Lemon Filled Vanilla Cupcakes with Blueberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting

As promised: The Best Cupcakes Ever, Part II

(Click here for Part I, Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes)


Yup, it's pretty much the ultimate cupcake.

It's a vanilla cupcake filled with gooey lemon curd and topped with blueberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream. It's like biting into a little piece of heaven.

Ok so...after finding the second love of my life (Hubby being the first), the Swiss Meringue Buttercream, I felt compelled to test it again to see if it was too good to be true. I mean, seeing as I tested out the first love of my life by dating him for seven years before walking down the aisle, logically, this buttercream deserves the same meticulous scrutiny. I don't just give away my love so freely, you know? =) Plus, publicly declaring something as being the ultimate is a pretty big statement to make. Since I'm putting my reputation as a cook and foodie on the line here, I had to be certain that it would withstand different recipe variations.

I saw on Crispy Waffle's site that she had a recipe for Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream on a Grand Marnier cupcake. It served as inspiration for my blueberry lemon ones. On her site, she gives two recipe variations: one for the Swiss Meringue buttercream and one for the Italian Meringue buttercream. I simply substituted the strawberries in her SMB recipe for blueberries. She says that she prefers IMB, which is also something I've been meaning to try. But since this weekend was devoted to the SMB, I went with that recipe. Definitely stay tuned for when I try out the IMB. I plan on doing a full comparison of the two meringues, one of these days.

Step 1: The Lemon Curd Filling
(See below for recipe)

I love lemon curd. It's tangy and has a creamy, smooth, and silky texture. It's sooo delicious. It's slightly tart and sour, so it acts as a great way to balance out the sweetness of the cupcake and frosting. Although, it's entirely necessary. The cupcake and buttercream are subtly sweet and super delicious on its own. I just happen to love the flavor combination of blueberries and lemon, so I decided to go all out and make them lemon-filled. Please feel free to skip this step. The cupcake by itself with the fresh blueberry buttercream can definitely hold its own. The lemon filling just gives it an edge. =)

It's super easy to make. Start by whisking together the eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, and sugar. (I couldn't find my whisk, so I went ghetto and used my hand-held mixer beaters. hehe)

Put it over med-low heat & whisk for about 8-10 min until it thickens.

When you take it off the heat, it'll be kinda lumpy from the zest and you might have some tiny pieces of cooked egg, so put it through a strainer. Seems like an unnecessary step, but trust me, you don't wanna skip it. You'll be surprised at all the left over chunks that end up in the sieve.

You'll get this silky & smooth mixture afterward.

It needs to chill in the fridge for 2 hours. Make sure to wrap it tightly, with the saran wrap touching the surface of the lemon curd. This way, it doesn't dry out. When it's well chilled and ready to go, stir until smooth again before using.

Step 2: The Vanilla Cupcake

I stick to this great vanilla cupcake recipe by WS. If you follow the directions meticulously, you should get a super moist and delicious cupcake. It's not too sweet and has a lovely, fragrant vanilla flavor. Make sure not to over mix, and please use real vanilla extract, not the imitation stuff. It really makes a difference.

Step 3: The Blueberry Sauce

The blueberry sauce for the buttercream is super easy to make. You basically puree them and that's it. Since I love blueberries, I doubled what the recipe called for and made it a "more coarse" puree, if that makes sense. I wanted it to still have chunks of blueberry here and there to give it that pretty "blue sprinkles" look. I chilled the blueberry puree in the fridge for about an hour. It will come out congealed, kinda like soft jello. I think this is what made it okay to double the blueberry puree. It didn't make the buttercream too soft to pipe. (See Crispy Waffle's site for recipe.)

Step 4: Fill the Cupcakes with Lemon Curd

I got this little injector/frosting bottle from Crate and Barrel a while back. It allows for a quick and easy way to fill your cupcakes. If you don't have one, simply use any frosting tip you have and a pastry bag. Insert the entire tip into your cupcake and squeeze until the curd starts over flowing, like so:

Smooth out the filling with your finger.


Step 5: The Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Please refer to my prior post: The Best Cupcakes Ever, Part I for details on how to make the frosting.


When the buttercream is smooth and finished, pour in your chilled blueberry puree and mix until well combined. Isn't it pretty with all the blueberry specks?

Step 6: Frost Your Cupcakes!



I usually don't post this many pictures of the finished product...

but they're so gorgeous that I couldn't resist!

They're the best when served right away. If you have to refrigerate them, make sure to let them rest at room temp for 20-30 minutes before serving. The frosting needs time to soften. Chilling it makes it lose its flavor temporarily until it softens again.

I can't even begin to describe how delicious they were! You'll just have to try out this recipe to see for yourself! There's a lot of steps to it, but it's totally worth it. Bring them to your next party and wow everyone with your awesome inner domestic goddess.

Hubby has the most spoiled palate ever now. And he's a big brat about it too! The other day, when we were in the baked goods section of Safeway, he wrinkled his nose at the cupcakes and remarked that he would never again eat one of those. lol. Later, when we were in the baking aisle and he saw me grab a box of cake mix, he told me in a very stern voice to "put it back," and once again conveyed to me that he would refuse to eat it. (For the record, I wasn't planning on feeding it to anyone, let alone him. I was going to use it as an experiment to practice my cake decorating skills.) When I set out to domesticate him after getting married, I didn't know I would create such a monster! lol. Anyway, consider yourself forewarned. If you make this for your husband/boyfriend, he might turn into a total diva and refuse to eat anything perceived to be sub-par!


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