Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes

Lemon Cupcake with Blueberry Filling
Topped with Lemon Buttercream & a Blueberry Jelly Belly

From a young age I developed a strong fondness for anything blueberry flavored. In fact growing up my parents would take me "berry picking" and I would simply sit in the berry patch and eat handfuls of blueberries off the bushes. I definitely gained a reputation from a young age as a lover of all things blueberry

My all time favorite bluberry treat was always my mom's blueberry muffins (that she made on Christmas morning). Unfortunately many of my attempts to "veganize" her traditional recipe have failed miserably. I just can't seem to recreate a muffin that embodies the flavor, texture and look of that old familiar favorite. 

Lemony Cupcake Batter

Instead of trying to replicate her recipe I decided to use it as inspiration for a new cupcake flavor. I created a lemon cupcake with a blueberry filling and a lemony buttercream icing. 

Lemon Cupcake Instructions: 

• Add 2 tbsp of lemon zest to your favorite vanilla cupcake recipe
• Add tbsp of lemon juice to your batter and mix well
• Bake following the instructions of your favorite recipe

Blueberry Mixture after adding Cornstarch

Blueberry Filling: 

Ingredients: 

• 1 small carton of blueberries (aprox 2 cups)
• 2 tbsp of Cornstarch
• 2 tbsp of Sugar
• 2/3 cup of water

Blueberry Filling

Instructions: 

1. Wash berries and remove any leftover stems
2. Heat blueberries and water in saucepan on high
3. Add sugar to mixture and stir often
4. Let simmer until blueberries are soft and water is saturated with juice (aprox 5 minutes)
5. In separate bowl; mix cornstarch with 2 tbsp of water until well combined
6. Add cornstarch mixture to blueberry mixture and stir constantly
7. When mixture has thickened remove from heat and place in separate bowl
8. Place in fridge to cool until ready to use

Cupcakes with filling

Assembly:

1. Use an apple corer or knife to remove the middles from cupcakes
2. Fill middles with blueberry mixture
3. Cover hole with icing to "seal it in"
4. Frost cupcakes and decorate 

I decorated my cupcakes with a simple blueberry jelly belly but you could also use dark blue sprinkles or top with a fresh blueberry. 

Frosted

I took the majority of these cupcakes into work for my coworkers to try. Everyone loved the cupcakes, especially the blueberry filling. It was the perfect accent to a light lemony cupcake. See Lemon Cranberry Cupcakes for another take on fruit filled cupcakes. 

The Finished Product

Do you love to bake rich decadent chocolate cupcakes or sweet fruity ones?