Elderflower Cucpakes with Lemon Frosting

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Infused with St. Germain, Elderflower Cupcakes are one of my favorites. The tender vanilla cupcakes have a tasty elderflower flavor that pairs perfectly with a zesty lemon buttercream frosting. And they start with a boxed cake mix to keep things easy!

Lemon and Elderflower cupcakes on a table with a fresh herb garnish. — If you love St. Germain, you’ll love the flavor of these Elderflower Cupcakes!

Alcohol infused cupcakes are perfect to serve for a girl’s night in or bridal shower! While I enjoy Wine Cake during the holidays, I love to explore other boozy cupcakes and cakes the rest of the year.

I always look for ways to make the most use of the things I keep on my home bar. And adding St-Germain liqueur to cupcakes is a creative and tasty use!

Why This Recipe Works

If you are looking to celebrate something, this French-inspired cupcake is the treat you need to make and it couldn’t be easier since it uses a boxed cake mix for the base.

The vanilla cupcakes are infused with St. Germain Elderflower liqueur and are topped with a velvety and super creamy lemon frosting. It’s a flavor match made in heaven.

These Elderflower Cupcakes are delicate with a bright lemon flavor with a subtle floral note.

Even if you aren’t a skilled baker, you can make this dessert! Adding a few ingredients to a boxed cake mix ensures a delicious dessert every time.

Thanks to the St-Germain, these are fun to serve for any girl’s night in, bridal or baby shower. Apparently, Megan Markle served an Elderflower Cake at her recent Royal wedding. Because it’s royally delicious.

I’m not sure if her’s was boozy or not, but in my opinion, it should be!

Not sure you want to buy a bottle of Elderflower liqueur to make these? You may want to try Rosé Cupcakes, Sangria Cupcakes or Margarita Cupcakes instead.

Ingredient Notes

Cupcakes infused with St. Germain Elderflower liqueur on a table.

Scroll down to the printable recipe card for measurements and detailed directions.

For the Cupcakes

Boxed cake mix is a great base for boozy cocktail cupcakes. I like vanilla cake mix for these since it lets the elderflower flavor come through a little bit more.

To the dry cake mix, I add butter, oil and eggs which is pretty typical. But in this recipe, I also add buttermilk. It’s a bit acidic so it really helps to make the cupcake tender.

St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur is added to give that distinctive floral note that is sweet and has a slight citrus note. (Head to the FAQ section to find out some substitution ideas in case you don’t want to use the liqueur.).

For the frosting

I always start with my favorite vanilla buttercream recipe and add flavors as needed based on the recipe I am making. You can always stick with this buttercream, as is, if you don’t want to make the lemon buttercream.

Be sure to head over to that post for the instructions on creating the base. For preparation and planning purposes the recipe uses butter, vegetable shortening, powdered sugar, heavy cream, salt and vanilla extract.

Once the basic recipe is made, you’ll add lemon juice and zest to give it that zing! It’s a quick and easy recipe that is always delicious!

How to make Elderflower Cupcakes

Unfrosted cupcakes spiked with elderflower liqueur stacked on top of each other on a table with a bowl of frosting behind them.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners and set aside.
In a small bowl combine St. Germain elderflower liqueur and buttermilk and set aside.
In a bowl beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add oil and beat until incorporated. Slowly beat in the eggs, adding them one at a time.
Alternately mix in cake mix and St. Germain/ buttermilk mix in 3 batches, beginning and ending with cake mix.
Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners and put in the oven.
Turn down the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 15 minutes or until done.
Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.

Bowl of lemon buttercream next to unfrosted cupcakes.

Meanwhile, whip up the frosting. (Again, you find those instructions here).

Use a mixer on medium speed to mix up the buttercream. Then mix in the lemon zest and lemon juice.

Lemon buttercream frosted St. Germain elderflower cupcakes on a table.

Decorate the cooled Elderflower Cupcakes with lemon frosting and garnish with fresh thyme sprigs.

I LOVE using fresh herbs to garnish my cupcakes! And thyme pairs really well with both the lemon and elderflower flavors.

St. Germain cupcakes on a table topped with fresh thyme.

These are SO tasty! Of course, you can serve these alcoholic cupcakes for any occasion, but they are super great for any type of party or even Mother’s Day.

These are spiked cupcakes that your friends will love. You can make these as an edible gift for friends. The flower-y French liqueur makes people feel a little fancy!

Tips and Tricks

Don’t want to buy a full bottle of St-Germain liqueur to make these Lemon and Elderflower Cupcakes? You can always purchase one of the airplane-sized bottles from your local wine shop!
Want even more elderflower liqueur flavor? Brush some directly onto the cupcakes when they are hot out of the oven!
You can add St. Germain to the buttercream also if you want. Add a tablespoon when you add in the lemon juice and mix. Add more as needed for that perfect flavor. If it gets too runny, add a touch of powdered sugar until you get the right balance.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can you use instead of St. Germain?

You can use any other brand of elderflower liqueur. If you can’t find that, you could use an elderflower syrup. Or try something else that has floral notes like rose, orange blossom water or a violet liqueur.

What’s the best boxed cake mix to use?

I prefer to use a classic vanilla cake mix to make these Lemon and Elderflower Cupcakes but you could also try it with lemon cake mix. Yellow cake mix is also an option that has a more distinct “cake batter” flavor. The vanilla cake mix lets the elderflower flavor shine through best, though.

Do you have to start with the oven at 400 degrees?

When you preheat the oven to 400 degrees, it gives the cupcakes a shock of heat that makes them rise in a dome better. Then after the first couple of minutes (anything from 2 to 6 minutes), you can lower the oven temp to 350 so they cook evenly.

Will these cupcakes get you drunk?

St. Germain’s ABV is 20% which is a little more than wine but less than most liquor. Because the amount you add to the batter is not a lot, the chances that these cupcakes will get you drunk is very low. There is also some science around alcohol burning off during baking so I would say these are not going to leave you with a hangover.

A few cupcakes on a table and the one in front has a bite out of it.

You’re going to love these delicious St. Germain Elderflower Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream!

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Close up of a frosted elderflower cupcake with a bite out of it on a table.

St-Germain Elderflower Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream

These Elderflower Cupcakes are so yummy! You need to try these delicate white cupcakes infused with St. Germain liqueur and topped with lemon buttercream now! With that subtle elderflower flavor, you'll get sweet and slightly floral cupcakes spiked with a little bit of alcohol.

5 from 1 vote

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 30

Servings: cupcakes

Calories: 254kcal

Author: Sharon Garofalow

Ingredients

For Lemon Buttercream

▢ 1 batch Very Best Vanilla Buttercream
▢ 2 tsp lemon zest
▢ 1 Tsp lemon juice

Instructions

For the Elderflower Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners and set aside.
In a small bowl combine St. Germain liqueur and buttermilk and set aside.
In a bowl beat the butter until light and fluffy.
Add oil and beat until incorporated.
Slowly beat in the eggs, adding them one at a time.
Alternately mix in cake mix and St. Germain in 3 batches, beginning and ending with cake mix.
Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners and put in the oven.
Turn down the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 15 minutes or until done.
Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.

For the Lemon Buttercream

Make one batch of my Vanilla Buttercream Recipe.
Add lemon zest and juice and mix well.
Frost the cupcakes and garnish with fresh thyme leaves.

Notes

Don’t want to buy a full bottle of the liqueur to make these Elderflower Cupcakes? You can always purchase one of the airplane-sized bottles from your local wine shop!
Want even more elderflower liqueur flavor? Brush some directly onto the cupcakes when they are hot out of the oven!
You can add St. Germain to the buttercream also if you want. Add a tablespoon when you add in the lemon juice and mix. Add more as needed for that perfect flavor. If it gets to runny, add a touch of powdered sugar until you get the right balance.
You can use Elderflower Cordial if you want to skip the alcohol.
Starting with the oven at 400 degrees helps to give the cupcakes a dome shape on top but you can bake them at 350 the whole time if you prefer.
The ounces of the cake mix may vary depending on the brand. Use whatever boxed mix you can find, no need to make it that exact amount.

Nutrition

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This post was originally published September 9, 2020 and has now been updated to include more details so you can make these St. Germain Cupcakes perfectly every time.