Lemon-Blueberry Cupcakes with Egg-Free Lemon Curd
I have a really strong aversion to eggs in their raw or close-to raw state. Basically anything that resembles or tastes like egg (scrambled eggs, creme brulee, etc), is a no-go in my book. Even thinking of them makes me feel kind of green in the face. Why? Well, My mom (bless her heart) decided that our childhood would be bettered by plopping a raw egg yolk into our hot cereal every morning (gag). The damage was done, and to this day I still can hardly look at a bowl of hot cereal, or a carton of eggs without grimacing. Anyhow...all this is to explain why it was such a surprise when this Tuesday the idea of cupcakes made to look like little sunny side up eggs came to mind. I should have panicked and then rushed for a waste-bin...but I didn't. Maybe Easter has taken over my brain. In any case, today I'm happy to be able to share my Lemon-Blueberry Cupcakes with Egg-Free Lemon Curd and Lemon Whipped Cream Frosting with you (phew...say that 3 times quickly). Hooray!
So, going into this, I knew I wanted to create something that would use up some of my frozen blueberries from last year's epic Summer berry picking session, and decided to adapt this Lemon Cupcake recipe by My Baking Addiction. For my version I used the zest and juice from Meyer Lemons, and then folded in 1 cup of frozen blueberries (fresh would also work) into the batter at the very end. Of course I also made it gluten-free (using Carol's Gluten-free Flour and gluten-free vanilla). Then instead of a heavy frosting, I decided to lighten the whole thing up with this zesty Lemon Whipped Cream Frosting (I had to add a couple extra Tablespoons of sugar to my batch, and used Meyer Lemons instead of standard ones). Lastly, I topped the whole thing off with a dollop of egg-free lemon curd that I created (heavily adapted from this recipe). You could also use a traditional lemon curd recipe or even buy a jar of it at the store to save some time. If you really need the lemon color to pop you could also add in a drop of yellow food coloring, but I don't think it's essential.
To be honest, I think the lemon curd could have turned out a bit better texture-wise, but since I've never eaten the real deal I don't have anything to base it off of. The flavor was awesome, so if anything I might decrease the amount of cornstarch that I used so that the end result would be a bit thinner (the recipe here shows the reduced measurement).
Egg-free Meyer Lemon Curd
- 5 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 6 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 6 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- pinch of salt
- (optional) 1/8 teaspoon pure lemon extract
Place butter into a small saucepan and melt on low heat. Meanwhile in a small bowl whisk cornstarch into milk until combined. Zest and juice lemons and set aside. When butter is melted, turn burner up to medium-high and slowly whisk in the milk/cornstarch mixture. Add granulated sugar to pan and stir to incorporate. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, pinch of salt and lemon extract to the pan and continue to mix until sauce comes to a light boil and sauce thickens. Cook for 3 minutes more and remove from heat. Cool completely and serve. Sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
My daughter and I ate these both warm from the oven with just the lemon curd, and yesterday topped in full fashion, and love them both ways...although warm from the oven got my daughter's vote. If you end up making these or your own version, I'd love to hear what you think about them. Enjoy! xo Ez
Prop notes: The cupcake liners are from Bake it Pretty, however I don't believe that they have the blue ones available anymore.
Thursday, March 15, 2012 
Reader Comments (28)
YUMMERS! Pinning this to my FOOD LOVE board now!
These look amazing! And scrumptious!
Egg yolk on your hot cereal? Yikes, that's bad. I can't eat dates for the same reason. My grandma would cut them up and put them on our oatmeal, even if we said we didn't want them. I remember looking at them and thinking they looked like grasshoppers. I think the egg yolk is worse, though.
Your cupcakes look lovely and delicious, even though they look a little like eggs. :)
I can't wait to try these!! They look like a taste of heaven. :)
YUMMY! Can't wait to try:)
Scrumptious! I wish I had one right now!
Oh my, they look absolutely delicious!
Wow! Totally bookmarking this for future baking. And your photos are so perfect as usual! =)
Looks yummy and as always, so beautifully photographed. Thanks for my daily dose of pretty!
i just had to write & tell you how much i appreciate & love your gluten free recipes you share. not only lovely visually, but helps me to discover new ways of enjoying cooking! thank you!
I love lemon, blueberries, and cupcake papers! YAY! These are so gorgeous....the photography is almost as yummy as the cake!
Your photography is stunning. If these are as yummy as they look they will definitely become a family favorite!
These are mouth watering!!! They look so delicious. I need to make them!! Thanks for sharing!
truly the sweetest liners.
YES, in as many ways the word yes can be spoken!
Oh, they look so yummy and delicious!! I have just discovered your blog this week and love reading your posts. Have a wonderful weekend.
Beautiful post and you even had me chuckling out loud at one point. :) It IS pretty funny you would go for this style of cupcake considering your completely understandable egg aversion!
Looks delish! My dad used to make us milkshakes that had raw eggs in them...
Early memories are so important. I'd rather eat a raw egg than a hard boiled egg anytime! I love eggs---except for hard boiled. My grandmother made me eat a COLD baked bean sandwich. Yuck. Probably the reason I don't like picnics. Baked beans and hard boiled eggs. I don't like corn either. LOL...life goes on.
These look incredible! I need to get some blueberries and get started making them!
Oooh, I like the sound of these and I have blueberries to use up from my freezer as well. Another great recipe I've made with these flavors is a Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake. It looks just as beautiful as it tastes. Here's the link if you're interested http://www.sunset.com/food-wine/kitchen-assistant/coffee-cake-recipes-00418000073930/page3.html
Happy Friday!
These look amazing. Incredible photography too. Can't wait to try. Thanks for sharing.
I'm impressed. I found this place on Ask poking around for something totally unrelated - now I'm gonna have to read through the archives.
Thank you for leading me to this great Vegan website. There's some great Vegan recipes I anxious to try out!
Yummy!