes lower down in the oven may take longer than the ones at the top.
Claire Dunn says
I’ve made these a couple of times and they are lovely, I double up on the lemons both zest and juice for drizzle and they are lush!
Rosie says
Easy and perfect results!
– I used half the drizzle at first but ended up adding it all – it turned out to be the right amount.
– I didn’t use paper cases and they came out of my (newish) non-stick pan fine after cooling for 10 minutes.
– I used plain flour with an extra 1 tsp of baking powder, like Charlotte suggested in another comment, and it worked great.
– The sponge could take a little more lemon zest, if you have it, but the drizzle provides enough flavour anyway.
Hilary Thaxton says
Could you substitute some of the flour with cocoa powder to make chocolate buns? If so, what quantity please?
Charlotte Oates says
I’ve never tried substituting chocolate into this particular recipe so I’m not 100% sure how it would work, but if you wanted to try it, I’d switch 25g of the flour for cocoa powder.
Hilary Thaxton says
Thank you – I’ve since found your recipe for Chocolate Cupcakes so used that & lovely!
Julie says
I made these today, very yummy and easy to make.
Britoni says
Could I use plain flour instead?
Charlotte Oates says
Yes, just add an extra 1 tsp of baking powder to replace the raising agent in the self-raising flour.
Joan says
Made these and they were lovely.
Gill says
Simple but very tasty, they didn’t last long!
Fiona says
Great recipe, and so easy! I’ll make these again for sure
Kate says
Excellent recipe that was really easy and made an incredibly light sponge. Will definitely be making these again! Thank you 🙂
Linda R says
Should’ve read comments first as my cupcakes overflowed the cases-will use muffin cases next time. Delicious cakes & recipe works with gluten free flour!
Ursula says
Easy recipe to follow. Made these for my granddaughter who was very impressed and said they were delicious and by far the best lemon drizzle cakes she had ever tasted. Will definitely be making these again
Maureen Seaman says
When making the drizzle for the cup cakes do you heat the lemon juice & sugar together,to dissolve the sugar .?
Charlotte Oates says
I don’t as I like my drizzle to have a slight crunch, but it you prefer it more smooth and sticky then you can gently heat it.
Brittany Lishman says
Hi, would this recipe be suitable for added white chocolate chips/ raspberries? Thanks x
Charlotte Oates says
I’ve not tried it so I’m not 100% sure. I suspect as it’s quite a light sponge they may sink during baking so you’ll have a lot of chocolate chips and raspberries at the bottom rather than spread throughout the cake. It should still rise well and taste good though 🙂
Saima Mohamed says
I love lemon cup cakes.
Charlotte Oates says
Me too!
Paul Weston says
Easy recipe, great moisture in the cupcakes, very tasty. The only comment I would make is that when filling the cupcakes fill them at about 1/2 way before putting them in the oven so that they do not rise higher than the cupcake case. That way the drizzle can be contained within the case and soak into the cake. My cupcakes rose slightly higher than the casing edge and most of the drizzle was in the baking tray!
Charlotte Oates says
Good suggestion. I always use muffin cases so they’re a little taller to catch the drizzle.
Jayne Godsave says
I made these for the first time today,as I was making them do afternoon tea (elderly) I doubled the quantity. I prepared in my processor,on slow. They looked lovely. I made the drizzle with 2 lemons but replaced on half with 2 tblsp of Limoncello.
They are scrumptious. I made 24 cupcakes. Tea later today & I know they will disappear
AD says
I made these today however oddly I struggled to add the mixture to cupcake cases so instead I added the whole cake mixture to a square baking tray and it seemed to work well. I don’t usually bake at all but today I felt like cake so thank you for the recipe as I thought it was yum and very easy to do.
Louise Savage says
Third time I have made these – lovely little cakes and quick to make – perfect!
Nic says
Hi. Could this recipe be used for a cake rather than cupcakes? It’s not the quantities but the oven temp and cooking time for the larger volume I’m bothered about. I don’t want to lose the lightness due to longer cooking times and/or higher oven temp that may be required -any thoughts ?
Charlotte Oates says
Make the sponge from my lemon cake (which is based on the sponge used in these cupcakes) and then add the drizzle to the top. It would work well as a traybake-style cake.