Homemade Strawberry Cupcakes – No Processed Sugar

Cupcakes for Strawberry-Loving Kids

I’m not sure what it is about strawberries, but it seems to be the one fruit kids can’t get enough of. Whether it is fresh strawberries, strawberry popsicles or homemade strawberry cupcakes like these … strawberry anything is hard to keep on hand for more than a day at our house.

If you can relate to having a strawberry-loving child, this healthy cupcakes recipe is just what you need. With vibrant strawberry flavor from homemade strawberry jam and fresh chopped strawberries, these cupcakes will please any child who is a fan of strawberries.

Here’s how I know: My very picky 7-year-old gave her emphatic seal of approval on these cupcakes after rejecting my other attempts to create strawberry cupcake and muffin recipes.

And my toddler …. Well, she’s as in-love with all things strawberry as my older daughter is, so of course she loves them too ☺️ Although in all honestly, she is perfectly happy to have a bowl of the strawberry buttercream frosting that goes on top of these cupcakes all by itself too.

Something that makes these processed-sugar-free cupcakes so good is their texture. They have the perfect balance of moisture and fluffiness. Sometimes fruity muffins and cupcakes can become soggy or mushy because of the extra liquid from the fruit. But this strawberry cupcake recipe does not have that problem.

Using jam in the batter helps to control the moisture content. And adding just the right amount of small-chopped fresh strawberries brings out even more strawberry flavor without creating excessive juice to weigh down the cupcakes with wetness.

With this tempting marriage of beautiful strawberry flavor and appealing texture, this really is the best homemade strawberry cupcake recipe for kids.

Ideal Uses for These Cupcakes

These strawberry cupcakes would be a splendid way to celebrate a variety of occasions.

The first and most obvious occasion to use these cupcakes is for a birthday. These would be an easy and delicious alternative to making a layered cake for a kids birthday party.

By thee way, if you are looking for fun strawberry-flavored birthday party treat ideas, you might want to also check out my recipe for strawberry cake pops made entirely from scratch.

Or, here’s another idea. For my kids, the years that we do a big-ish birthday party with friends and classmates, I like to make my kids some easy cupcakes on their actual birthday for our small family celebration. Then, for their birthday party, I do a “fancy” layered cake.

But the uses for these strawberry cupcakes are not limited to birthday celebrations. These cupcakes would be amazing for a Valentine’s Day party, or even just a fun Valentine’s surprise for your own kids. Especially if you use the strawberry buttercream frosting I recommend to frost them, these cupcakes are naturally the perfect color to be a Valentine’s treat.

You could even add some blueberries as a garnish on the top of these decorated cupcakes and make them as a patriotic 4th of July treat. You could also make these to bring as a little extra special treat for a summer picnic. The fresh, vibrant flavor of strawberries make the perfect summertime desserts.

Or – one of my favorite ideas that I often use with my own kids – make up a batch of these just because and then set up a tea party with cupcakes and board games to play with your kids.

Nothing says “I love you” like homemade yummy treats and quality time together 🙂

Ingredients

• Butter: Butter makes a huge difference in how light and fluffy a cupcake is. Trying to go without butter is always tricky, so this ingredient is pretty essential for a good turnout. I use Irish grass-fed butter or organic butter.

• Maple Syrup: A natural sweetener option that has a lower glycemic index than white table sugar, maple syrup contributes to keeping these cupcakes light instead of making them dense.

• Eggs: Eggs are the binder. I use farm-fresh eggs when possible, but cage-free or organic are the next best thing.

• Strawberry Jam: My homemade strawberry jam recipe is the perfect way to add incredible strawberry flavor to these cupcakes without adding too much moisture.

• Milk: Milk is the primary liquid source in this recipe. I always use organic whole milk.

• Lemon Juice: The tartness of lemon enhances and compliments the flavor of strawberries. Fresh-squeezed lemon juice is preferable, although lemon juice from a bottle (not lemon extract but lemon juice) would probably work fine as well.

• Flour: Any all-purpose flour you normally use for baking will be fine for making these cupcakes. I use organic, unbleached flour from Costco.

• Baking Powder: Baking powder provides the rise in these fluffy cupcakes. Make sure to get aluminum-free baking powder.

• Salt: A pinch of salt makes helps bring out the flavor of all the other ingredients.

• Strawberries: Fresh strawberries chopped into small pieces are the cherry – I mean, the strawberry – on top. Mixing fresh strawberries into the batter tops off that irresistible strawberry flavor and creates delicious surprise strawberry chunks to look forward to in each bite.

Instructions

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 2

Line a muffin tin with cupcake wrappers.

Step 3

In a medium-size bowl, use an electric hand or stand mixer to cream butter and maple syrup.

Step 4

To the bowl, add eggs, strawberry jam, milk and lemon juice. Mix until fully combined. It’s okay if the milk and/or butter curdle.

Step 5

To the wet ingredients, add flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until fully combined.

Step 6

Add in fresh, chopped strawberries and fold into the batter just until they are uniformly dispersed.

Step 7

Evenly distribute batter among the muffin tin cups.

Step 8

Bake cupcakes for 25 minutes, checking for doneness beginning at 22 minutes.

Step 9

When the toothpick comes out clean, remove cupcakes from the oven and allow to cool in the muffin tin for 15-20 minutes. Then remove the cupcakes and place them on a wrack to cool completely.

Step 10

As soon as cupcakes have fully cooled, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week. Keep chilled until you are ready to frost.

Substitutions & Tips

• It is best to make these cupcakes a day or at least several hours before you want to frost them. Having the cupcakes cold when it is time to frost helps the frosting set and prevents it from sliding off of the cupcake.

• To make this recipe even simpler, if you are on a tight timeline and you don’t mind some added sugar in your homemade strawberry cupcakes, you can use store-bought strawberry jam. This may alter the taste a bit since store-bought jam is intensely sweet, but it should otherwise turn out okay.

• If you want to add a little extra excitement to these cupcakes, you can scoop out the centers once they are baked and fill them with more of that healthy and delicious homemade strawberry jam.

• I recommend paring these strawberry cupcakes with my naturally sweetened strawberry buttercream frosting. It is perfect in flavor and color to top these beautiful cupcakes.