Adapted from vanilla cupcakes and strawberry cake, these white chocolate strawberry cupcakes combine creamy white chocolate, real strawberries, and fluffy cupcakes. Reduced strawberry puree and freeze-dried strawberries are the secrets to real strawberry flavor.
From-scratch strawberry cake has left me defeated for 2 main reasons:
- The strawberry flavor is usually lackluster.
- The texture is too wet from the strawberries.
Strawberry cakes typically rely on artificial flavors. My goal was to produce a soft and moist strawberry cake made from real strawberries. I finally accomplished my baking goal with my strawberry cake. You tried the recipe and loved it too. After baking it in your own kitchen, you told me the cake is “unbelievable” and “phenomenal” and “as if someone had taken Breyers strawberry ice cream and put it into a cake.” 🙂
It’s one of the best cakes I’ve ever made and now it’s time to transform the recipe into cupcakes.
Video Tutorial: How to Make White Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes
To make the strawberry cupcakes extra special, top them with white chocolate strawberry frosting made from pure white chocolate and freeze-dried strawberries. Combination of white chocolate and strawberry is so yummy—just like in these strawberry and cream cookies. I admit that the cupcakes don’t have a super strong strawberry flavor—you’ll taste it, but it’s truly brought out when paired with our strawberry frosting.
But before we get to the frosting, let’s walk through the cupcakes.
Reduced Strawberry Puree is the Secret
The secret to packing real strawberry flavor into cake batter without adding too much liquid is to reduce the strawberries down. This little trick is a complete game changer and vastly improves both the flavor and texture of strawberry cake. Today we’re doing the same exact thing, but in cupcake form.
Grab fresh strawberries, puree them into a liquid, then reduce the puree down on the stove for about 20 minutes. Do you see the photo above? That is heavily concentrated pure strawberry flavor, about 1/4 cup of reduced strawberry puree. After making the strawberry cake, readers have said it’s helpful to make the reduced strawberry puree the night before so it has time to cool down.
As a refresher: If we added the strawberry puree without reducing it down first, it would completely ruin the texture of the cupcake and the strawberry flavor would be almost absent. Reducing it is the secret.
How to Make White Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes
This recipe is adapted from my strawberry cake, vanilla cupcakes, and fresh strawberry cupcakes. The ingredients are carefully formulated; each serves a crucial purpose. For example, cake flour produces fluffy cupcakes, egg whites provide structure without weighing the crumb down, and sour cream adds moisture. Milk thins the batter, creamed butter and sugar create a buttery and cake-y base, and the reduced strawberry puree adds flavor.
Beat the strawberry cupcake batter together with a mixer. The cupcake batter is smooth, creamy, and moderately thick. The reduced strawberry puree tints it pale pastel pink. For a more vibrant color, I suggest adding a drop or 2 of pink or red food coloring. I added 1 drop of “dusty rose” gel food coloring.
Fill the cupcake liners only about 2/3 full to avoid overflowing.
White Chocolate Strawberry Frosting
White chocolate strawberry cupcakes require the best frosting! And if that frosting is as bubble gum pink as Barbie’s corvette… well, that’s even better! This white chocolate strawberry frosting is adapted from my plain strawberry frosting and white chocolate buttercream frosting. It’s creamy, lush, and completely packed with real strawberry flavor. We’re using two special ingredients:
- Freeze-dried strawberries: Like strawberry cake, strawberry frosting used to leave me disappointed because (1) the strawberry frosting curdled from the added moisture and (2) no amount of fresh strawberries could get me the strawberry flavor I craved. The solution is freeze-dried berries. (Also the solution to raspberry flavor in our raspberry sugar cookies!) Grind freeze-dried strawberries into a powder and use in place of some of the confectioners’ sugar. You can find freeze-dried strawberries at stores like Wegmans, Giant, Trader Joe’s, Target, and many other major grocery stores, too. Keep your eyes peeled because they’re more commonly found that you think.
- White chocolate: For an indulgently creamy and velvety strawberry buttercream, let’s add pure white chocolate. Grab a white chocolate baking bar from the baking aisle. Two, actually. Most are sold as 4 ounce bars and you’ll need 6 ounces for the frosting. (Hold onto the extra 2 ounces for garnish.) Chop up and melt down. Let it cool for a few minutes, then mix directly into the strawberry frosting.
Remember the extra 2 ounces of white chocolate? Melt it down and coat some fresh strawberries for the perfect finishing touch to our white chocolate strawberry cupcakes. So beautiful, so simple, so strawberry!
I used piping tip Wilton 8B for the frosting. Start in the center of the cupcake and swirl upward. Love this piping tip! Do you follow the Canadian bakery Jenna Rae Cakes on Instagram? I got the cupcake decoration inspiration from them!
This cupcake recipe definitely requires some effort, but the good news is that you can get started on almost everything ahead of time. And the great news is that the result of your hard work is pretty pink cupcakes!
More Strawberry Recipes
- Homemade Strawberry Shortcake
- Strawberry Cake
- Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
- Strawberry Cupcakes
- Strawberry Coconut Macaroons
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Pie
White Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: 14-15 cupcakes
- Category: Cupcakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Strawberry cupcakes made with real strawberries and zero artificial flavor topped with white chocolate strawberry buttercream!
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cups (207g) cake flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 3 egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60g) sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (80ml) whole milk, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup reduced strawberry puree (see note)*
White Chocolate Strawberry Frosting
- 1 cup (about 25g) freeze-dried strawberries*
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups (240g) confectioners’ sugar
- 6 ounces (170g) white chocolate, melted and slightly cooled (see note)*
- 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream, half-and-half, or milk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- optional: fresh strawberries coated with 2 ounces melted white chocolate
Instructions
- Make the reduced strawberry puree and allow it to cool completely. See Note for instruction.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Line a second pan with 2 or 3 liners—this recipe makes 14–15 cupcakes. Set aside.
- Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamed, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the egg whites on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, slowly pour and mix in the milk *just* until combined. Do not overmix. Whisk in 1/4 cup of reduced strawberry puree, making sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. Batter will be slightly thick.
- Pour/spoon the batter into the liners. Fill only 2/3 full to avoid spilling over the sides when baking. Bake for 20–22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. For about 35 mini cupcakes, bake for about 11–13 minutes, same oven temperature.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
- When the cupcakes are nearly cool, melt the white chocolate for the frosting: Place chopped white chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl (I usually use a glass liquid measuring cup), and microwave in 20-second increments, stirring after every 20 seconds until completely smooth. Set it aside to cool at room temperature for 20 minutes. (Be sure the melted white chocolate has cooled for 20 minutes, so it’s still melted but not scorching hot, which would melt the butter.)
- Make the frosting: Using a blender or food processor, process the freeze-dried strawberries into a powdery crumb. You should have around 1/2 cup. Set aside. In a medium bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for 1 minute. Switch the mixer to low speed and slowly add the confectioners’ sugar and strawberry powder. Stir the cooled white chocolate so that it is smooth, and then add it to the butter/sugar mixture. Switch the mixer to medium speed and beat for 2 minutes until combined and creamy. Add the cream, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat for 1 minute until combined. Taste. Add 1 more Tablespoon of heavy cream/milk if needed to thin out, if desired. Add another pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet.
- Frost cooled cupcakes and serve. I used Wilton 8B piping tip and nestled a white chocolate-covered strawberry in the center.
- Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: I recommend making the reduced strawberry puree, as directed in the recipe Note, 1 day ahead of time so it can cool down. Cupcakes can be made ahead 1 day in advance, covered, and stored in the refrigerator. Frosting can also be made 1 day in advance, covered, and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use. Frosted or unfrosted cupcakes can be frozen up to 2–3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-cup Muffin Pan | Cupcake Liners | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Liquid Measuring Cup | Food Processor | Wilton 8B Piping Tip | Piping Bag (Reusable or Disposable) | “Dusty Rose” Gel Food Coloring
- Cake Flour: If you can’t get your hands on cake flour, you can make this homemade cake flour substitute. I suggest doing this twice, mixing it all up in 1 bowl then removing 1/4 cup since you need 1 and 3/4 cups in this recipe.
- Reduced Strawberry Puree: Puree 1/2 pound (8 oz/227g) of strawberries. You should have a little over 1/2 cup. Stirring occasionally, simmer the puree over low-medium heat for 20 minutes OR until you’re left with 1/4 cup or a little over 1/4 cup. Allow to cool completely before using in cake batter. It can be refrigerated to speed up the cooling process. I recommend making the reduced puree the day before so it has plenty of time to cool down. I cover and place in the refrigerator overnight. Use 1/4 cup in the cupcakes. Leftovers taste great spooned on ice cream/yogurt, or added to a smoothie. Readers have used thawed frozen strawberries with luck, but I personally have not tried it.
- White Chocolate: For best taste and texture, I strongly recommend using pure white chocolate, not white chocolate morsels or candy melts. It’s usually sold in 4-ounce (113g) bars in the baking aisle. I love Ghirardelli or Baker’s brands. You need 6 ounces (170g) for the frosting, so you’ll need 1 and 1/2 bars, but you can use the remaining 2 ounces for coating fresh strawberries as garnish!
- Where to buy freeze-dried strawberries? I always find freeze-dried strawberries in my regular grocery store in the aisle with the dried fruit. Target, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s carry them, too. Or you can purchase them online. Do not use the chewy/gummy dried strawberries. You need freeze-dried strawberries, which grind into a powder.
- Food Coloring: If desired, add a drop or 2 of pink or red food coloring to brighten the color of the cupcakes and/or frosting. I added 1 drop of “dusty rose” gel food coloring to the cupcake batter and to the frosting.
- Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together easily and evenly. Read here for more information.
- What to do with leftover egg yolks? Here are recipes using egg yolks.
- Be sure to check out my 10 tips for baking the BEST cupcakes before you begin!
If I was going to do this as three 6” cakes, for the three tiered berry cream cake this month, how long would I bake the cakes?
Hi Abby, Sounds delicious! You can follow the baking instructions in the post 6 Inch Cakes.
This link is not working, any chance someone could direct me to the 6” update?
Hi Sharon. Here is the post on 6 inch cakes!
Hi! I want to make these in August. I know we are no longer in peak strawberry season now, but mid July is closer than early August to strawberry season (I’m in Virginia if it matters). Should I buy my strawberries now and make and freeze the puree? Or is there not much difference at this point and I should just buy them when I am ready to make the cupcakes?
Hi Carrie! The strawberry puree yields incredibly concentrated strawberry flavor so it’s really up to you and your personal preference. If you make it now, you’ll be one step ahead- if you make it when you’re making the cupcakes, you won’t have to thaw it. Up to you! I hope these cupcakes are a hit!
I adapted the cupcake recipe to make a sheet cake. It was brilliant. Soft, fluffy and light and we could taste the strawberries. So delicious.
These are delicious! I followed the recipe almost to a T except that I didn’t have freeze dried strawberries, so I excluded them from the frosting. I made mini cupcakes, and even though the recipe said it would yield around 35, I somehow got 60 perfectly-sized mini cupcakes. Does anyone know the nutrition on these things though??
I have not made this recipe but looks cool
I baked the cake for my sister’s bday first then a week later the cupcakes! Absolutely amazing! You taste REAL strawberries! The cupcakes/cake came out perfectly baked, not mushy, not soggy. The frosting, OMG, everyone agreed it is the BEST! The freeze dried strawberry and reduced puree are indeed taking it to a whole new level!
Im going to try the blueberry oat muffin today! Will be back for the review
Thank you, Sally for delicious recipe!
These are wonderful – good flavor and perfect texture, including at high altitude. I was skeptical at first about the use of white chocolate in buttercream (who knew?). I am not generally a white chocolate fan. The frosting is very good! I recommend giving this a try!
Hi Sally. I managed to get frozen strawberries is that the same as freeze dried . I’m in the UK so I’m not junking it’s the same but different naming? Thanks
Hi Sumaiyah, frozen strawberries are not the same as freeze-dried. Freeze-dried are dry (stored at room temperature) with all of their moisture removed.
I just made these to drop off for my mom on her birthday and they are absolutely perfect! The strawberry and white chocolate are so good together! Thank you for taking the time to share your recipes
Hi Sally! I am wanting to make a strawberry cream cheese frosting to go with these cupcakes. I noticed that you have a recipe that calls for strawberry cream cheese and another one that calls for freeze dried strawberries – which one would you recommend for this cupcake recipe and can cream cheese frosting be piped? Thanks so much!
Hi Katie! I recommend the strawberry cream cheese frosting made with freeze-dried strawberries– it’s what I use for the strawberry cake. If you refrigerate it for about 30 minutes before piping, it will hold its shape much better.
Wow. These were just awful. The cupcakes had very little flavor despite the reduced strawberries. Overall, way too much work for such little payoff.
How would you recommend flavoring a Swiss meringue buttercream for this cupcake? Should I keep the same amount of freeze dried strawberries and white chocolate?
Hi Katie, If you are using my Swiss Meringue Buttercream recipe I recommend adding 1/2 cup of freeze-dried strawberry powder along with the vanilla extract and salt. No other changes to the recipe necessary.
This is the perfect recipe for a strawberry cupcake! The flavours and colours are spot on. The recipe is easy to follow and the cupcakes taste amazing!
Hi Sally,
Can I use buttermilk instead of whole milk for the frosting?
Sure can! It will have a slightly different flavor.
Hi Sally! This recipe is one of my favorites – I actually take this cupcakes and top it with the whipped cream frosting from your Strawberry Shortcake Cupcake recipe to pack on the flavor. Before I tried this one, however, I was in love with another strawberry cupcake recipe of yours which also had the whipped topping and included yogurt in the batter (I just remember the picture with the frosting have some sprinkles on it). Is this just an updated version of it?
Hi Ruhee, I did used to have one other recipe for Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes that you might be referring to. It was taken down because I was never fully pleased with it. However, I’m so glad you are! The recipe is basically this one: Blueberries ‘n Cream Cupcakes Leave out the lemon zest and blueberries. Add 2 Tablespoons flour, 2-3 Tablespoons strawberry puree, and about 1/2 cup very finely chopped strawberries.
Hey Sally,
This is the 3rd recipe i tried from your blog , successfully! The cupcakes turned out great. I skipped the frosting part as i dont have a beater and its difficult to find all needed ingredients where i live. But the cupcakes tastes great by themself. There was a very mild and tarty flavour from strawberries. The texture was very thick and moist. I used yogurt instead of sour cream and there were no complaints with the flavour. However, this time also a had a very crisp crumb as soon as they were out and it was kinda normal and soft the next day. And this time too the cake tops cracked all over 🙁 And i feel i had a slightly overpowering smell/flavour of lactose for my liking. May be beacuse of the milk. Is it okay to substitute buttermilk instead?
Hi Anusha! So glad you tried these strawberry cupcakes. Feel free to substitute the regular milk with buttermilk.
I made these to go with the Swiss Buttercream for the February challenge. Turned out so good! Light and fluffy, not too sweet. Perfection!
I could not find any freeze dried strawberries at the store. Is there a way to use the strawberry puree in the frosting? My daughter wants these cupcakes for her birthday and I dont want to disappoint her.
While you can try to add a bit of the puree you won’t have the same strong strawberry flavor and may be too thin to pipe. You can order them online if that is an option for you.
Made these cupcakes twice within a month already. The frosting is amazing and pipes very well. Thank you!!!
Do i understand that all cupcake recipes would be useable for 6in 3 layer cakes??
Any cupcake recipes yielding about 12-16 cupcakes have enough batter for 3 6-inch cake layers, yes!
Sally, I just tried this recipe and it the strawberry flavor wasn’t really lacking. I pureed and reduced 2 cups of frozen strawberries to less than 1 cup and used the amount that was listed. The puree taste great but it didn’t transfer to the cupcakes. Did I do something wrong?? How can I get more of the strawberry flavor?
Hi Polly, The cupcakes don’t have a super strong strawberry flavor– you’ll taste it, but it’s truly brought out when paired with our strawberry frosting. Of course the strawberry flavor depends on the berries you use also. The best berries are very sweet summer berries – difficult to find this time of year depending on where you live! You can also use a very small amount of strawberry extract if you don’t mind using it.
Hi Sally!
This recipe looks great! Do you think this would work with raspberries instead of strawberries? And if so, would there need to be any adjustments to the amount of sugar, since raspberries are usually more tart?
Thanks!!
You can certainly try it with raspberries! You will likely have to cook the puree down longer as raspberries usually have a higher water content. Let me know if you try it!
Hi there Amanda! I had a similar question (subbing in raspberries) and wondered if you had any success?
Yes, I tried Sally’s recipe today. Yesterday, I pureed frozen raspberries (12 oz bag). Since the raspberries were rather tart, I added 2 tbs of sugar-not sweet at all, just took some of the tartness away. I painstakingly strained the raspberries puree and set it in the fridge. I incorporated the puree today and the cupcakes came out fantastic. Note: I added 2 dabs of red and super white food gel. Once I added the raspberry puree, the color ended being a dusty mauve with a dab of pink here & there. (I was afraid I’d overmix the batter, so I just folded in the raspberry puree.) Ended up with nice swirls! I did not make the WC Strawberry frosting, though. I had made Sally’s awesome cream cheese frosting from a earlier batch. I’ll be using the cc frosting instead when I assemble the cupcakes. Thanks, SBA for another awesome recipe!
I planned to make these cupcakes today but ran out of time. I made the strawberry purée already though. Is it possible to freeze it and use it later?
Yes, definitely! Freeze and thaw, then use in the recipe as directed.
Sally, I loved this recipe and in general all your recipes! I’m sure it was something I did but my frosting came out really runny. I seem to have this problem with white chocolate frostings. I tried adding more powered sugar and chilling it in the fridge. Neither helped. Any suggestions?
Hi Kristine, if you are following the recipe exactly (using freeze dried strawberries and not any other type) then a few things I might suggest are to make sure your butter is room temperature – but not too warm. Make sure your white chocolate is cooled and that it’s real white chocolate – not chips. If all of this is correct try mixing all of the ingredients without the cream and add that in last a little at a time until you get the right consistency!
I’ve made so many of your cupcake recipes so you may notice a lot of reviews from me haha. These cupcakes were delicious and beautiful. My husband is a big strawberry fan and loved them.
Hi Sally!
I am a HUGE fan, I discovered your website a few months ago and my baking skills have grown by leaps and bounds. I am making a white birthday cake – using your “Favorite White Layer Cake” recipe, and had a request for a white chocolate frosting. After searching your website, I came up with the white chocolate strawberry frosting in this post, and I’m wondering if there would be any kind of special adjustments I would need to make to the recipe if I leave out the strawberry puree so that it’s just white chocolate? To me, theoretically it should be just fine, but I was hoping for our input before I dived into my project.
Any input you could provide would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Angela! Here is my plain white chocolate frosting recipe. You may need to 1.5x it depending how heavy you want to go on the frosting!
Can this recipe be used to make cake pops?
Hi Theresa! Definitely, but you don’t need quite as much frosting. I recommend halving the frosting recipe.
If I made the puree for some cupcakes on Thursday, do you think it’s ok to use the leftover puree for more cupcakes? Four days later. Thanks!
Absolutely. Keep in the refrigerator.
Hi Sally!
I tried this recipe to test for a 2-dozen cupcake order coming up and felt like it needed a little more strawberry punch. I really really want to try adding powdered freeze dried strawberries to the next round but I read your comment that you tried that with a cake and experienced an offputting flavor… any recommendations or maybe I should just try it myself and give you feedback? Would you sub out the weight from the flour?
Hi Becca! Thanks so much for trying these cupcakes. You can definitely try testing the recipe with freeze-dried powder in the cupcake batter. I would begin by adding a couple Tablespoons without taking out any flour. Any more powder than that, I would begin slightly reducing the flour. Hope this helps. Let me know how it goes!
Sally! Sally Sally Sally! It worked and the result is amazing! They’re so good, I’m beyond grateful for your input! I used almost all of a small bag of strawberries for a double batch and I am SO glad that it yields 2 (4 in my case) extra! Me and my bf scarfed them down so fast! Your website is just a goldmine. Forever grateful!
Oh my goodness! So, so, so, SO GOOD! I made these and took them into work and got nothing but praise, even one coworker going as far as to say they were the best cupcakes she’s ever eaten! So strawberry-ee, light, and delicious. Thank you for another great recipe!
Amazing recipe. Thank you for sharing!