April 28, 2021

Lilac Cupcakes with Lilac Buttercream Frosting

These Lilac Cupcakes with Lilac Buttercream have a subtle floral flavor and aroma that makes the most beautiful and delicious treat. Make homemade lilac syrup and lilac sugar from fresh edible lilac flowers to get the flavor in these cupcakes.

a lilac cupcake with lilac buttercream frosting and fresh lilac flowers as garnish
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Lilacs are such a beautiful and aromatic flower. And guess what? They are edible! The minute I discovered that you could eat these special little flowers my first thought was to make Lilac Cupcakes with Lilac Buttercream. These little baked goods taste as good as they sound using fresh lilac flowers. The flavor is subtle and the purple color of the frosting creates a beautiful presentation perfect for any occasion.

This recipe is a small batch recipe meant to only make about 10-12 cupcakes. I always find this is perfect for my house (mostly for me so I don’t eat them all 😂). If you want more cupcakes, feel free to double this recipe and you are good to go.

lilac cupcakes with fresh lilac flowers on top

Ingredients Needed to Make Lilac Cupcakes

  • all-purpose flour
  • baking powder
  • salt
  • unsalted butter
  • lilac sugar (recipe below)
  • lemon zest
  • egg
  • lilac syrup (recipe below)
  • milk
  • powdered confectioners sugar
  • vanilla extract
  • purple food coloring (or red and blue)
  • fresh lilac flowers for garnish
a lilac cupcake on a pink platter

How to Make Cupcakes with Edible Flowers

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare the cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
  2. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl and set aside. In the bowl of a mixer or a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Mix in the egg, lemon zest, and lilac syrup.
  3. Add half of the dry ingredients and mix them into the sugar mixture using a spatula or spoon. Add half of the milk and combine. Repeat until all of the ingredients have been mixed in.
  4. Fill liners with batter and bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
lilac cupcakes with lilac buttercream frosting swirled on top

How to Make Lilac Buttercream Frosting

In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, whip the butter until light and fluffy. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and mix in completely. Put in the vanilla, milk, and lilac syrup and combine. Add the rest of the powdered sugar and continue beating until the frosting is smooth. Add purple food coloring and mix in completely.

How to Make Lilac Syrup

You can check out my post for the complete recipe to make Lilac Simple Syrup. You will need 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 cup of fresh lilac flowers that have been rinsed and de-stemmed. Bring the ingredients to a boil in a small saucepan, remove from the heat and allow the mixture to steep and cool for 2-3 hours. Once cool, add purple food coloring and store it in a sealable container.

lilac syrup and fresh lilac flowers on a table

How to Make Lilac Sugar

You can make your own lilac sugar in a small coffee/nut grinder, food processor, or blender. Place 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbsp fresh lilac flowers in the grinder. Pulse about 6-8 times just until combined. Place the lilac sugar in an airtight container until you are ready to use it. You can store the sugar for several weeks in a sealed container.

  • lilacs and sugar in a grinder
    fresh lilac flowers and sugar in a grinder
  • lilac sugar in a grinder
    lilac sugar in a grinder

Other Delicious Dessert Recipes to Check Out

lilac cupcake on a pink platter

Lilac Cupcakes and Lilac Buttercream Frosting

These Lilac Cupcakes and Lilac Buttercream frosting are beautiful to make and even more delicious to eat!
5 from 23 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Cooling Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 10 cupcakes
Calories: 312kcal
Author: EmilyFabulous

Equipment

Ingredients

Lilac Cupcakes

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temp
  • ¾ cup lilac sugar (see notes)
  • 1 large egg, room temp
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 2 tablespoon lilac syrup (see notes)
  • ½ cup milk, room temp

Lilac Frosting

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temp (2 sticks)
  • 4 cups powdered confectioners sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 tablespoon lilac syrup (see notes)
  • 2-3 tablespoon milk
  • purple food coloring (or red and blue)
  • fresh lilac flowers for decoration

Instructions

Lilac Cupcakes

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare the cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
    cupcake pan with cupcakes liners
  • Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl and set aside. In the bowl of a mixer or a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Add the egg, lemon zest, and lilac syrup and mix in.
    dry ingredients for lilac cupcakes
  • Add half of the dry ingredients and mix into the sugar mixture using a spatula or spoon (you don't want to overmix the flour!). Add half of the milk and combine. Repeat until all of the ingredients have been mixed in.
    lilac cupcake batter
  • Fill liners with batter and bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not overbake. Allow the cupcake to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then place them on a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
    baked lilac cupcakes

Lilac Frosting

  • In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, whip the butter until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes.
    creamed butter for frosting
  • Add 2 cups of powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and mix in completely. Put in the vanilla, milk, and lilac syrup and combine. Add the rest of the powdered sugar and continue beating until the frosting is smooth. Add the food coloring and mix in completely.
    lilac buttercream frosting
  • Frost the cooled cupcakes using a piping bag and tip of choice (I used Wilton 2D). Add fresh lilac flowers on top of each cupcake for aroma and decoration. Enjoy immediately.

Notes

  • Ensure you use only lilac flowers that have not been sprayed with chemicals. Rinse the flowers and remove them from the stem before eating or using them in these recipes.
  • Make your own lilac sugar in your coffee grinder! Place 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbsp lilac flowers in your coffee grinder. Pulse until combined. Place in an airtight container until ready to use. 
  • Make your own lilac syrup by steeping lilac flowers in a simple syrup. Add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, and 1 cup lilac flowers in a small saucepan. Being to a boil and remove from the heat. Allow the syrup to steep and cool for 2-3 hours. Strain the flowers from the syrup, add purple food coloring, and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupcake | Calories: 312kcal | Carbohydrates: 38.2g | Protein: 1.9g | Fat: 18.1g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 64mg | Sodium: 62mg | Potassium: 66mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 29.7g | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 1mg

Any nutrition calculations are only estimates using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.

lilac cupcake with frosting and fresh lilac flowers on top
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