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Strawberry Almond Cupcakes – These cupcakes are quick and easy to whip up. All you need is a box of cake mix and a few extra ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. Just one bite, and you’ll swear they’re from scratch.
Even though most homemade cupcakes taste exceptional, they’re a lot of work. With other recipes, you can spend a lot of time measuring and sifting ingredients and then incorporating them in stages. I choose boxed cake mix as a starting point for my recipe, to skip all of the from-scratch headaches.
Strawberry Cupcakes
I love creating recipes with a doctored-up box of cake mix—like these Frosted Funfetti or S’Mores Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies. It’s a convenient ingredient that turns a full day of baking into an effortless recipe that I can complete in under an hour (prep time included!)
These Strawberry Almond Cupcakes are no exception. They’re moist, fluffy, and full of flavor. Along with my secret ingredient—a box of strawberry cake mix, all you need are a few extra eggs, buttermilk, and almond extract. The cupcakes are just as good as homemade but without all the fuss.
Why This Recipe Works
- Strawberry and almond are a classic pairing, but it’s still a combination that’s exciting and surprising in cupcake form!
- These cupcakes have a homemade from-scratch flavor with all the ease of a boxed cake mix.
- Extra ingredients don’t mean extra steps. Mix them all in a bowl, and your batter is ready to bake.
- Almond extract pumps up the flavor in both the cake and frosting. Plus, the cupcakes smell like they came from a fancy Italian bakery.
What You’ll Need
Cake
- A box of Strawberry Cake Mix – You can use whichever brand is your favorite since they’re all compatible with this recipe.
- Eggs
- Buttermilk – If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can mix together 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 cup of milk instead. Use whole milk if possible, but 2% will work too.
- Canola Oil – You can substitute canola oil for another neutral-tasting oil. Grapeseed, vegetable, and sunflower oil are all excellent alternatives.
- Almond Extract – Allergen-friendly almond extracts are available if you’re baking for someone with a tree-nut allergy. Look for imitation almond extract, and double-check the ingredient list!
- Vanilla Extract – Pure vanilla extract has a richer flavor than imitation vanilla. But since we’re adding another flavored extract, you don’t have to use the pricier pure vanilla in this recipe.
Buttercream Frosting
- Butter – Use softened, unsalted butter for the frosting.
- Powdered Sugar
- Almond Extract
- Milk – Milk is a thinning ingredient to give the frosting that smooth, fluffy texture. You could use regular milk or almond milk. Cream works, too, if you want a thicker, richer consistency.
How To Make Strawberry Almond Cupcakes
Be sure to scroll to the bottom of the post for the FULL PRINTABLE recipe card.
- Create the batter. Add all of the cake ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer with a whisk attachment (or a wooden spoon) and some elbow grease to combine the ingredients until smooth.
- Pour into muffin tin. Prepare a muffin tin by spraying each indentation with baking spray. Or, insert a cupcake liner into each one. Then, divide the batter between 24 tins.
- Bake. Bake the cupcakes in a 350°F oven for about 15 minutes.
- Cool. Transfer the baked cupcakes from the muffin tin to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Whip up the frosting. With a hand or stand mixer, beat all the frosting ingredients together until you have your desired consistency. Tweak the texture by adding more sugar to thicken or more milk to thin.
- Frost and serve. Smear, spread, ice, or pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes. Then, get ready to dig in!
Recipe Tips
- If you want to pipe the frosting high like in the photos, you’ll want to double the frosting recipe.
- An easy way to tell if your cupcakes are done is to insert a toothpick into the center of the thickest one. When you remove the toothpick, if it comes out clean, then the cupcakes are baked through to the center.
- Another way to test the doneness of the cakes is to press on the top of a cupcake gently. (Careful, they’re hot!) If the cake springs back immediately, that’s another indicator of a fully baked cupcake.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool fully before you try to pipe the frosting on top. Even when the cupcake doesn’t feel hot, it could retain heat in the center. Over time this residual heat will melt the frosting. To be safe, I like to let them cool for an hour.
Can I Let Cupcakes Cool In The Pan
It’s best practice to allow the cupcakes to cool for about 5 minutes in the muffin tin before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling. This 5-minute wait is purely to save your fingertips from getting burned. The residual heat from the baking pan will continue the cooking process, which can lead to overbaked and dry cake. A wire rack provides optimal airflow for the cupcakes to cool quickly and evenly.
What Speed Should I Mix The Batter On
The key to fluffy and moist cupcakes is to create air bubbles in the batter. If you overmix, the bubbles will pop, and you’ll end up with a dense cake. Using your mixer on slow is your best option, so you don’t deflate the batter. As soon as all the ingredients are incorporated, stop mixing.
How To Serve
You can really get creative with this recipe, but here are some of my favorite ways to garnish these cupcakes:
- Freeze-dried Strawberries – Fresh strawberries are also delicious but don’t hold up well during storage or transport. Freeze-dried strawberries won’t add any leaky liquid and will remain bright for days.
- Almond Slivers – Toasted or untoasted, you can’t go wrong with the crunch factor of some almond slivers. Plus, if you used an almond extract made from almond oil, the nuts on top of the cupcake clearly indicate that they contain tree nuts.
- Turbinado Sugar – This chunky sugar provides a beautiful sprinkling on top of the frosting.
- Edible Flowers – You could top these cupcakes with fresh edible pansy flowers or dried rose petals for an elegant, high-end appearance.
How To Store Cupcakes
These cupcakes are best when stored in an airtight container in the fridge. They’ll stay fresh for up to 4 days, and you won’t have to worry about the frosting melting. Allow them to come up to room temperature before serving.
More Fun Dessert Recipes
- Chocolate Cream Cake
- Ding Dong Cake
- Margarita Cake
- Chocolate Pavlova
- Air Fryer Cake
- Chocolate Sheet Cake
- Nutella Cupcakes
Strawberry Almond Cupcakes
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 box, 18.25 oz Strawberry Cake Mix
- 4 whole large eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F. Line 24 muffin cups with liners or grease well.
- Combine cake mix, eggs, buttermilk, oil and extracts in a mixing bowl, mix with a whisk attachment on high for 1 minute, until smooth.
- Pour into a prepared muffin tin. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the tops spring back after being touched.
- Remove from the oven and allow cupcakes to cool for 5-10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To prepare the frosting – Cream together everything until the desired consistency is reached. You can adjust the milk and sugar to get your desired consistency.
- Top cooled cupcakes with frosting.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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These look so light and fluffy! My daughter would love it if I made these for her birthday!
Looks so yummy! Homemade versions at it’s best, so much better than store bought and I’m so excited to try this!
Love the strawberry and almond flavor combination! So light and fluffy!
Love these cupcakes as an easier treat to make and serve. The flavor combo is a hit with me, too!
Strawberry and almond is my favorite flavor combination. It is a must try!
I love the combination of flavors!! Really amazing!
These cupcakes looks so fancy! I have the perfect occasion to make them!
These are gorgeous! I absolutely love the flavor combo!!
I would love to try these! They are so beautiful and delicious!!