Almond Cupcakes with Fresh Cherry Frosting – Moist almond cupcakes made from scratch are topped with a light and fluffy cherry frosting, made from fresh cherries.
We are definitely cupcake fans! If you’re looking to make even more cupcakes, try these Carrot Cake Cupcakes or these Circus Animal Cookie Cupcakes.
I’m not a live-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of girl. I like a schedule, and for the most part, I like predictability. Boring, right? Sometimes I wish I was more carefree, but I’m not one of those people that wake up in the morning saying “what am I going to do today?” I already know. Sometimes – or most of the time – the day doesn’t go exactly as planned, but there is almost always a plan.
As a blogger, I have a schedule, and I stick to it. I like to keep things organized, and I have an editorial calendar that I refer to often. At any given time, I probably have at the very least 2 weeks worth of recipes that are already made and photographed, just waiting to get posted.
Which is why it sometimes gives me anxiety to see other bloggers who are busy cooking something up in their kitchen, then Instagramming it, saying how it is going on their blog the next morning. It is extremely rare for me to make something and then post it the next day. I’m just weird like that!!
But I’m stepping out of my comfort zone today, because I just made these cupcakes yesterday. And as I took a bite, I knew that I couldn’t wait to share them. Especially since cherry season is so short and you need to make these before cherries disappear from store shelves.
I actually spent a good part of my day of my day yesterday perfecting these cupcakes. I don’t usually try multiple versions of something in the same day, but I was determined. I had purchased a big bag of cherries on sale, and I needed to use them quickly before they went bad. As I thought about what to do with them, the idea of a fresh cherry frosting came to mind. And I love the almond/cherry pairing, so it was only natural that I paired the fresh cherry frosting with almond cupcakes.
The almond cupcakes are simple and perfect. Tender and moist, with just the perfect amount of almond flavor. Then the cupcakes are topped with a creamy, light, and fresh cherry frosting. I was a little afraid that the cherry flavor wouldn’t really come through, so I added a whole cup of cherries – which ended up being the perfect amount of cherries. The cherries are pitted and then chopped before they are added to the buttercream. Just make sure you use a piping tip that is open enough for the cherry chunks to come through. This frosting is so good that I wanted to just eat it with a spoon!
Combine the almond cupcakes with the fresh cherry frosting and you have the perfect summertime cupcake recipe. Just make sure you have someone to share with, because you’ll want to eat them all yourself!
More Fruity Cupcakes:
Peach Cupcakes
Caramel Banana Cupcakes
Key Lime Cupcakes
Lemon Sunshine Cupcakes
Coconut Cherry Cupcakes
Raspberry Coconut Cupcakes
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Almond Cupcakes with Fresh Cherry Frosting
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter at room temperature
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
Fresh Cherry Frosting:
- 1 cup butter at room temperature
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup fresh cherries pitted and finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 18- muffin cups with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and mix to combine.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl in between additions. Beat in the almond extract. Add one-third of the flour mixture, beat to combine, then half of the buttermilk. Add another one-third of the flour, the remaining buttermilk, then the remaining flour. Beat just until combined.
- Fill the cupcake liners about 2/3 full of the batter. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18 minutes. Remove from the pans and cool completely.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add in the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing until completely combined. Beat in the salt and the almond extract, then turn the mixer to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the cherries and any juices that may have accumulated. Beat on low until combined, then turn to medium-high and beat an additional 2-3 minutes. The frosting should be light and creamy and smooth.
- Pipe the frosting on the cupcakes. Top with an additional cherry, if desired.
Joanne says
I am generally a PLANNER also but I do often do next day recipe posts. But then I also have posts that have been in my drafts for ages, so it’s definitely a mixed bag! I can see why you couldn’t wait to post these, though, because I can’t wait to make them!
Dana says
These look divine! And those strawberry ones…
CakePants says
Oh wow, these look divine!! I too recently made an exception to my posting tendencies to make way for a fresh cherry recipe. At this point, though, all the leftover cherries are frozen – do you think frozen/thawed cherries would work in the frosting, or should I make some adjustments?
Deborah says
I would think frozen/thawed cherries would work. You might need to add in a bit more powdered sugar if there is added moisture from them being frozen, but I think they’d work!
Kari says
We used frozen cherries and sadly the frosting broke.
Laura Dembowski says
I’m all about schedules too, and I pretty much never post the day after I make a recipe. But I can see why you made an exception with these! I’m cherry obsessed and these are perfection! Cherries and almond are one of my favorite combos.
Jackie says
Hi
What tip did you use on these cupcakes.
Deborah says
I used an Ateco 808.
dina says
what pretty cupcakes!
Lisa @ Wine & Glue says
I can’t wait to make these! They look amazing! I LOVE the cherry/almond combo.
Jessica @ A Kitchen Addiction says
Gorgeous! Love that fresh cherry frosting!
Meg @ The Housewife in Training Files says
Cherry & Almond is such a delicious combo! And I not a “fly by the seat of my pants” type of person either! But when a recipe such as these are a success, I am glad you shared it with us today!
Jaclyn says
These are gorgeous! I love that you made the frosting out of fresh cherries! Gotta try this!
Miss @ Miss in the Kitchen says
Such a gorgeous dessert! I can’t get enough of the fresh cherries!
Erin @ Simple Sweet & Savory says
I am obsessed with almond flavoring! I need to make these cupcakes because they look divine. Plus, my husband hates maraschino cherries, but he likes fresh. I have a big bowl of cherries in my fridge that I need to use, too. Thanks for sharing!
amanda @ fake ginger says
Man, I wish I was as organized as you. I skipped a blog post today because I was just too tired to bake or cook anything yesterday. Gah!
Almond and cherry is my favorite combo! I need to make these!
Anna @ Garnish with Lemon says
I’m a huge almond fan, and this cherry-almond combo is definitely up my alley. Gorgeous!
Tieghan says
These cupcakes are perfect on so many levels. I too love the photo and almond/cherry combo!
Colleen @ What's Baking in the Barbershop?! says
What gorgeous cupcakes! And awesome photos 🙂
Love the almond and cherry combo!!