Keto Lemon Cupcakes filled with lemon curd & raspberries & topped with a light & fluffy raspberry frosting? Sign me up. They are just so pretty they are perfect for parties, baby or bridal showers, or just to enjoy on a nice summer afternoon. This easy recipe is low carb, gluten free, grain free, sugar free, and Trim Healthy Mama friendly.
These are more involved than most of my other recipes but I was going to a baby sprinkle for a sweet baby girl and I wanted to bring pink cupcakes. I do love baking so when I get the chance to make something extra special and have the time to do so I enjoy it.
Each individual component to these cupcakes is delicious all by itself. I could eat the lemon cupcakes plain like a muffin, eat the lemon curd with a spoon, and gladly lick the raspberry frosting bowl clean. But put all together the flavors compliment each other and something truly amazing happens.
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How to Make Keto Lemon Cupcakes
It is pretty easy to make these decadent low carb cupcakes. The list of ingredients may look intimidating but there are a lot of repeats between the different parts.
First Step: Make the cupcake batter by mixing the wet ingredients and then adding the dry ingredients. Scoop 12 cupcakes and bake for about 30 minutes
Second Step: While the cupcakes are baking you can make the lemon curd.
Expert Tip: For detailed instructions on make lemon or lime curd check out my post here.
Third Step: Cool the cupcakes and fill with the lemon curd. Add a raspberry into the center of each.
Fourth Step: Make the raspberry frosting by pureeing raspberries and mixing that into a simple buttercream frosting.
Fifth Step: Pipe the raspberry icing onto the filled cupcakes.
Keto Lemon Cupcakes Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoon butter and/or coconut oil - you can use either or a combination. I like to use 2 tablespoon of each.
- ⅓ cup sweetener - I use my sweetener which is a blend of xylitol, erythritol, and stevia.
- 2 eggs - if you want to skip the lemon curb filling you can just use 4 whole eggs.
- 3 egg whites - save the yolks for the lemon curd.
- ¼ cup sour cream - or plain yogurt.
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract - this really boosts the lemon flavor of these.
- 1 oz lemon juice and zest of one lemon
- ⅓ cup coconut flour - I've found using a combination of these two flours works very well in low carb keto baking.
- ⅔ cup almond flour - a great nut-free option is to sub in sunflower seed flour for the almond flour
Lemon Curd Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoon butter - for the lemon curd you do need butter.
- ¼ cup sweetener - again, I use my sweetener which is twice as sweet as sugar.
- 3 egg yolks - needing egg yolks for the curd is why I chose to incorporate whites into the cupcakes.
- 1.5 oz lemon juice - fresh is best when making a curd.
Raspberry Frosting Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoon butter - I just use regular salted butter.
- ½ cup fresh or frozen raspberries - frozen tend to be cheaper and you are making a puree so they are fine in this recipe.
- 1 cup powdered erythritol - I do use store-bought powdered erythritol for icings. It is hard to grind a sweetener at home and get it as fine as the store-bought brands can.
- 1 cup heavy cream - this lightens the frosting and makes it fluffy.
And last but not least you will need 12 fresh or frozen raspberries to hide inside the cupcakes. They are a special surprise that makes these look so pretty.
Expert Tips & Substitutions:
Other Berries: You can make the frosting with any other type of berry. Blackberries make it a deeper purple color that is really beautiful. If you choose to use strawberries you will have to half or quarter them before using them in the center of the cupcakes.
Other Citrus: Lime works very well in place of the lemon. You could also use grapefruit!
Nut-Free: Sunflower seed flour can be used in place of almond flour in low carb cake recipes.
More Keto Lemon Desserts:
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📖 Recipe
Ingredients
Cake Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil
- ⅓ cup Joy Filled Eats Sweetener (or see alternatives in recipe notes)
- 2 eggs
- 3 egg whites (save the yolks for the lemon curd)
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 oz lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ⅔ cup almond flour
- ⅓ cup coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Lemon Curd Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoon butter
- ¼ cup Joy Filled Eats Sweetener (or see alternatives in recipe notes)
- 3 yolks
- 1.5 oz lemon juice
Icing Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoon butter
- ½ cup fresh or frozen raspberries
- 1 cup powdered sweetener
- 1 cup heavy cream
Assembly:
- 12 fresh or frozen raspberries
Instructions
To make the cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350. Line 12 holes of a muffin tin with paper cupcake liners.
- Beat the butter, coconut oil, and sweetener with an electric mixer until creamy. Mix in the sour cream, eggs, lemon extract, juice, and zest. Mix in the baking mix, salt, and baking powder. Divide between the lined muffin cups.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until the top springs back when lightly pressed with your finger and the edges are golden. Cool completely.
To make lemon curd:
- Meanwhile, make the lemon curd. In a small saucepan over medium low heat melt the butter and sweetener. Cook until slightly thickened. Whisk in the egg yolks one at a time. Cook until thick. Add the lemon juice and whisk until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer in case there are any bits of scrambled yolk. Put in a glass bowl or jar and refrigerate until cold.
To make the raspberry frosting:
- Put the butter, raspberries, and sweetener in a microwave-safe bowl or the cup of a rocket blender and microwave until warm. Blend in a food processor, blender, or rocket blender until smooth. It will be the same consistency as the lemon curd. Cool until room temp. Beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the raspberry puree. Refrigerate until ready to ice the cupcakes.
To assemble:
- Using a small paring knife remove the center of the cupcake. Be careful to leave some on the bottom and not to pierce the paper. Divide the lemon curd between the cupcakes. I used a piping bag to make this easier. Press one fresh or frozen raspberry on top of the curd. Pipe the raspberry whipped cream on top of the cupcakes. If you prefer to spread it put a big blob on top of each and spread it carefully to avoid disturbing the lemon curd and raspberry filling.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published May 18, 2016. Revised and republished July 18, 2020.
Kathy says
Hi! I would love to make these for my mom’s 85th birthday bash! What can I sub for the heavy cream as she is dairy sensitive..? Coconut cream or coconut milk~ Which is better??
Taryn says
Coconut cream should work. Enjoy!
Cindy Althens says
Hi, I made the cupcakes and now need to assemble them and make frosting. Should I wait until morning to assemble and frost or can I do that tonight? Which is what I prefer.
Not sure you'll reply in time, but I did want to let you know, I've made several of you recipes and love them!
Thank you so much!
Cindy
Taryn says
Hi Cindy, either way works! It depends if I have fridge room whether I ice ahead of time or not.
Jennifer says
Oh my goodness! These were amazing! So decadent, and exactly what I needed to help me stick to my THM lifestyle! Thank you so much for sharing!