Orange Cupcakes

image of an orange cupcake that's been unwrapped to show how moist it is

4.82 from 16 rating

These orange cupcakes are absolutely packed with citrus flavor! They're made with tender orange zest cupcakes, filled with silky smooth orange curd, and topped with fresh orange frosting!!

Prep Time10

Cook Time19

Additional Time30

Total Time59

Course: Cupcakes

Cuisine: American

Servings: 12

Calories: 557kcal

Author: Chelsey White

Ingredients

Orange Cupcakes

1 cup granulated sugar 200g
1 Tbsp orange zest - zest of 1 large orange 6g
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 56g
1/2 cup full-fat sour cream, room temperature 125g
1/4 cup water, room temperature 60g
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice 60g
1 large egg, room temperature 56g
1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 4g
orange gel food coloring - optional
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour or gluten free flour blend 150g
1 1/2 tsp baking powder 6g
1/2 tsp fine salt 3g

Orange Curd Filling

1/3 cup granulated sugar 67g
1 Tbsp orange zest - zest of 1 large orange 6g
2 large egg yolks or 1 large egg 56g
3 Tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice 45g
1/4 tsp fine salt 2g
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces 30g

Fresh Orange Buttercream

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 226g
1 Tbsp orange zest - zest of 1 large orange 6g
1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 4g
1/4 tsp fine salt 1g
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar 454g or a 1 lb. box
3 Tbsp fresh orange juice 45g

Tools & Decorations

Instructions

Orange Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C, and place 12 cupcake liners in a muffin pan.
Use your fingertips to massage 1 cup of granulated sugar with the zest of 1 large orange in a large bowl. This helps release the oil from the orange zest. The mixture should become aromatic and become a yellow/orangeish color.
Add 1/4 cup of room-temperature butter. Mix on a medium-high speed with a hand mixer for a minute to cream together the butter and sugar. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed to make sure everything is properly combined.
Add 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup water, 1/4 cup of orange juice, 1 large egg, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and a small drop of orange gel food coloring (optional) into the butter/sugar mixture. Mix on a medium speed until combined. Don't worry if the mixture looks broken at this point, it'll come together once we mix in the wet ingredients.
Then add 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt into the wet ingredients. Mix the batter until the ingredients are just combined and you can’t see any streaks of flour.
Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners, filling them about 3/4 full. Bake for 18-21 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.
Let the cupcakes cool for 15 minutes before moving them onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Orange Curd Cupcake Filling:

Make the orange curd next! It needs time to cool to room temperature. Fill a saucepan with 2 inches of water and heat over medium-low heat.
Add 1/3 cup sugar and 1 Tbsp of orange zest into a heat-proof bowl. Massage the zest and sugar together with your fingertips until the sugar is a yellow/orangeish color.
Then mix in 2 egg yolks or 1 large egg, 3 Tbsp of orange juice, and 1/4 tsp of fine salt in a medium-sized, heat-proof bowl. Whisk until combined and smooth.
Once the water begins to simmer, place the bowl on top of the saucepan to make a double boiler. Leave the heat on medium-low heat and make sure the water isn't touching the bottom of the bowl. Continuously whisk the mixture until it thickens. This usually takes me about 3-5 minutes. You'll know it's ready when the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Remove the bowl from the pan and turn off the stove. Add 2 Tbsp of butter and whisk until incorporated. The mixture should be relatively thick and smooth at this point. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove any potential bits of cooked egg and orange pulp.
Then place the orange curd in the fridge to cool. It should thicken and be chilled in 15-30 minutes. Leftover orange curd can be covered and stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Fresh Orange Buttercream:

Then it's time to make the fresh orange buttercream. Beat 1 cup of unsalted butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a hand mixer until smooth.
Add in the zest of 1 large orange, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and 1/4 tsp salt. Mix on a low speed until the ingredients are incorporated.
Mix in 3 1/2 cups of powdered sugar and 3 Tbsp of fresh orange juice on a low speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
Once fully mixed, if the frosting seems too thick, add additional orange juice (1 tsp at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar (a quarter of a cup at a time). Or if the frosting looks broken, add in more room-temperature butter, 1 Tbsp at a time until it comes back together.
Stir the frosting by hand with a rubber spatula once it's made for a minute or two to make the frosting super smooth. Then cut off the tip of the bag and fit it with an open star piping tip (like a Wilton 1M).
Place the buttercream in the piping bag and seal the top with a rubber band.

Decorating these Orange Cupcakes:

Once the cupcakes have fully cooled, remove the centers with a small sharp knife or a 3/4-inch circle cutter.
Fill the center of each cupcake with about 1 Tbsp of orange curd.
Then pipe a generous swirl of orange buttercream frosting on top of each cupcake, and garnish with an orange slice and a dusting of orange zest.

Video

Notes

Substitutions and Swaps

If you need to make any substitutions or swaps in this recipe, please check out the section on ingredient substitutions in the post above.

Yield:

One batch of this recipe makes 12 standard-sized cupcakes. It can also be used to make about 30 mini cupcakes (bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 F/175 C).

This recipe can also be doubled or halved if needed.

Variations:

To make eggless, dairy-free orange cupcakes, use dairy-free yogurt (almond, oat, or soy) in place of the sour cream and vegan butter in place of the unsalted butter (and omit the salt in this recipe).
To make gluten-free orange cupcakes, swap in your favorite gluten-free flour blend for the AP flour this recipe calls for, and be sure to over-mix your batter and let it sit for at least 30 minutes before baking for best results.

Making these Orange Cupcakes in Advance & Storage Tips:

You can make these cupcakes in advance! Frosted cupcakes can sit at room temperature for a few hours or be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container.

However, they taste best when they're freshly baked!

These cupcakes can also last up to a month in the freezer. If you plan to freeze them, I suggest waiting to fill and frost them until they're thawed.

You can also make your buttercream ahead of time or save any leftovers. The buttercream frosting will last in the fridge for up to a month.

Be sure to give the frosting a good stir once it thaws to get the consistency nice and smooth again.

You can also store buttercream in piping bags in the fridge. I find they keep their consistency well in piping bags and don't require any mixing after they've thawed.

Nutrition