Mini lemon cupcakes with lemon curd and Italian buttercream

5 from 1 vote

Soft mini lemon cupcakes topped with a homemade lemon curd and a light and creamy vanilla bean Italian meringue buttercream.

Prep Time30

Cook Time9

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: cupcakes

Calories: 146Calories

Start by preheating the oven to 350F and lining 14 mini cupcake tins with cupcake liners. Set aside.
In a small bowl mix the flour, baking powder and the salt together and set aside.
½ cup +2 tablespoon all purpose flour, ¾ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt
In a medium bowl, mix the granulated sugar, egg white, and oil together until incorporated, then add in the milk, lemon zest, and water. Add in the dry ingredients and mix gently until just combined.
¼ cup + 2 tablespoon granulated sugar, 1 egg white, 1 ½ tablespoon vegetable oil, ¼ cup milk, 2 teaspoon lemon zest, 3 tablespoon water
Divide the batter evenly between 14 cupcake liners and bake for 9 minutes.
For the lemon curd- As the cupcakes are baking, we will make the lemon curd.
In a medium saucepan, whisk the lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar and egg yolks over medium-low heat. Once the mixture starts to thicken remove it from the heat.( the time will depend on the temperature of your ingredients)
¼ cup lemon juice, 2 teaspoon lemon zest, ¼ cup sugar, 2 egg yolks
Add in the cubed butter and quickly whisk it in. (I usually use a hand blender to make my life easier.)
2 tablespoon butter
Place the lemon curd in a shallow bowl and cover it with plastic wrap making sure it touches the curd. This will keep it from forming a film on top. Let the curd cool completely in the fridge to thicken.

While the cupcakes are cooling, in a small saucepan, bring the sugar and the water to a boil. Let the mixture boil for about 4-5 minutes or until the bubbles slow down a little.
½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup water
When the sugar water is almost done cooking, start beating the egg whites and a pinch of salt in a stand mixer or using a hand mixer.
2 egg whites, pinch of salt
When the hot sugar syrup is done cooking, pour it very slowly on the side of the stand mixer in a gently stream. Beat for another 5-7 minutes of until the mixing bowl doesn't feel hot to the touch anymore.
When the mixing bowl doesn't feel hot anymore, slowly add in the cubed room temperature butter while continuously whipping up the meringue.
1 stick butter
Don't worry if the meringue gets a little soupy. Continue whipping the meringue at high speed until it thickens and becomes perfectly creamy. Add in the vanilla beans and mix everything one last time.
1 teaspoon vanilla beans

Using your favorite piping tip, pipe the Italian meringue buttercream around the outside of the cupcake and fill up the center with the lemon curd using either a piping bag or a ziplock bag.

Both the Frosting and the Lemon Curd can be made up to two days in advance.

Make sure to let your Italian meringue buttercream get to room temperature before whipping it again to use it.

Do not overmix after adding the flour, this helps keep the cupcakes light and tender.
The cupcakes are mini, so check for doneness at 8 minutes to avoid overbaking.
For the lemon curd, using room temperature butter will help it blend in more smoothly after cooking.
You can assemble the cupcakes the day you serve them, but keep them refrigerated once filled with lemon curd.